paper-207 Assignment

Hello Readers,

This blog is a my assignment blog.

 Name :- Aditi Vala

MA Sem :- 04

Batch :- 2020-2022

Roll no. :- 01

Enrollment No. :- 3069206420200018

Paper No. :- 207(Contemporary Literature in English)

Topic :- Characters Evaluation of The Only Story

Email id :- valaaditi203@gmail.com

Submitted to :- S.B.Gardi Department Of English,MKBU

Introduction :

The Only Story is a novel by Julian Barnes. It is his thirteenth novel and was published on 1 February 2018.This novel’s setting in a "stockbroker belt" outside London, 1960s. This novel is divided in three parts. Part One is the boy-meets-woman narrative told in the first person.Part Two, told in a mixture of first and second person, is the decline of the love affair, and Part Three is the rest of Paul's life told mostly in a mix of second and third person.The Only Story is the first of Barnes' books not dedicated to his wife, Pat Kavanaugh, who died in 2008. Significantly, the familiar conundrums Paul contemplates pertain just as readily to bereft mourners as to people singed by romance gone awry. "Is it better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all?" he wonders. And: "Would you rather love the more, and suffer the more, or love the less, and suffer the less?" This latter query may be, his scorched narrator asserts, "finally, the only real question." But then, Barnes' amatory absolutist equivocates: "If you can control it, then it isn't love. I don't know what you call it instead, but it isn't love." The Only Story is about losing control, but also, losing the ability to lose control. ( Heller Mcalpin ) In this novel the writer uses many characters.Robert Paul is the narrator of the story. In this novel so many minor and major characters.So Let’s see,

Characters of the Novel :

In this novel writer has uses many major and minor characters in the novel.I am going to discuss about the characters,

MAJOR CHARACTERS :

• Paul Roberts

• Susan Macleod

• Jack Macleod

• Mr.Gordon Macleod

• Anne 

• Martha & Clara Macleod

• Joan

• Gerald 

• Eric

• Barney

• Ian and Sam

MINOR CHARACTERS :

• Mrs. Dyer (maid at Susan's home)

• Pedro 

• Christine and Virginia 

• Cindy ( Paul’s X)

• Uncle Humph-Aunt Florence( In childhood Susan went to their house on Vacation)

• Maurice( Worked with Reynolds News )

• John Bell & Croyden

• Dr. Kenny (Susan’s Psychiatrist) 

Paul Roberts :

Paul is the protagonist of the novel.Paul is  unreliable narrator of the novel .He is 19 year old in novel.Paul places himself nearer the truth-telling memoirist Barnes than his fictional predecessor, the fascinatingly unreliable Tony Webster in The Sense of an Ending. Paul begins, as if in essay form, with a wide, philosophical question: “Would you rather love the more, and suffer the more, or love the less, and suffer the less?” He constantly keeps one eye on historical context, and is especially astute on architectural detail and the way money is spent; and he is always intent on making himself ordinary, a mere example of humanity. As such, he is anxiously alert not only to the problems of self-heroising, but it's opposite: “There is the danger of being retrospectively anti-heroic: making yourself out to have behaved worse than you actually did can be a form of self-praise.”

Paul, having abandoned the study of law, becomes a professional office manager. For the rest of his life, he devotes much effort to remembering as many aspects about his relationship with Susan as possible. He never has another long-term relationship; he never marries; and, he never has children. In his later years, he settles into a life of quiet routine, contemplating the many contradictions of love, including both the fulfillment and the suffering it presents.

 

The story is based on the memory of Paul. Memory is something that is not trustworthy of we can say that it sifts according to the individual.  Paul during his conversation warns the reader.  Here are the quotes which discuss Paul as an Unreliable Narrator. 

“You understand, I hope, that I’m telling you everything as I remember it? I never kept a diary, and most of the participants in my story – my story! my life! – are either dead or far dispersed. So I’m not necessarily putting it down in the order that it happened. I think there’s a different authenticity to memory, and not an inferior one. Memory sorts and sifts according to the demands made on it by the rememberer. “

 

Later on, he said: I never kept a diary.

So here as a reader we should be aware of the narration of Paul., So all these things prove that Paul is an unreliable narrator.

 

Susan Macleod :

 

Susan Macleod is a female protagonist of the novel.Susan is a 48 year old lady and she is falling in love with young Paul. She is not satisfied with her husband’s love. Than she find love with another person. In this novel, we find some similarities between Bartha and Susan. Bartha was suffered by his husband and here Susan is suffering from some kind of this thing. She becomes an alcoholic. She speaks lies to Paul. Somewhere she is stuck with responsibility. She was beaten by his own husband. She had extramarital affair with Paul, she somewhere wants love, some kind of warmness but she was constantly become a victim of hatred, sexual pleasure and was beaten so many times.  Susan also become a victim of child abuse when she went to his uncle Hemph’s house. When finally she went with Paul there she feel lonely and that time she became alcoholic like anything. In the end, Paul also abandons her and her daughter Clara taking care of her.  Susan’s character is fascinating because there is another character who is counterpointed to Susan’s character. The story of both Susan and her friend Joan is interesting but Joan might digest the philosophy of life.

Joan :

Joan is the former tennis partner and friend of Susan Macleod and sister of Gerald. Gerald is the ex of Susan.  She is around fifty-three and she kept yeppers with her. One Ypres died and she decided never to keep them because when you are alone and you love someone whatever they were and they died at that time you feel pain as like you lose your person. Later on, she kept another named Sible. Joan is the counter character of Susan. She had digested the philosophy of life. She spent her time with sible, she drinks, smoked,d and played tennis and crosswords. 

In the second part of the story, we come more about Joan. There is a long conversation between Paul and Joan. In the novel, there is a very fascinating incident where Paul asked her cheating in crosswords. 

‘Why do you cheat at crosswords?’ Joan laughed loudly. ‘You cheeky bugger. I suppose Susan told you. Well, it’s a fair question, and one I can answer.’ She took another pull of her gin. ‘You see – I hope you never get there yourself – but some of us get to the point in life where we realize that nothing matters. Nothing fucking matters. And one of the few side-benefits of that is you know you’re not going to go to hell for filling in the wrong answers in the crossword. Because you’ve been to hell and back already and you know all too well what it’s like.’ So if we look at this conversation Joan’s character is a very well understood existence enigma.

Martha & Clara Macleod :

Martha & Clara Macleod both are the daughter of Susan. Martha & Clara are Paul same age girls.At the end of the novel Martha has taking care of her mother and She ready to take her mother’s responsibility. And Susan also wrote letter to Clara for help her.But Clara was not coming for her help in the novel.

 

Conclusion :

In this novel writer describe many characters and Paul and Susan both are the major character or protagonist of the novel.All the characters are interesting character.Paul and Susan begin to have a discreet romantic relationship.This novel is a memory novel than, Paul has to explain his story.