Barometer Rising: Analysis of Major Characters
"Barometer Rising" explores the complex lives and interrelationships of several key characters against the backdrop of World War I and the catastrophic Halifax explosion. Central to the narrative is Neil Macrae, a young engineer grappling with his identity and the repercussions of war, seeking redemption after being wrongly accused and facing personal demons. His journey intertwines with that of Penelope Wain, Geoffrey's strong-willed daughter, who balances her professional ambitions as a ship designer with the emotional turmoil of family and love. Geoffrey Wain, a commanding yet embittered figure, embodies the tensions between colonial attitudes and emerging Canadian identity, ultimately facing his downfall amidst the chaos.
Dr. Angus Murray, a compassionate and self-aware medical officer, serves as both a caretaker and supporter for Neil and Penny, reflecting the emotional struggles of those returning from war. Lastly, Alec Mackenzie, a devoted and hardworking foreman, represents the working-class perspective, providing both physical strength and crucial testimony that aids in Neil's vindication. Together, these characters illustrate a society in transition, confronting personal and collective challenges shaped by a transformative historical event.
Barometer Rising: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Hugh MacLennan
First published: 1941
Genre: Novel
Locale: Halifax and Nova Scotia, Canada
Plot: Social realism
Time: Eight days in early December, 1917
Neil Macrae, the twenty-eight-year-old orphaned nephew of Geoffrey Wain and unknowing father of his cousin Penelope Wain's daughter Jean. At the French Front, Geoffrey Wain, commander of Neil's regiment, had been preparing to court-martial his nephew for failing to carry out an impossible order when shelling had occurred. Wounded and temporarily amnesiac, Neil was mistakenly identified as a British private. Using his false identity, Neil has returned to Halifax to clear his own name. Still in poor health, Neil does not at first show his strength of character. This sometimes impulsive son of Jamsie Wain, rebellious daughter of the British loyalist Wain family, and John Macrae, a respected Cape Breton craftsman, embodies the best of a new breed of Canadians forged out of World War I and freed of colonialist dependence on England. An M.I.T.-trained engineer who excels in the new field of submarine design, Neil now knows exactly what he seeks. During the eight days that include the horrendous, historic Halifax explosion, this modern Odysseus is freed of Geoffrey Wain, reunited with Penelope, and aided by his true friends in clearing his name. He finds a focus for his restless energy in the monumental rescue work following the explosion. the novel's conclusion finds the uncompromising Neil facing a bright future.
Penelope (Penny) Wain, Geoffrey Wain's twenty-nine-year-old daughter, a woman of strong character and great ability with a deceptively fragile appearance. A reserved woman, Penny suffers quietly the loss of Neil and her false relationship with her daughter Jean, adopted for propriety's sake by her uncle and aunt. Penny sustains herself with her successful career as a talented ship designer; she also provides her young brother Roddie with the love and guidance the motherless boy needs. Almost ready, like the mythical Penelope, to succumb to a persistent suitor, Penny finds her patience and hope rewarded when Neil returns and they find their love undiminished.
Colonel Geoffrey Wain, a tall, broad-shouldered, impressive-looking man in his middle fifties. His military appearance is enhanced by his close-cut silver hair and black mustache. Temporarily relieved of his command at the French Front, Wain is reluctantly home in the city and country he contemptuously regards as a colonial backwater. He does enjoy his family's traditional social superiority. Hereditary head of the booming Wain shipyards, Wain exudes authority but actually has led a life of few challenges. He is obsessed with hatred for Neil, especially when he hears that Neil is alive in Halifax, thus threatening to dash Wain's hope of resuming a military command. Wain passes some time in a desultory affair with his petite, ambitious, and vulgar young secretary, Evelyn Phillips. In the explosion, Wain dies at Evelyn's apartment, his tawdry death belying his lifetime of presumed superiority.
Doctor Angus Murray, a widower in his late forties, the medical officer in Geoffrey Wain's battalion in France. He is currently home on leave, recovering from shrapnel wounds. Tired and disreputable looking, Murray fights loneliness and impending despair with frequent bouts of drinking. He is a sensitive, self-aware man with deeply felt ideas about Canada and its future. Galvanized by the explosion, he sets up a hospital in the Wain house and completes his rehabilitation, both physical and mental, with ceaseless surgical work. Deeply in love with Penny, he gracefully relinquishes her to Neil and indeed champions Neil, seeing to the practical details of his vindication and yielding to Neil as the New Canadian.
“Big” Alec Mackenzie, a craggy Nova Scotian Highlander in his mid-forties, married and the father of three children. He misses his Cape Breton life but now makes a better living in wartime Halifax. A corporal in Wain's battalion in France, Mackenzie was privy to the fiasco involving Neil and Wain. Unaware that his job at the Wain shipyards is a bribe for his silence, Mackenzie is the best wharf foreman Wain ever had, bringing to his job the diligence and integrity with which he approaches life. An inarticulate man born to carry out orders, Mackenzie always gives his best. In the explosion, he supports—with brute strength—beams from his wrecked home, saving his wife but dooming himself when a spike pierces his lung. Rescued by Neil and Murray, Alec survives long enough to give Murray the vital testimony needed to clear Neil's name.