Response to Housekeeping Discussion

One of the biggest problem's that I have with Housekeeping is that Ruth is such a weak protagonist. In the first half of the book, she is glued to Lucille. Ruth is the follower, not the leader, in all of the choices that she and Lucille make together. Then later in the book, Ruth clings to Sylvie and adopts her life as a transient, in the same parasitical fashion. Throughout the entire book, Ruth never makes a decision based on her own principles, probably because she never had any.

Now, when I brought this up during the discussion, people responded and Parrish emphasized that Ruth did make a choice to join Sylvie. I argue that such a decision is not actually a choice.

Ruth's life is defined by non-action. She is a drifter, a transient. Transients, by nature, don't make decisions. Ruth did what was easiest for her at that moment in time. And non-action, the choice to just keep things the way they are and not change, was considerably easier than leaving the crazy, but familiar, world of Sylvie.

Think about Ruth's entire life. When Lucille was cutting school, Ruth didn't do what was right and go back to school; she stayed with her sister. When Lucille makes the choice to focus on school and leave Sylvie, she asks Ruth if she wants to join and Ruth decides not to do anything and remain the same. Then at the conclusion, Ruth chooses to follow Sylvie and not leave with the Sheriff.

All of these actions are really non-actions. Obviously every moment of life is a choice. Even choosing to sleep all day is can be classified as a decision. But considering the academic and intellectual meaning of the word, Ruth never made a decision throughout Housekeeping, including the choice to join Sylvie in transiency.