Author Archives: Christopher Erazo

The Promise Child

I was under the impression that there can only be one promise child. The reason for this is because throughout the Neapolitan Novels Lenu and Lila’s rivalry indicates a constant battle of who is the most successful. Whether it is social class or knowledge, both of them are constantly striving to gain the upper hand in their relationship. Naturally, I assumed that one of them would eventually rise above, and claim superiority over the other. Now that I am close to completing The Story Of the Lost Child. I wonder if I was presumptuous into believing that between Lenu and Lila; there could be only one to hold the title: the promise child.

I ask this because of a conversation between Lenu and her mother (151-153), in which she reveals that Lenu is the only child that she believed to be special. Because of Lenu’s divorce and her relationship with Rino, she claims that Lenu is lost. According to their conversation, Lenu was supposed to be a savior of the Greco family. She was supposed to use her knowledge to nurture her family, not use it to bring shamed to the family name. In addition, a similar revelation that occurred between Lila and Maestra Oliviero (178), in which she reveals to Lenu that Maestro Oliviero was disappointing in what Lila has become. Furthermore, Lila was supposed to be successful like Lenu. In my opinion, It is difficult to determine who is or was the promise child. The majority of the volumes illustrates Lila being deceitful and manipulative. Now Lenu is emanating these vile actions. I guess I’ll find out by the end

Lila’s Clone

We spoke in class about the complicated, yet unique relationship between Lenu and Lila, which is a form of give and take; Lenu is able to improve because of Lila and vice versa. It is possible that over the course of their friendship Lila’s influence managed to subvert Lenu’s identity. It is by this notion that I am beginning to notice that Lenu is becoming Lila, for she is exhibiting familiar acts that we have seen from Lila.

In the third volume, Lila leaves her son to Elena so she can pursue her career. We see this again in the fourth volume, but this time from Lenu, in which she leaves her children in the care of Adelle so she can pursue her needs (Ferrante 37),both of which expressed the same level of selfishness to put their needs above everyone else. In addition, Lenu puts Pietro and her children in an uncomfortable position when she leaves them (30). This is familiar, for Lila puts Lenu in the same uncomfortable position in the second volume when she leaves her to be the “lookout” while she is with Nino. Finally, Lenu thinks blindly about her needs, in which she foolishly claims her devotion towards Nino (35). Furthermore, Lenu is indifferent to the consequences, for she believes everything will work out in the end. Again, we have seen this before in the second volume when Lila begins her affair with Nino, despite Lenu ‘s many warnings. There Lila truly believes that no one will find out about her affair, for she believes that situations eventually works itself out.

The Weight Of The Other

According to Ferrante in a interview titled In Spite of Everything, the individual represents as a collection of ideas (people, ideas, and actions) that are born or transformed by others; good development (364).In the third volume, Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay by Ferrante,  Lila challenges Ferrante’s idea about the subject of others in relation to one’s transformation. She is unable to recognize the weight of the “others”, putting a value or evoking change in her transformation. For example, Lila tries to defend her progress Professor Galiani (143). Admittedly, she states that she doesn’t have “the ability”, in addition she claims that the act of studying makes a person wicked. This excuse is suppose to satisfy Professor Galiani’s inquiry, but she immediately counterpoints Lila’s assumption by mentioning Elena’s academic studies, and her missing wickedness. This prompts Lila to be indifferent, and tries to occupy her thoughts about the significance of Professor Galiani’s response by tending to her child. In addition, Lila disregards Elena’s announcement about her pregnancy. Lila informs her to be caution for a change like that brings disaster to one’s life (233). Lila goes into detail about her previous pregnancies and the burden it caused her. Like a warning, she informs Elena to expect these troubles. Here, Lila once again fails to see the positive aspects of expecting a child. These examples illustrates the challenge in Ferrante’s idea about the individual.

Delight Within The Structure Of Naples

As porous as this stone is the architecture. Building and action interpenetrate in the courtyards, arcades, and stairways. In everything they preserve the scope to become a theater of new, unforeseen constellations.(Benjamin 167-168)

This quote above is from Walter Benjamin, “Naples” and it resonated with me for I saw Naples as a stage where it was easy to hide true intentions. The way this city was built allowed some force or someone who is pulling the strings decide what the audience gets to see. Everything else that was considered to be too harsh or extreme were kept behind the stage.

I wasn’t the only one who saw “Naples” as place where one can succumb to delight without the need to attract attention. Jacqueline Vargas’s post, Porosity: Private is Public touches the contradiction within how life is depicted in Ferrante’s My Brilliant Friend. The private vs. public life is at a equilibrium here. Lila has the life of the city within her home, but It’s not necessarily public to everyone around.

Irini Belitsis bought up an interested notion in her post The Clichéd View of Naples in which tourist don’t see Naples as it truly is. A city that has seen its fair share of chaos. Everyone else in the novel My Brilliant Friend is well aware of its harshness but the international audience don’t see it as so. When people who are not from Naples think of this place as a magnificent paradise that is untouched by the outside world. You and I know that it’s false, but Naples does not reflect that sense. This city is isolated to the effects of the world, and I wonder if there a isolation within the isolation. Specifically, the realness the depicted in the novel and how it’s not public knowledge and the deeper isolation from the world that is oblivious to this.

Ariana Guzman’s excellent post Naples as a Theater mentioned what I wanted to touch in my meta post that Naples is a stage in itself. As Guzman said herself that Lila’s name carries weight and value that only has structure because it’s an element within the stage. With that in mind, as William Shakespeare coined the phrase in Act-II, Scene-VII of the play As You Like It “All the world’s a stage,/ And all the men and women merely players”.

My “Brillant” Friend

I am beginning to wonder whether Lila is truly the brilliant friend in this book. Granted, she does fit the description of being clever and talented, but these factors don’t make you truly brilliant. Elena has emphasized about Lila’s hidden potential and how intimidating her intellect can bring. Although Elena sees this as a competition, Lila seems to be in her own league apart from Elena. Now what does it mean to be brilliant. I believe that positive actions are required for a person to be qualified as brilliant. These actions make the person virtuous. This is what being brilliant truly means, and so far, I don’t recall a moment where Lila empathize or sacrifice her time for others.    

In fact, in section 16 in Adolescence Elena indicates that Lila is like the living embodiment of chaos. According to her, “it slowly became clear to me not only to me, who had been observing her since elementary school, but to everyone, that an essence not only seductive but dangerous emanated from Lila.”(Ferrante 143). Maybe as I continue reading this book, events will shed light about the brilliancy about Lila or maybe I’m being presumptuous and the actual brilliant person won’t come into play until later in the book

Evolution in Elena by Means Dependency

It is evident that Elena is fascinated about Lina, whether it is about her behavior or intellect. This is contradicting for in the prologue Lina is depicted as frail or easily broke, “You haven’t seen her for a while, Elena, she’s gotten worse: she’s never sleepy, she comes in, goes out, does what she likes.”(Ferrante 19). This does not reflect Lina’s early childhood where she lived in a rough environment but managed to move forward because she had a strong will. The mystery here is how Lina, tough as nails person, managed to become this total opposite. I’m sure all of this will be answered as we go through their story.

There were plenty of on instances when Elena was baffled by Lina’s responses or actions and it merits to be analyze in relation to their evolution. It is still too soon to shed light about their relationship into the reading but from what the text provided it is clear that there is a element of dependency in their friendship. We see it in the prologue, “We’ll see who wins this time, I said to myself.”(Ferrante 23). Here Elena is an adult and she is competing with Lina of this made-up race. Although it’s established that Elena and Lina were apart for some time there is a drive in Elena to catch up or rather to be in terms with Lina. This need to be in the same level as Lina in stems from this unspoken competitiveness that started early childhood, “She began to subject me to proofs of courage that had nothing to do with school.”(Ferrante 54). Elena’s growth is in relation to Lila’s growth. Lila excels at school, Elena pushes herself so she doesn’t fall behind. Although she admits that Lila is too far advanced for her nevertheless she continues to thrive to improve her intellect. Unlike Elena, Lila’s growth is all through her own strengths and she achieved this with little effort. I have yet to see moments with absolute certainty that this effect of growth by means of dependency is the same for Lila. This seems to be one-sided as of right now.