Occasion for Loving: Analysis of Major Characters
"Occasion for Loving" presents a nuanced exploration of interpersonal relationships through its major characters, set against a backdrop of complex social and political dynamics in South Africa. At the center is Jessie Stilwell, a thoughtful yet self-involved woman who navigates her role as a mother and wife while grappling with her strained connections to her son, Morgan, and her mother. Her husband, Tom, is a supportive figure who balances his academic pursuits with familial responsibilities, urging Jessie to embrace their new tenants, Boaz and Ann Davis.
Boaz, a music scholar, is absorbed in his research and struggles with the implications of his wife Ann's affair with the talented painter Gideon Shibalo. Ann, a vibrant young woman, becomes increasingly aware of the societal constraints surrounding her relationship with Gideon, which prompts a journey of self-discovery and ultimately leads to her departure from South Africa. Meanwhile, Gideon, a politically active artist, faces the challenges of his past and the impact of his relationship with Ann on his artistic aspirations.
These characters grapple with issues of race, love, and personal identity, reflecting the broader societal tensions of their time. As their lives intertwine, the narrative raises questions about privilege, loyalty, and the boundaries of affection, making "Occasion for Loving" a compelling study of human connections amid societal challenges.
Occasion for Loving: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Nadine Gordimer
First published: 1963
Genre: Novel
Locale: Johannesburg, South Africa
Plot: Psychological realism
Time: 1961–1962
Jessica (Jessie) Stilwell, a secretary to an agency for African musicians and entertainers, then later a part-time secretary to a company administering a private nursing home. Thirty-eight-year-old Jessie, still attractive, is married to Tom Stilwell, with whom she has three daughters, Clemence, Madge, and Elisabeth. She also has a son, Morgan, from a previous marriage that ended with the death of her husband in the war. Perceptive and thoughtful, she is also self-involved. Her relationship with Morgan, whom she has largely ignored, is troubled, as is her relationship with her mother. When Tom suggests opening their house to Boaz and Ann Davis, who need a place to live, she is at first reluctant, fearing invasion of her privacy. After the Davises move in, she introduces Ann to Len Mafolo. Later, when Ann and her black lover, Gideon Shibalo, arrive unexpectedly at the beach cottage where Jessie is spending precious private days with her daughters, Jessie is dismayed at the interruption. The relationship between Gideon and Ann forces Jessie to examine her own liberal politics.
Tom Stilwell, a senior university lecturer in history, fair, bearded, and in his thirties. Tom has been working on a history of Africa. Liberal in politics, he is also a loving husband and father, concerned about Morgan. He persuades Jessie to welcome the Davises to their house.
Boaz Davis (BOH-az), a music scholar. A thin, thirty-year-old Jew, Boaz left South Africa ten years previously to train as a composer. He has returned to Johannesburg with his wife, Ann, to study African music and musical instruments. Absorbed by his research, he travels frequently. When Ann becomes involved in a love affair with Gideon Shibalo, his political sensitivity to Gideon's race inhibits his reaction. He tolerates the situation as Ann and Gideon become more deeply engaged. Ultimately, he forsakes his African studies, and he and Ann return to Europe.
Ann Davis, Boaz's wife. Slender, fair-skinned, and beautiful, twenty-two-year-old Ann enters her new life in South Africa with exuberant vitality. Born in Rhodesia, she grew up in England. When she arrives in Johannesburg, she has no real work and is regarded as somewhat shallow, especially by Jessie. Later, with Len Mafolo, she sets up a traveling exhibition of African art. She meets one of the painters, Gideon Shibalo, with whom she becomes deeply involved. When Ann and Gideon go away together, Ann increasingly recognizes the dangers of a relationship that is forbidden by law. She and Gideon decide to leave the country, but eventually she returns to Europe with Boaz.
Gideon Shibalo (shih-BAH-lo), a painter and schoolteacher. An artist of exceptional talent, Gideon won a scholarship to Italy. Denied a passport because of his political activities, Gideon turned to drink for a time and gave up painting. Married to a woman with whom he has lost touch and father of a young son whom he would scarcely recognize, Gideon has many relationships with women, both black and white. Politics occupies the center of his life, however, until he meets Ann, who inspires him to paint again. After Ann's flight to Europe, he returns to drink.
Morgan, Jessie's son. Small, yet with large hands, Morgan is fifteen years old and in the awkward stages of adolescence. Returning from boarding school for the holidays, he seems scarcely to belong in the house. Knowing little about him, Jessie and Tom are shocked to learn that their obedient son has been caught at a shady dance hall.
Len Mafolo (mah-FOL-o), a black coworker of Jessie at the agency. He introduces Ann to the life of the city. While Ann and Len are traveling with their exhibition, Gideon (whom Len knows) frequently joins them for lunches, during which Ann and Gideon get to know each other.
Mrs. Fuecht (fewkt), Jessie's mother. Now almost seventy years old, Mrs. Fuecht is elegant and carefully groomed. After the death of Jessie's father, she married Bruno Fuecht, a man with whom she has never been happy. Jessie has negative feelings about her mother, who, she feels, was smotheringly protective when Jessie was a child, even having her tutored at home because of a suspected heart ailment. When it later turns out that the heart ailment is nonexistent, Jessie feels cheated of her girlhood.
Bruno Fuecht, a Swiss chemical engineer. Angry and ill, Fuecht leaves his nursing home to go to Europe alone. Delayed in Johannesburg, he calls the Stilwells, and Tom visits him in his hotel (Jessie refuses to go). Railing against his wife, he claims that he has transferred all of his money to Switzerland. Later, the Stilwells learn that he has died in Rome and that he has not left Mrs. Fuecht penniless.