Captain Corelli's Mandolin

Captain Corelli's Mandolin is a novel by Louis de Bernières. It is a love story about an Italian captain (Antonio Corelli) and the daughter (Pelagia) of the local physician (Dr. Iannis) on the island of Cephallonia, and set against the background of the Italian/German occupation of the island during World War II. It was written by Louis de Bernières in 1993 and follows many of the conventions of the modern novel.

Related Topics:
Novel - Louis de Bernières - Love story - Cephallonia - World War II - 1993

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Most notable is de Bernières' ambiguity to heroes and villains. Following the traits of the modern novel, de Bernières presents characters rather than stereotypes and allows us to create our own judgement of them as individuals. Subsequently many of the characters are viewed sympathetically despite committing atrocities. For example, Gunter Weber carries a great degree of pathos, despite the fact that he fully engages with the Nazi ideology and is guilty of slaughtering the entire Italian regiment, nicknamed La Scala due to the simplistic orchestra of which they are all members. Similarly Mandras, the young fisherman to whom Pelagia is engaged before the war, is guilty of murder and attempted rape, yet we still view him with a great degree of sympathy.

Related Topics:
Heroes - Villains - Stereotypes - Pathos - Nazi - La Scala - Murder - Rape

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