Jealousy: Analysis of Major Characters
The topic of jealousy is explored through the analysis of major characters in a unique narrative centered around a mysterious narrator, likely the owner of a banana plantation, who is deeply fixated on the interactions between his wife, A..., and their neighbor, Franck. The narrator's perspective is marked by his obsessive observations of domestic scenes, particularly at the dinner table, where an extra place setting hints at his own presence and emotional turmoil. A... is depicted as a beautiful woman leading a seemingly mundane life, engaged in routine activities with Franck, which raises suspicions of infidelity, especially when they spend a night away under questionable circumstances. Franck himself, characterized by his failed mechanical skills, symbolizes inadequacies both in his profession and possibly in his romantic life. The absence of Franck's wife, Christiane, further complicates the dynamics between the characters, as her lack of presence allows for increased intimacy between A... and Franck, fueling the narrator's jealousy. This nuanced exploration of jealousy emphasizes the limitations of perspective and the complexities of human relationships, inviting readers to reflect on the broader implications of trust and suspicion.
Jealousy: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Alain Robbe-Grillet
First published: La Jalousie, 1957 (English translation, 1959)
Genre: Novel
Locale: Indeterminate
Plot: Antistory
Time: After World War II
The narrator, a person unidentified as to age or sex. The narrator of this unusual novel never refers to himself in the first person and in fact is never specifically identified as a person at all. The narrator is probably, however, the owner of the plantationandA…'shusband.Therepetition of the scenes he describes is evidence that the narrator is obsessed with them. The scenes at the dinner table, for example, suggest that the narrator lives at the plantation, because these descriptions always specify the number of places set, and invariably there is one extra place, which can only be for the narrator. It is possible that the narrator believes that his wife is having an affair with their neighbor, Franck. In French, the title of the novel not only means “jealousy” but is also a pun on jalousies, or Venetian blinds, the shutters through which the narrator frequently views scenes, a suggestion that he is spying on his wife and neighbor but also an indication of the narrowness and limitation of the point of view he presents.
A…, a beautiful, dark-haired woman who lives in a house on an isolated banana plantation. She is characterized by a few simple repeated actions and by descriptions of certain of her possessions. She reads a book and discusses it with Franck, makes drinks for Franck (and perhaps for her husband—there is always a third glass set out), sits down to dinner, and goes shopping with Franck. On one shopping trip, she and Franck spend the night away at a hotel, ostensibly because his car broke down. The empty and repetitive nature of this existence suggests in itself a reason for her possible infidelity. The only evidence that she commits adultery seems to be circumstantial.
Franck, the owner of the neighboring banana plantation. His wife, Christiane, no longer accompanies him on his visits to the other plantation, providing another cause for the narrator's suspicions. He explains the overnight stay after the shopping trip by admitting that he is a poor mechanic, which may suggest symbolically his inadequacy as a lover, offering anexplanationforthereturnofA…andalsofortheendof the narrator's jealousy (and therefore the end of the narrative).
Christiane, Franck's wife. She never appears at the plantation that provides the setting for all the incidents of the novel. This restriction of setting may imply that the narrator lives there. She acts as a catalyst in the plot through her absences—caused by her susceptibility to the hot and humid climate—thathelpthrowFranckandA…togethermoreoften and more intimately.