In her novel Eat, Pray, Love Elizabeth Gilbert embarks on
the harrowing journey of rediscovery that plagues the middle age of the modern (wo)man.
Her story starts with the divorce of her husband and the disintegration of the
normalcy in her life. Thrown into a state of chaotic depression, she resolves
to restore the balance in her life. This restoration manifests in the form of pilgrimage.
She travels through Europe and Asia in a 3-part excursion that she separates
into Eat, Pray, and Love.
The
ultimate goal for Gilbert is to find the love that was lost to her in the
beginning of her tale. This search for love is quintessential to the journey of
the middle life crisis. Love is symbolic of the balance that Gilbert seeks to
rediscover. It is the cornerstone of one’s faith and it is within this love
that one may find his stasis–his safe haven–and settle under love’s ceiling in
their true home.
The problem
I have with this story is that Gilbert needs a male companion in order to reestablish
the order in her life. I understand that it fulfills the love lost in the
beginning of the book, but it detracts from the idea of self-fulfillment. I perhaps harkens on the idea of a complete human
being being the union of a man and a woman (2 heads, 4 arms and legs). I
understand why Gilbert wanted what she got, but I would’ve like this story much
better if she was able to resolve her journey purely by her own power. Still,
the quest for love requires compensation for that love and Gilbert found her
answer when she moved back to the United States with her betrothed.
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