The character Carlos is portrayed as a sympathetic character. As a modern reader we automatically feel compassion towards him as he is not able to release his emotions as a homosexual in the Army. In 1945 Carlos would not have been seen as a true man because of his sexuality. Many have different views today and this is why the modern reader is able to sympathise with this character. Through the character of Carlos, De Bernières is commenting on his hatred of the treatment of homosexuals by the Nazi’s throughout the war. Carlos is an example that De Bernières brings into the novel to represent a different kind of manhood. Carlos has Physical strength, “Because I am a very big man I spend days carrying our afflicted boys back behind the lines”. But this physical strength is not what makes Carlos a different version of manhood. This character is able to use his physical strength, but his physical strength is matched with his moral strength which allows the audience to view him as a kind hearted character. Carlos expresses his feelings towards the reader “Soldiers grow to love each other”. The readers can understand that Carlos is not expressing a sexual love towards his fellow soldiers but a comradeship. Some readers marginalise the idea that Carlos does not have any sexual love for his fellow soldiers and that it is an unrealistic aspect of his feelings. De Bernières is trying to explain to the reader that in the army and times of war the love for fellow soldiers and companionship is more important than love of a sexual nature. The reader relates to him as a character as he wants to speak about his feelings towards Francesco and Corelli. Even though he has a lot of physical strength he also has moral strength which allows the reader to interpret De Bernières comment. He is commenting that it is moral strength that makes a man. We know that Carlos has moral strength as he is willing to save Corelli’s life for his own. “Carlo stood unbroken as one bullet after another burrowed like hot parasitic knives.” This part of the novel represents Carlos as a saviour and a martyr as he saves Corelli’s life. Many homosexual readers see Carlos’s death as a representation of their sexuality and that he did not just die to save Corelli’s life but to prove a point about his sexuality. Both Corelli and Carlos have Christian values. They have values that represent sacrificing themselves for one another. De Bernières is not a clearly religious writer but as the reader we can observe that many of the values portrayed that he presents in the book are Christian values. Carlos is a very insecure character. From reading the novel he is desperate to be accepted into the community as a homosexual. Homosexual readers of the novel do not interpret that view of Carlos kindly as it is a stereotypical viewpoint of a homosexual and an unfair representative. The character always had to prove himself to everyone “I wanted to protect Francesco to prove to him that I was a man”. Carlos is always aware of being rejected. He is desperate to fit in with everyone “I hope that you are not disgusted…and I hope that you will be able to forgive me and remember me without contempt”. This is from Carlos’s farewell letter which explains to the reader that he was always afraid of being rejected and that he will always hate himself. Through Carlos’ reoccurring narrative the reader can share his love for the character Francesco and understand the feelings that he has for him. This narrative also increases sympathy for the character. Through these narratives we do not only learn about Carlos but also Gunter, Corelli and Mandras. Because of this form and the use of first person the reader is able to read about the views of the different characters portrayed in the novel. De Bernières successfully portrays Carlos as a version of manhood with both Physical and moral strength. Carlos has companionship with his fellow soldiers and is willing to take his own life for someone he truly cares for. By acting in the war Carlos is able to act in this way and show his morals as a character. In the backdrop of war we are able to see the morals that he has and he was able to show his companions that he was willing to risk his own life for a fellow companion.
De Bernières is able to show a different version of manhood through the character of Mandras. Mandras is a character in the novel that has been corrupted by the war and by communism. Arguably when Mandras returns from war he has changed from a kind and loving man to a man who is disrespectful towards his family and Pelagia. At the beginning of the novel Mandras is portrayed as a kind and loving man with emotional strength and sensitivity towards Pelagia “God knows I love her”. The character describes him as “God like” showing him to be her saviour and a character that she deeply respects. He is deeply in love with Pelagia. But after his return Pelagia does not recognise him not only physically but mentally. “There was a stranger sitting at my kitchen table.” This represents a different man and therefore a different type of manhood is being represented. Within the Character of Mandras De Bernières is commenting on how war can change a man and make him become a different person because of the people and the problems that soldiers encounter in times of war. Mandras’ character was a kind and loving man but he has been corrupted by communism and politics throughout the war. “Mandras represents the damage done by extreme politics by becoming a victim of indoctrination and ignorance”. This is a viewpoint given by Marian Cox describing what the character of Mandras represents. De Bernières is commenting here that these two aspects can change a person dramatically even if a person is not in times of war. When Mandras returns from war he is not portrayed as a man but as a weak character. We are introduced to this pathetic character that cannot fend for himself “Pelagia has seen me naked and my mother washes me intimately as if I were a baby…..I am like a piece of furniture”. The reader begins to feel sorry for him because he has been courageous by going to war yet when he returns he has lost his manhood. Before he leaves for the war he is described by Pelagia as “Gold Flesh” and proving to the reader that he is almost sacred because of a strong sense of manhood. Many feminists see the character of Mandras as a political power throughout the war, strong at first and after the war weak and pathetic. The character of Mandras is presenting to the reader the worst aspects of masculinity when he returns from war. When we first meet the character of Mandras, De Bernières conveys his power and strength through his eagerness to go to war. But from reading the novel we can see that these two aspects of manhood can lead to brutality within a character. There is a major parallel with Mandras and the story “The Odyssey” by Homer. “The Odyssey” tells the story of the wanderings of the Greek Hero Odysseus on his ten year voyage home to the island of Ithaca or, possibly, Cephallonia. “Captain Corelli’s Mandolin” has many parallels with “The Odyssey”. The return voyage of Odysseus from Troy to his home is an archetype of the heroic quest. Odysseus has to overcome numerous obstacles and temptations but remains true to his purpose and loyal to his wife. Mandras can be seen as a parallel to Odysseus but later when he becomes corrupted Corelli takes on the role of the hero, lover and warrior. Before they leave for war they are both godlike and “beautiful”, they are both destroyed by war and return as beggars. Both character’s volunteer to go and fight in honour leaving behind their beloved. A major parallel is when Mandras is looked after in a cave by a one eyed witch, similarly in “The Odyssey” he is held in a cave by a Cyclops. This can be seen as one if the largest similarities within the novel. They also both return home and are not recognised by their loved ones, but the faithful pets do. The two characters are very similar and again De Bernières is commenting on how war affects manhood and the atrocity of war. The parallel between Odysseus and Mandras has been criticised by some. Critiques have made links with the idea the De Bernières is interested in the different versions of manhood suggesting that Captain Corelli is similar to some characters portrayed in myths and legends. He is portrayed as a legendary character that has strength and courage but also portrays to the reader feelings of morality. Links have been made with the legendary character of Odysseus and Corelli. They are honourable, sensitive, loyal and courageous. Corelli also returns home to Pelagia as Odysseus returns home to Penelope long after it was expected. Both characters are loved by men, women, children and animals. Corelli shows love for the children in the novel and Psipsina the pet.
Corelli is shown as a true version of manhood in “Captain Corelli’s Mandolin” Corelli is morally strong, sensitive towards his men, reasonably strong physically but he is also civilised and has love for his companions. De Bernières makes Corelli more appealing as a character as he is seen as a “Real Italian”. De Bernières chooses to portray Corelli as a composer and musician. The readers of the novel gain the impression that art and music make him a more civilised character as he is able to appreciate the beauty of Cephallonia and not want to destroy it in war. In this novel De Bernières is commenting that you do not necessarily need physical strength to be man but other aspects that make you an ideal version of manhood. Corelli is seen as a great inspiration by many of his men “Remained a man of honour because he knew no other way to be” This quotation from Carlo shows that he is seen as a saint as he knew no other way to be. The idea of integrity is interpreted from this quote, this character shares everything with his companions, as a character he does not know how to lie or not to treat others with respect. Corelli, unlike Mandras is not affected by politics and communism. He is not affected by the atrocities of war therefore proving that this character is showing De Bernières ideal version of manhood. De Bernières clearly respects composers as he once said “I wish I had been a composer instead of a writer”. Corelli plays the mandolin and becomes inseparable from it before it actually becomes a physical part of him. His love for Pelagia can be seen as a parallel of his love of his instrument, he returns to find his mandolin which leads him to his woman. The mandolin can be compared to Pelagia; arguably the instrument can be seen as a similar shape to a woman. The chapter “How a woman is like a mandolin” shows that there are similarities between the two, Corelli quotes “how gracious and how lovely”. His character reveals the love of singing which can represent his love of life and his sensitivity making him more of a man in the eyes of Louis de Bernières. The music that he is interested is said to portray the harmony that this character has in his life showing that he is able to appreciate objects. There has been a lot of tradition in Italy that music represents harmony and happiness. Captain Corelli’s “Opera Club” creates humour for the reader as De Bernières mixes both humour and the atrocities of war by mocking the rankings in the army sand replacing them with musical notes “I am the breve, Carlos the semibreve”. His sensitivity shows how unsuited he is to being a soldier as he is extremely compassionate towards both his fellow soldiers and the enemy, for example Gunter “he won battles armed with nothing but his mandolin” This shows his compassion as he is not willing to kill anyone as he feels that it is morally wrong. Many critiques have commented that the idea of winning his battles with a mandolin is unrealistic. But this is simply a metaphor showing that “he let his rifles rust” showing to the reader his compassion and civilised nature that Corelli has. Again De Bernières is commenting on his ideal version of manhood. Another aspect of Corelli’s personality is humanity towards both animals and Children. His enjoyment of Psipsina and playfulness with Lemoni, and the affection he earns from both of them, are early indications of his tolerance and his good nature. His creativity as a composer and the pleasure he provides as a musician to his fellow soldiers in the “opera Club” shows a contrast with the atrocities of war and the great leader that Corelli is. He is much show as a peace maker throughout the war which shows a different version of manhood compared to any other character in the novel “Corelli broke by handing him a bottle of red wine. ‘Drink’, he said.” This shows that Corelli simply values the simple pleasures in life and does not like to worry about political problems and the problems with war.
In conclusion De Bernières presents the reader with many different versions of manhood within the novel “Captain Correlli’s Mandolin”. From exploring the idea that a man can either be a “sheep” or a “lion”, I can see that this is a very stereotypical viewpoint. De Bernières is commenting on what qualities he believes to make a man in times of war. Through characters such as Carlos and Corelli the reader is able to make an observation that De Bernières believes that morality is a quality that he highly respects in a man. We can see through events in the novel such as the Italian execution that a man should always act on their morals whatever the risk. Gunter is not portrayed favourably in the novel as he does not act on his morals and takes the selfish route of saving his own life .I believe that De Bernières is very successful in portraying different versions of manhood throughout the novel but he is also commenting on his thoughts about manhood and what makes a man.
WORD COUNT: 3267 (With quotes)
BIBLIOGRAPHY Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, Louis De Bernières
York Notes- Captain Corelli’s Mandolin.