Tales of the South Pacific by James A. Michener

First published: 1947

Type of work: Novel

Type of plot: Historical realism

Time of plot: 1942-1943

Locale: South Pacific islands

Principal characters

• The Commander, a U.S. Navy first lieutenant
• Tony Fry, a first lieutenant (junior grade)
• Emile De Becque, a French planter
• Latouche Barzan, the Frenchman’s daughter
• Bus Adams, a Navy pilot
• Nellie Forbush, a Navy nurse
• Luther Billis, a Navy construction battalion officer
• Joe Cable, a U.S. Marine lieutenant
• Bloody Mary, a Tonkinese entrepreneur
• Liat, her daughter

The Story:

American, British, and Australian naval and marine forces face life and death in the South Pacific during World War II. An American naval lieutenant, the Commander, observes and relates the stories of the Tonkinese, the officers, the nurses, and the enlisted men he encounters. Navy lieutenant Tony Fry involves himself in everything from dealing with the survivors of the Bounty crew, to providing whiskey to the troops, to cohabiting with the Tonkinese and eventually marrying one of them. His death on the beach at Kuralei is particularly hard for the Commander, who admires Tony and even envies him.

In “The Milk Run,” Lieutenant Bus Adams, a daredevil pilot, describes spending seven hours on the water after being shot down during a cleanup mission. His rear gunner is killed, and he is under heavy bombardment from the Japanese. Upon hearing of Adams’s plight, an admiral orders his immediate rescue regardless of the cost. The rescue, involving New Zealand and American pilots, bombers, fighters, and PT boats, eventually costs $600,000. Adams admits it is a lot of money but is truly grateful he is the beneficiary.

In “Those Who Fraternize,” Adams is having a love affair with Latouche Barzan, one of four beautiful part-Javanese sisters and the daughter of a French plantation owner. Renowned for her lavish dinners and for entertaining the officers, she also is independent and freethinking. When Tony Fry arrives at the plantation, Latouche falls in love with him. Bus is heartbroken but accepts the inevitable and also accepts her gift of another French woman. He then attends the wedding of Tony and Latouche.

“Our Heroine” concerns twenty-two-year-old Navy nurse Nellie Forbush from Little Rock, Arkansas. She earlier has deftly dealt with a married lothario intent on seducing her. In the New Hebrides, she and the other nurses are pursued by the officers and lusted after by the enlisted men. Numerous instances of rape and near rape are reported, as well as tales of heroes who defend the women.

Life changes for Nellie when she meets Emile De Becque, a French plantation owner. In spite of a twenty-year age difference, they are immediately attracted, and Emile decides she has been worth the wait. He proposes and she accepts. Then, she hears Bus Adams’s story of “The Frenchman’s Daughter.” Emile has four grown daughters by Javanese, Polynesian, and Tonkinese mothers whom he never married. Shocked but not deterred, Nellie agrees to go with Emile to his plantation. There, she is introduced to four more daughters, ages seven to eleven, whose mothers were Tonkinese and Polynesian and whom Emile had not married.

Nellie is dumbstruck. Her southern heritage has taught her that, since these children are not white, they are taboo. She tells herself that she cannot marry a man who has slept with women of color and has children of color. Her heart is broken, and she asks Emile to drive her home, but she is finally convinced to stay for dinner, where she is enchanted by the girls’ chatting and their manners. As she and Emile drive to her quarters, they are attacked by four would-be rapists. Emile overpowers them and gets Nellie home safely. Regretfully, she tells him that they can never marry.

Later that evening, Nellie confesses her doubts to another nurse, contemplates accepting a proposal from a boy back home, and finally reminds herself that she enlisted to learn to live with other people and see the world. She realizes how preposterous her prejudices have been and rushes to the plantation, Emile, and his daughters.

“Fo’ Dolla’” recounts the relationship between Marine lieutenant Joe Cable, the Tonkinese beauty Liat whom he loves, and her enterprising mother Bloody Mary. Mary, whose nickname derives from the bloody-looking betal juice that has permanently stained her mouth, runs a kiosk at which she sells grass skirts, toy canoes, seashells, shrunken heads, and anything else she can convince the men to buy. Lieutenant Cable is ordered to shut down Mary’s kiosk. Even so, Mary is highly impressed with Joe, who is tall, lean, blond, attractive, and educated. He in turn finds her amusing and enterprising. Through Mary, Joe discovers the island of Bali-ha’i, where he meets Liat. With the assistance of Seabee (construction battalion) officer Luther Billis—an ubiquitous presence throughout the tales—Joe takes every opportunity to be with Liat on the island.

Mary implores Joe to marry her daughter, but, torn between his passion and the cultural mores engrained in him, he finally realizes he cannot overcome his prejudices. He volunteers for a duty that will take him into combat and away from the woman he loves but cannot marry. As a final token, Joe gives Liat a man’s watch and convinces her to make love one last time. When he leaves, Mary hurls the watch to the ground, curses the lieutenant, and makes an obscene gesture. Liat is left to her fate as the wife of a short, fat, pompous, French plantation owner.

In “A Cemetery at Hoga Point,” the Commander visits a plateau overlooking the sea where 281 fighting men are buried. Two black men serve as caretakers, and the Commander questions one of them about his position and the graveyard’s occupants. In one of the graves lies Lieutenant Joe Cable. The caretaker provides details of Joe’s turmoil after he left Liat and his death on a beachhead. Meanwhile, the war goes on.

Bibliography

Day, A. Grove. James Michener. New York: Twayne, 1964. Reflections on Michener by his friend and the coauthor of Rascals in Paradise (1957). Contains a helpful chronology along with notes and references.

Hayes, John P. James A. Michener: A Biography. Indianapolis, Ind.: Bobbs-Merrill, 1984. Contains some interesting anecdotes about Michener’s two years in the South Pacific, reaction to Tales of the South Pacific, and staging of the musical South Pacific.

May, Stephen J. Michener: A Writer’s Journey. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2005. Chapters 5-7, covering 1940-1949, center on the writing and staging of Tales of the South Pacific. The foreword is written by Ernest Hemingway’s daughter-in-law and gives some insight into the relationship between the two authors.

Michener, James A. James A. Michener’s Writers’ Handbook: Explorations in Writing and Publishing. New York: Random House, l992. Contains Michener’s own extensive notes and guidelines on writing a novel and his autobiography. Also has a section of “Questions Most Frequently Asked by Would-Be Writers.”

‗‗‗‗‗‗‗. Literary Reflections. Austin, Tex.: State House Press, 1993. A collection of previously written essays and two poems. Michener describes some of the people responsible for his love of literature and art. Four essays are devoted to famous writers, including Ernest Hemingway, Margaret Mitchell, Marcus Goodrich, and Truman Capote.

‗‗‗‗‗‗‗. The World Is My Home: A Memoir. New York: Random House, l992. Michener’s autobiography, published five years before his death. The first seven chapters cover his personal life and the second seven discuss his career. Provides interesting insights into his upbringing, his politics, and his writing style.