Otherwise Engaged: Analysis of Major Characters
"Otherwise Engaged: Analysis of Major Characters" is a play that delves into the complexities of human relationships through its central character, Simon Hench, a middle-aged publisher. As Simon attempts to enjoy a recording of Wagner's "Parsifal," he is repeatedly interrupted by various characters who reflect the tumultuous nature of his life and relationships. These interruptions include his lodger Dave, whose crude behavior serves as a foil to Simon's composed demeanor, and his older brother Stephen, who grapples with feelings of envy and inadequacy. The play also features Jeff Golding, a literary journalist entangled in messy affairs, and Davina Saunders, who complicates the dynamics further with her provocative intentions.
Beth Hench, Simon’s wife, adds layers of tension as she confronts Simon about her infidelity and impending motherhood, casting doubt on their marriage. The arrival of Bernard Wood, a former schoolmate, deepens the narrative with revelations about Simon's past and the consequential fallout of his actions, including a tragic suicide. Through these interconnected stories, the play explores themes of responsibility, emotional detachment, and the often-unseen ramifications of one's choices, ultimately revealing the flawed nature of its protagonist. This character-driven analysis invites reflection on the intricacies of personal connections and their unintended consequences.
Otherwise Engaged: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Simon Gray
First published: 1975
Genre: Play
Locale: London, England
Plot: Comedy
Time: The 1970's
Simon Hench, a successful, middle-aged publisher who is trying throughout the play to listen to a new recording of Richard Wagner's Parsifal while his wife is out of town. Simon is the central figure, toward whom all the characters gravitate. He is interrupted by the romantic and career problems of his student lodger, his brother, his friend Jeff, Jeff's girlfriend, an old schoolmate, and finally his wife, Beth. Each interruption casts a different light on Simon through his relationships with the others. At first, Simon seems a paragon of virtue and sanity, but by the end of the play he is clearly a participant in, and perhaps even a cause of, the troubles of others. Simon is left with his estranged wife's pregnancy (possibly by another man), his lodger's friends moving in, his brother's spite, and the knowledge of his possible guilt in a suicide. He returns to his Parsifal as the play ends.
Dave, Simon's loutish lodger, a university student. Dave is thickheaded and aggressively rude. He fails to pay his absurdly cheap rent and instead cadges spending money and drinks from Simon, who tolerates him as a salve to his social conscience. At the end of the play, Dave has moved a putative girlfriend and her male friend into the apartment, just to avenge himself on Simon. Dave's role is that of a crude annoyance to Simon's imperturbability.
Stephen Hench, Simon's older brother, a self-described “middle-aged public school teacher with five children… a bit of a failure.” Stephen complains that he will be passed over for a position as assistant headmaster at his school, revealing an insecurity about himself. Later in the play, he reveals his envy of his brother. Finally, he reveals that Simon's wife is having an affair with a man Simon holds in contempt. Initially, Simon's relationship to his brother seems kindly tolerant; by the end, it is suspected that Stephen's accusations that his brother is supercilious and smug may have substance.
Jeff Golding, Simon's friend, a literary journalist who hates literature and who is rude to Stephen and, apparently, to everyone else. He is having an affair with Gwendoline, his former wife, even though she has remarried and Jeff has a new girlfriend, Davina. His sloppy emotionalism contrasts sharply with Simon's cool detachment and precision, but the two are more alike than they seem at first. The play's ending, with Simon and Jeff listening to Wagner together, emphasizes these characters' similarity: They both make use of others casually and irresponsibly, with little concern for the results.
Davina Saunders, Jeff's girlfriend, who is writing a book about a companion of Henry Morton Stanley in the Congo who may have practiced cannibalism. Davina walks in on Simon and Jeff after Jeff has admitted to having an affair with Gwendoline. Davina claims that Gwendoline has just attempted suicide, a fiction intended to cause trouble for Jeff, who takes the bait, throws his drink at her, and rushes out to contact his former wife. Davina then takes off her shirt and continues her conversation, topless, with Simon, who rejects her sexual proposition and implies that he is faithful to his wife but agrees to publish her book. Davina is impressed with how“imperturbably…implacably married” Simon is, a perception likely to be shared by the audience when Simon resists her charms but one that is turned on its head by the end of the play.
Bernard Wood, a schoolmate of Simon and Stephen, known as “Wanker” Strapley at school. He enters after Davina leaves. He claims to be searching for his daughter, Joanna, who had applied to Simon for a job, but he is actually her fiancé. His appearance reveals that Simon slept with Joanna and other younger women but also had affairs with a number of the boys at school. By the end of the play, Wood has committed suicide, with Simon's answering machine recording the act. Wood's character represents the human consequences of Simon's behavior, consequences Simon would prefer to ignore in his attempt to keep his life orderly. He tells Wood that he never sleeps with anyone in his social circle because relationships there are awkward enough.
Beth Hench, Simon's wife, who returns from a supposed field trip with her students after Stephen has spitefully told her husband that she is having an affair with Ned, one of her fellow teachers. Simon refuses to confront Beth with this accusation, but she, sensing his change of manner, brings it out into the open, confessing her love for Ned, her hatred for Simon's serene contempt for human life, and her pregnancy. She is unsure as to whether Simon or Ned is the father. Her testimony is the final undermining of the play's initial portrayal of Simon.