My Brilliant Career: Analysis of Major Characters
"My Brilliant Career" is a fictional autobiography centered around Sybylla Penelope Melvyn, an Australian farm girl navigating her formative years from age fifteen to nineteen. The narrative explores themes of independence and gender inequality through Sybylla’s character, who possesses a strong desire for freedom and a talent for writing. Her relationships with family members, including her father Richard, who struggles with alcoholism, and her mother Lucy, who experiences regret over her marriage, reveal the complexities of her upbringing. Sybylla's interactions with other characters, such as her close friend Harold Beecham, who respects her autonomy despite his desire to marry her, and Everard Grey, whom she finds condescending, further highlight her internal conflicts regarding love and societal expectations. The character of Grandmother Bossier serves as a refuge for Sybylla, providing warmth and support, while her experiences with the M'Swat family underscore her belief in the importance of dignity and personal freedom. This rich exploration of characters invites readers to consider the broader implications of social constraints and individual aspirations in a historical context.
My Brilliant Career: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Miles Franklin
First published: 1901
Genre: Novel
Locale: The Australian bush
Plot: Autobiographical
Time: The 1890's
Sybylla Penelope Melvyn, an Australian adolescent farm girl, the principal character in this fictional autobiography, which describes her life from the ages of fifteen to nineteen. Sybylla is the eldest child of Richard and Lucy Melvyn. Her fierce independence and her brash personality often cause others to misunderstand her. She rebels against the limited opportunities for women in society, and she denounces sexual inequality. She uses her talent for writing to describe the universal dignity of ordinary Australian women, with whom she identifies very closely. Despite her deep friendship for Harold Beecham, she decides against marrying him because of her firm belief that marriage will restrict her freedom and cause her profound unhappiness.
Richard (Dick) Melvyn, Sybylla's father, a cattle rancher and a dairy farmer, first described by Sybylla as a handsome, well-dressed man and a kind father. After their move to the small village of Possum Gulley, he develops a drinking problem. His alcoholism creates severe financial hardships for his family. In Sybylla's opinion, her father seems “to lose all love and interest in his family, and rows cross and silent, utterly without pride and pluck.”
Lucy Bossier Melvyn, the wife of Richard Melvyn. She enjoyed a very happy childhood and adolescence, and she regrets that she ever married Richard because his irresponsible behavior led her and their children into poverty. Lucy takes out her frustration on her children. Sybylla describes her mother as always ladylike and elegant but as a bitter woman indifferent to the emotional needs of her children. Near the end of the novel, she forces Sybylla to serve as the governess for the M'Swat children because Richard owes the M'Swats money. Working on the M'Swats' filthy farm almost provokes an emotional and physical breakdown in Sybylla.
Grandmother Bossier, a widow, the mother of Lucy Melvyn and Helen Bell. A refined and warm woman, she invites Sybylla to live with her and Helen at Caddagat, a picturesque Australian farm. She thus frees Sybylla from the oppressive situation in Possum Gulley. She strives to make Sybylla happy, but she does not understand Sybylla's adamant opposition to marriage.
Helen Bossier Bell, a middle-aged woman who was married to Colonel Bell, who took her to America and there left her for another woman. She returned to Caddagat to live with her mother. Despite mistreatment by her selfish former husband, she never becomes bitter toward men. She treats Sybylla kindly and is the only person in whom Sybylla has complete trust.
Harold Augustus (Harry) Beecham, a handsome young bachelor who owns the large Five-Bob Downs farm near Caddagat. He is quite rich and is a close friend of Grandmother Bossier and Helen Bell. This reserved but considerate man wishes to marry Sybylla, whose freedom he fully respects. He first loses and then regains his wealth. He twice proposes to Sybylla, but she cannot bring herself to marry him. After her second refusal, Harold leaves Australia and travels extensively in a vain search for happiness.
Everard Grey, the adopted son of Grandmother Bossier, a successful lawyer in Sydney. Soon after Sybylla's arrival in Caddagat, he visits the Bossier family and tries to encourage Sybylla's interest in music and the theater. Although she enjoys her conversations with him, Sybylla finally concludes that he has treated her condescendingly. She refuses to marry him. After this rejection, the vain Everard Grey never returns to Caddagat.
Frank Hawden, a farmhand to the Bossier family, from a well-to-do English family. He truly loves Sybylla, but because of his lack of sophistication she refuses to marry him. Unlike Everard, Frank continues to treat Sybylla with great respect.
Mr. and Mrs. Peter M'Swat, rich but uncultured and slovenly farmers. Sybylla grudgingly agrees to serve as the governess to their children because her father owes the M'Swats five hundred pounds. Their complete lack of refinement, the cruelty of their son Peter, Jr., and the filth of their farm in Barney's Gap drive Sybylla to the brink of a physical breakdown. The doctor who examines her persuades the M'Swats to release Sybylla from her obligation to them. Her painful experiences on the M'Swat farm convince Sybylla that nothing is more important than personal dignity and freedom.