"J.P. Morgan's Stubbornness Explored"

 

   E.L Doctorow painted J.P. Morgan as an accomplished and somewhat gifted individual, however one with comedic flaws. Morgan was treated with immense respect by everyone in the world Doctorow set up in Ragtime, being described as an international monarch of sorts who “was at home everywhere in the world”, and achieving feats such as single handedly bailing out the U.S. government with a loan. The dynamic between Morgan and the rest of the world was set up early on in chapter 19 when his “chauffeur thanked him profusely,” after being dropped off outside the offices of his company, highlighting the aura of a man like Morgan. He doesn’t need to thank his driver, it’s instead an honor for anyone to be able to drive around a man of his societal importance and prestige. Experiences like such, combined with Morgan's upbringing in an already rich family, can help a reader understand Morgan's disconnect with the everyday working person, however, it does not prepare a reader for Morgan's interpretation of his self importance.

After spending decades unimpressed by his fellow rich colleagues and friends who only sent “through his brain the electric winds of an empty universe,”  Morgan begins developing thoughts that he’s really one of a kind. How one of a kind one asks, well, god like one of a kind. Through Morgan's ambitious curation of his art collection, he’s introduced to the ancient society of the Egyptians whose principles on reincarnation piqued his interest. After connecting some dots together, Morgan came upon the conclusion that he was part of a group of constantly reincarnating humans who were predestined to rule the universe. After examining the Mummy of Seti 1, Morgan led himself to another conclusion that another innovator of his time, Henry Ford, was another person from this god-like group that was meant to rule over the world. Quickly, Morgan invited Ford over for lunch in an attempt to convince the latter to join him on a trip to Egypt, in order to help the two learn more about their true selves, a goal which Morgan fails to accomplish. Instead of sharing the same views, Ford (who wasn’t portrayed as the most grounded and empathetic individual to begin with) explained to Morgan that even though he believed in reincarnation, he didn’t believe that he was reincarnated to be part of a breed of superior era ruling individuals. Reincarnation simply gave him more wits than the regular person, and helped him figure things out that the average person wouldn’t. He was essentially saying it wasn’t as deep as Morgan had made it out to be. He ended up not travelling to Egypt with Morgan, but as we see from the stubborn Morgan, this doesn’t hinder him, or his motivation whatsoever. 

This dialogue shares a great deal about how the two view the world. Had Morgan viewed the world through the same lenses as Ford, he probably wouldn’t be so obsessed with his reincarnation theory. Although I’m giving Morgan too much credit, as highlighted in chapter 19, he went country to country taking control of everything from railroad systems, to banks, while managing over a hundred corporations. He had New York in his pocket, and he was involved in the “affairs of nations,” through his international business ventures. Giving him the benefit of doubt, I can understand why he’s left so unimpressed by everyone around him. He’s simply seen more, and through that reached great levels of intellectual maturity. It really could be broken down so simply. But Morgan being the stubborn man he is, he’d always viewed himself as superior, and he only believed it more after learning about the Ancient Egyptians. Even after his conversation with Ford, there was no going back. 

There’s a bit of a break in Morgan’s storyline, but when we’re reintroduced to him, he’s just as obsessed with Ancient Egypt as he used to be, if not more. Morgan goes as far as to plan out the building of his very own Pyramid, but all of this after spending the night in the ancient Pyramid of Giza. Morgan wants to sleep in the King’s Chamber, mainly in his search for a sign, something to prove to him he really is as special as he believes he is. That night was a quiet one, and Osiris brought him no signs, aside from perhaps a dream (which even Morgan somewhat dismissed in terms of importance). Perhaps Morgan would finally realize he’s not that special? After all, the same ancient royalty he’d spent years chasing after were instead refusing to acknowledge his existence, rather than confirm his delusions. Would the famous, and accomplished J.P. Morgan finally wake up?

He doesn’t and he won't. Instead, he views his rapidly declining health as the sign he was looking for in the Pyramid that night, and he presumed the Earth needed him reincarnated so urgently, a quick deterioration in health till death was the only way it could be done. Morgan died delusional, and stubborn in his vision. I find Morgan's ending a somewhat sad one. Every other character in this story died or had their story ended with either an expected or happy ending of sorts, defined by the journey they took in the book, and through that, finding themselves. Morgan was a very accomplished and talented man, but his ending was a sad one, showing a guy who got so much respect from the world, actually being internally delusional to the point it was silly. I feel like he could’ve ended on a better note, one with at least a spiritual reawakening, where he could truly find himself as many characters at least somewhat did (or found a purpose that fulfilled them). I guess this was all necessary to highlight just how detached he was from the everyday person, and this world in general. Still wasted potential though.