LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: JACKIE KENNEDY, WE HARDLY KNEW YE

Dear Editor:

I had just completed watching the videocassette version of "The Remains of the Day" when I turned to CNN and learned of the death of Jackie Kennedy. There seemed to be an eerie parallel between the movie I had just seen and the news I heard.

In the movie, Anthony Hopkins (Mr. Stevens) plays the role of one whose life parallels great historical events. However, his commitment to his profession (a butler), and the degree to which he represses his feelings, leads him to experience monumental historical events (the rise and fall of Nazism) only on the periphery. The same holds true for his personal life, as a belated attempt for love lapses.

As I thought of Jackie Kennedy, there seemed to be a congruence with Mr. Stevens. She lived through historical events many remember vividly. She also loved, but, like Stevens, though for different reasons, repressed many feelings, and adopted an elusive, stoic demeanor, in order to survive.

It is often said of the late President Kennedy, who died so young, "Johnny, we hardly knew ye". Though she outlived him by thirty plus years, she remained somehow frozen in time, aging, but unchanging in public perception. Now, she's gone. Jackie, we hardly knew ye, either.

STEVE MOSLEY

Sikeston