Judgmental Attitudes, Isolation, and Forgiveness in...

In Marilynne Robinson’s Gilead narrator and reverend John Ames seeks to transcend the isolation he feels from the title town through a letter to his son. John Ames holds the ironic role of moral leader and recluse, which leaves him alienated from the people who respect him. His isolation is a byproduct of his independence; an independence that distances him from those he loves: Jack Boughton and his son. This estrangement is represented in the text by his heart condition which prevents him from watching his son grow up, metaphorically epitomizing the damage that his years of solitude have done to him. Therefore, in order to find a way to transcend his temporal life and imminent death, he writes a letter to his son offering something†¦show more content†¦John Ames’ work on his sermons and religious studies indicates that he exemplifies the role as moral leader to the community because his job concerns the absolute morality that Christianity offers. The jok e’s end comes from when the townsfolk see the preacher coming. This implies that the joke transgresses the moral code that John Ames represents because it verbally stops when the townsfolk are confronted with the presence of the moral code. Hence, they respectfully stop telling the â€Å"dirty† joke. However, the respect offered by the citizens of Gilead reveals a distance between John Ames and the society of which he is a part. Although John Ames is given reverence by the community in which he holds a prominent position, he is estranged by this reverence. It reveals that he holds the role as an outsider from the lives of the townspeople who view him as a moral compass, who may not appreciate the joke. Furthermore, the phrase â€Å"of course† colloquially means that what happened or will happen is natural and to be expected. Thus, by saying â€Å"of course the joking stopped† Gilead creates a dichotomy between John Ames and the community around him . The narrator’s role as moral leader leaves him estranged from the community because of how well he is respected. The narrator’s isolation and