Blindness

Jose Saramago's book "Blindness" a reoccurring theme is objects and their purpose. Within the contents of the novel the characters often met with using objects for utilitarians purposes. For examples, the doctors wife carried with her a pair of scissors with the purpose of trimming her husband's beard. We the readers however never see her use the scissors for this aesthetic/hygiene purpose instead it is used to carry out a murder. Another instance is the radio that the eye patch man carries. The radio an object that can be used both for entertainment and for information is instead solely used to gather information. As readers we see these small instances multiple times throughout the book and over the course of the story they added up. Saramago is intentional in putting these instances in so that the realism of the situation is more acceptable to the reader. Of course these object would be used in these ways in situations of emergency. Furthermore other objects like paintings and statures are defiled driving home that message that under certain circumstances our ability to appreciate objects diminishes to the point of their simplest utility for our survival.