This Sporting Life: Analysis of Major Characters
"This Sporting Life" offers a nuanced exploration of the lives and struggles of its major characters, primarily through the lens of Arthur Machin, a determined professional rugby player. In his early thirties and hailing from a working-class background, Arthur seeks social respectability and power through his athletic success, driven by a desire for financial stability and the comforts it can bring. His relationships are complex, particularly with Valerie Hammond, a grieving widow and his landlady, who becomes his mistress but remains emotionally guarded, ultimately ending their relationship due to societal pressures.
Supporting characters add depth to the narrative, such as Johnson, the aging team committee member who is both a mentor and a victim of Arthur's disdain, and Charles Weaver, the industrialist owner of the factory and the rugby team, who sees Arthur's ego as a liability. Diane Weaver, Charles's wife, complicates the landscape further with her flirtations, while Frank, the rugby team captain, embodies a contrasting perspective, preferring stability and simple pleasures over the tumult of fame. Maurice Braithwaite represents the pitfalls of hedonism, illustrating the struggles of adapting to domestic life after his reckless behavior leads to unexpected consequences. Overall, the characters in "This Sporting Life" reflect themes of ambition, class struggle, and the human condition, inviting readers to consider their motivations and the societal dynamics at play.
This Sporting Life: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: David Storey
First published: 1960 (U.S. edition, 1961)
Genre: Novel
Locale: A North Country industrial town in England
Plot: Naturalism
Time: The late 1950's
Arthur Machin, a professional rugby player for the Primstone Team in northern England. He is in his early thirties, muscular, taciturn, and self-reliant. He also is grimly determined to succeed. Born in the working class, he seeks social respectability through athletic success. Rugby brings him money (and, thus, a car, a television set, and even women) that his full-time job as a machinist could never earn. Money and fame also give him a sense of power over others. In confident moments, he treats friends, parents, and even his lover as opposing players who must be knocked down. On rare occasions, he is a gentle, generous giant.
Valerie Hammond, a widow with two small children, Arthur's landlady. Desperately poor and still grieving for her dead husband, she keeps emotionally and socially distant from Arthur despite his efforts to befriend her. She becomes his mistress when success allows him to treat her and the children to middle-class comforts. She resists Arthur's clumsy efforts at emotional commitment. She breaks off their relationship because of intense neighborhood gossip. Months later, when she suffers an eventually fatal stroke, Arthur is her only visitor.
Johnson, who previously was committee man for the team and is now an aging hanger-on. He gets Arthur a tryout with a team. Although he protests that he wants no reward, he finds that Arthur now treats him contemptibly. As a sop, he is hired as a gardener by one of the team's owners.
Charles Weaver, an industrialist who owns the factory where Arthur works and co-owns the team for which Arthur plays. Annoyed by Arthur's egotism, he constantly votes to dismiss Arthur from the team. Toward the end of the novel, he temporarily succeeds.
Diane Weaver, Charles's wife. Ostensibly dedicated to charitable works, she pursues handsome, young football players. She propositions Arthur, but he resists; later, she spurns his attempt to start a liaison.
Mr. Slomer, a co-owner of the team. An eccentric, reclusive semi-invalid, he is a mysterious figure to the players. He and Charles Weaver battle to control the team by supporting and promoting different players. His death at the end of the novel is regarded by all the characters as a turning point with unpredictable consequences in their lives and in the history of the team.
Frank, a rugby team captain. Like Arthur, he is a taciturn bull of a man. Unlike Arthur, he is content with working in the mines and with a normal domestic life. He also differs in that he puts no emphasis on the pleasures or powers that fame and money buy.
Maurice Braithwaite, Arthur's teammate and an employee at Weaver's factory. He is a thoughtless pleasure seeker and exhibitionist. Reluctantly, he marries Judith, a secretary, when she becomes pregnant by him. Gradually, married life calms his restless instincts.