The English Patient: Analysis of Major Characters
"The English Patient" revolves around a complex interplay of love, betrayal, and identity set against the backdrop of World War II. The central character, Ladislaus de Almásy, an enigmatic Hungarian explorer known as the "English patient," grapples with his past, including a passionate affair with Katharine Clifton, the wife of Geoffrey Clifton, who inadvertently leads to tragedy through jealousy. Almásy's story unfolds in the Villa San Girolamo, a former nunnery turned hospital, where he is cared for by Hana, a young Canadian nurse deeply affected by the war and personal loss.
Hana forms connections with the other residents, including David Caravaggio, a friend of her father who is tasked with intelligence work, and Kirpal "Kip" Singh, a Sikh lieutenant disillusioned by the war's realities. Kip's friendship with Hana evolves into romance but is challenged by his growing skepticism about the Allies' motives. Geoffrey Clifton, torn by his wife’s infidelity, ultimately meets a tragic end through his own actions. Each character's journey reflects themes of love, loss, and the search for identity in a world scarred by conflict, inviting readers to explore the profound emotional landscapes shaped by their experiences.
The English Patient: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Philip Michael Ondaatje
First published: 1992
Genre: Novel
Locale: Tuscany, Italy; Libyan desert; Cairo, Egypt
Plot: Historical realism
Time: ca. 1930–45
Ladislaus de Almásy, known as the “English patient” to the inhabitants of the Villa San Girolamo, a former nunnery in the Tuscan countryside of Italy, converted to a World War II field hospital. A Hungarian who spent time in England, Almásy is an explorer in the North African desert. In the 1930s he and his partner, Madox, set out to find the lost oasis of Zerzura. They are joined during the expedition by the Cliftons, a young English couple; Almásy has an affair with Katharine Clifton. In 1939, as his expedition is being disbanded, Almásy is injured when Geoffrey Clifton, who has apparently discovered the affair, crashes his plane while trying to kill Almásy, his wife, and himself. Almásy transports Katharine, who is badly injured, to a safe place near the crash site. He goes for help but is detained by the British because World War II has broken out and he is thought to be a German spy. Kept from returning to the place where he left Katharine for three years, he eventually makes his way back and gives her a proper burial. While flying in a friend's plane back to Cairo he crashes and is badly burned. Bedouins rescue him and keep him alive. Evacuated to Italy without any form of identification, he becomes a patient in a field hospital, where he is treated by Hana, a young Canadian nurse. As he recovers, he begins to converse with the other inhabitants of the hospital: David Caravaggio, employed by British intelligence, and Kirpal Singh, a British lieutenant working as a sapper in the area. In conversations, principally with Caravaggio, Almásy tells his story and reveals his identity.
Hana, a twenty-year-old Canadian nurse. In Europe with the Canadian armed forces during World War II, she is traumatized by the war and ends up at the field hospital set up in the Villa San Girolamo. She is grieving the loss of her father, who was burned and died during the war, when she finds special purpose in caring for the English patient. Although told to evacuate the hospital, she refuses and keeps the English patient there as her sole charge. She manages to help the English patient recover some bodily functions. She is befriended by David Caravaggio, an older man who was a friend of her father's in Canada before the war. When the Sikh demolitions expert Kirpal Singh arrives in the area, she befriends him and eventually falls in love with him.
David Caravaggio, a friend of Hana's father and a professional thief. Recruited by the British to assist in gathering intelligence, he travels to Italy where he hears that Hana is working at Villa San Girolamo. In love with the younger woman, he makes his way to the field hospital, where he takes up residence in order to protect Hana and perhaps win her love; the arrival of the younger Kirpal Singh, and Hana's obvious growing affection for him, causes Caravaggio to abandon his pursuit of Hana and become a champion of the couple's relationship. Addicted to morphine, Caravaggio begins to give morphine to the English patient as a means of getting him to open up about his past. As Caravaggio hears the English patient's story, he realizes that the man is not English and is most likely the Hungarian explorer Ladislaus de Almásy, who collaborated with the Germans at the beginning of the war.
Kirpal “Kip” Singh, a twenty-six-year-old Sikh serving with the British as a lieutenant, trained as a sapper (a combat engineer). Kip comes to the Villa San Girolamo to clear undetonated explosives in the area. He becomes friends with Hana and eventually begins sleeping with her. Although often treated as an outsider by those with whom he works, initially Kip is convinced of the righteousness of the Allies' cause and inclined to admire the English. However, he is disillusioned when he learns of the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, believing that the act shows the lack of respect with which people in the West viewed Easterners. He abandons his post and leaves Hana. After the war he becomes a doctor.
Geoffrey Clifton, an Oxford graduate who sets out for the North African desert in the 1930s, shortly after marrying Katharine. He joins Almásy's expedition as a pilot, scouting locations that might prove to be the site of the lost oasis Almásy and Madox are seeking. Unbeknownst to Almásy, Clifton is working for British intelligence, conducting aerial photography missions to assist the British in preparing for the impending war with Germany. At some point Geoffrey becomes aware that his wife is having an affair with Almásy, and tries to kill Almásy by crashing his plane into him as he stands on the runway. However, he misses Almásy, Geoffrey is killed in the ensuing crash, and Katharine is seriously injured.
Katharine Clifton, young bride of Geoffrey Clifton. She accompanies her husband to North Africa shortly after they are married. She begins an affair with Almásy, who is fifteen years older than she. Their relationship lasts for months, but eventually they end it. She is badly injured when her husband intentionally wrecks his plane in an attempt to kill Almásy, Katharine, and himself. Rescued from the wreckage by Almásy, she is taken to a cave near the site of the wreck, where Almásy makes her comfortable before setting off for help. She dies while he is away. When Almásy is finally able to return years later, he buries her in the desert.
Madox, an English explorer who is Almásy's partner on the expedition to find Zerzura. He disapproves of Almásy's affair with Katharine, predicting it will end badly. Upon his return to England in 1939, he commits suicide.
Lord Suffolk, an explosives expert who teaches Kip how to defuse bombs. He is killed in an explosion in 1941.