In
Ragtime, Doctorow uses several historical figures in his novel to shape the
story. Two of these figures are Henry Ford and J.P. Morgan, both extremely
wealthy men. However, although they are both successful business owners Ford
and Morgan are portrayed as being very different. Ford, who we meet first, is
home-spun and pretends to be “not as quick-witted” as other business elites
(Doctorow 135). He is not presented as being emotional or connected to other
humans; he distances himself from other people with lower intelligence than
him, and is extremely precise about time—allowing himself a mere minute for a
“display of sentiment” after success (Doctorow 136).
On
the other hand, Morgan appears to be less satisfied being alone at the top. He
desperately tries to make connections with other businessmen, whose behavior he
finds “appalling” (Doctorow 140). At one
point Morgan even resorts to talking to birds, and consumes himself with his
Egyptian obsessions. Trying to find someplace to belong, Morgan concludes that
he must be part of the supposed “sacred tribe of heroes, a colony from the gods
who are regularly born in every age to assist mankind” (Doctorow 142). Clearly
Morgan is less willing to be the isolated, cold businessman that Ford is.
This
leads to an interesting dynamic when Ford and Morgan “meet” in Doctorow’s
narrative. Morgan tries to impress Ford with his fancy lunch, Egyptian
artifacts, and tales of reincarnation. However, Ford is not at all impressed
and even tells Morgan that he gained equal (or better?) knowledge of these
topics from a 25 cent book, not extensive world travels. I read this
interaction as Ford undermining Morgan’s self-importance. Ford is younger than
Morgan, and has just revolutionized a new method of industrial duplication. His
strict punctuality and “home-spun” background represent the modern, American
story of wealth while Morgan seems frivolous and outdated in contrast.
What
do you guys think? Does Doctorow sympathize with one character over the other?
How did you interpret the meeting between Ford and Morgan?
This is an interesting post! I agree with your point that Doctorow is making Ford seem like the younger and more modern in his way of capitalism, while Morgan seems outdated. It is interesting that the aspects of Morgan that Doctorow explains, like his loneliness and attempt to interest Ford with the things that he finds interesting, are things that seem to make the reader empathize with Morgan. Ford’s portrayal, on the other hand, showed less sympathetic aspects of his character.
ReplyDeleteGood post! I've been a bit conflicted on how I think Doctorow feels towards the two characters. I think Doctorow's portrayal of Ford is more objective. He admits Ford's genius in using the assembly line system, while accurately depicting is anti-Semitism. On the other hand, I think his depiction of Morgan as lonely is for humor. The part about Morgan's nose definitely made me think that Doctorow was making fun of Morgan.
ReplyDeleteThis is super interesting kat! When I read the meeting between Ford and Morgan, I interpreted it as Morgan kind of getting the equal he had always longed for. Doctorow wrote about how Morgan was looking for someone who didn't admire or suck up to him, someone who showed less of the nauseating deference to him that most people did. When he met Ford and Ford was so not interested in anything he had to say, it felt leike maybe MOrgan had finally found someone who he thought was worth his time.
ReplyDeleteI think that Doctorow portrays Morgan at first as a mocking depiction of someone way too wealthy, describing him at first as similar to the monopoly man. He starts to show Morgan in a more sympathetic light, making the reader almost feel bad for how isolated he is with his wealth. He doesn't use this same sympathetic aspect with Ford, because Ford clearly doesn't care about being isolated.
ReplyDeleteThis post was a great summary of the dynamic between Ford and Morgan. In my opinion, Doctorow is definitely not leading us to sympathize with Morgan because of his excess wealth and his self-absorbed attitude, but rather more with Ford because of his “home grow, pulled-himself-up-by-his-bootstraps” vibe. But at the same time, in a book that is so focused on dismantling the idyllic American dream, it seems unlikely that Doctorow would wholeheartedly endorse the very classically American Ford. Regardless, I think Doctorow’s treatment of Ford is a little less satirical than of Morgan, so overall, I think he sympathizes more with Ford.
ReplyDeleteI read Morgan as someone Doctorow wants us to pity. By all measures, he is the most successful person around, yet he is unhappy with his current situation, and this leads him to seek out a wacky ancient Egyptian religion that makes him out to be even more superior to everyone else than his unmatched wealth shows. Ford is a character I thought we were supposed to sit back and admire for his go-getting attitude. However, while Ford is described with almost total positivity, he comes across as a total jerk when he talks to Morgan. In the end, I think that Doctorow used both characters to make the wealthy look bad.
ReplyDelete