Under the Sun of Satan: Analysis of Major Characters
"Under the Sun of Satan" is a novel that explores the lives of several major characters, each embodying complex moral dilemmas and existential struggles within a religious context. Central to the narrative is Germaine "Mouchette" Malorthy, a troubled sixteen-year-old who engages in manipulative and destructive behaviors, including seduction, blackmail, and ultimately murder. Her actions lead to tragic consequences, including her own suicide, following a revealing encounter with Father Donissan, the saintly priest who strives to navigate his own spiritual conflicts amidst the darkness he confronts.
Father Donissan, characterized by his devotion and self-mortification, grapples with temptations from Satan, who appears as a friendly figure offering solace. The interplay between good and evil is further illustrated through characters like Dr. Gallet, who acts out of self-interest, and Jacques de Cadignan, a nobleman caught in moral decay due to his dalliances with Mouchette. Other significant figures include the supportive Father Menou-Segrais, who guides Father Donissan towards a more compassionate spirituality, and Antoine Saint-Marin, whose skepticism about faith is challenged by the stories of Father Donissan's life. Through these characters, the novel delves into themes of sin, redemption, and the human condition, ultimately painting a poignant picture of spiritual struggle and the quest for meaning.
Under the Sun of Satan: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Georges Bernanos
First published: Sous le soleil de Satan, 1926 (The Star of Satan, 1927; better known as Under the Sun of Satan)
Genre: Novel
Locale: The rural northwestern area of France
Plot: Religious
Time: The beginning of the twentieth century
Germaine “Mouchette” Malorthy (zhehr-MEHN mewSHEHT mah-lohr-TEE), a sixteen-year-old murderess and suicide. Small, nymphlike, and intense, she unashamedly sets out to seduce both Dr. Gallet and Jacques de Cadignan. Pregnant by the latter, she threatens to expose him to public scorn and to the police if he does not agree to marry her. After Mouchette tells him that she is also the mistress of Dr. Gallet, however, he violently rapes her. She then shoots him in the throat, and it looks as though he committed suicide. She also attempts to blackmail Dr. Gallet into performing an abortion, but he refuses. She lies for the sake of lying and enjoys watching others suffer; she will do anything to get her own way. Her final attempt at seduction is with the saintly Father Donissan, who immediately recognizes her demoniac powers and offers her pity and forgiveness. She is so outraged by his generosity that she goes home and slits her throat.
Antoine Malorthy (ahn-TWAHN), the middle-aged father of Mouchette. A brewer by trade, he possesses all the manipulative cleverness of a northern French peasant. Although disturbed by the marquess of Cadignan's sexual exploitation of his teenage daughter, he attempts to find ways by which the family can benefit financially from it. Antoine convinces the marquess that unless he makes some kind of monetary reparation for violating Antoine's daughter, Antoine will make the marquess' crime public.
Jacques de Cadignan (zhahk deh kah-deen-YAHN), Mouchette's lover, an impoverished nobleman, a forty-five-year-old pleasure-seeking member of a dying nobility. He relentlessly pursues the young women of his area of the Artois. Although somewhat paunchy, he is a charming gentleman, with soothing manners and pale, icy blue eyes. He has been seduced by the nymphette Mouchette, who tells him that he has impregnated her. She insists that he marry her and rear the child as his own, but he refuses.
Dr. Gallet (gah-LAY), a middle-aged physician and member of the local Chamber of Deputies. He has become Mouchette's lover but is fearful of being found out. After Mouchette becomes pregnant, she insists that Dr. Gallet perform an abortion. He refuses on ethical grounds, but she threatens him with blackmail if he does not do as she wishes. After she commits suicide, he successfully keeps the facts of the situation quiet, thus protecting her family and himself. Everything he does is self-serving.
Father Donissan (doh-nee-SAHN), the saintly Curé of Lumbres. He is a powerfully built, intellectually dull, inarticulate, and awkward priest who is totally devoted to his parishioners. Because his natural instincts frighten him, particularly aspects of his bleak and violent nature, he flagellates himself, wears a hair shirt, and practices other techniques of self-mortification. To gain complete control over his feelings, he fasts and sleeps only a few hours each night. He is most fearful of the joy that spiritual pride may create within himself and leans heavily toward Jansenistic spiritualism. He is tempted by Satan himself when lost on a dark road late at night. He resists the consolations that Satan offers him and, as a result of his victory, attains the ability to read the souls of his parishioners, particularly in the confessional. He becomes a new Curé of Ars and spends the remainder of his life ministering to the souls of sinners. Mouchette commits suicide after he reveals the secrets of her soul to her.
Father Menou-Segrais (meh-NEW-seh-GRAY), an aging canon of the parish of Compagne and spiritual director of Father Donissan. He is a clear-sighted and practical, though spiritual, guide for Father Donissan. Although he is heir to a huge fortune, he has chosen the priestly life and devotes himself to the needs of his flock and to the younger priests in the diocese. He believes that Father Donissan has confronted Satan and urges him to seek temporary refuge in a monastery for further prayer and contemplation. He is in many ways responsible for Father Donissan's growing sainthood, urging him to pursue his spirituality in less masochistic ways, thus opening his heart to his parishioners.
Father Sabiroux (sah-bee-REW), a priest in his fifties who is the pastor of the parish at Luzarnes. He befriends Father Donissan and believes in his miraculous powers, although he is skeptical at first. He is a former professor of chemistry in the minor seminary at Cambrai and leads a well-ordered and sober life.
Satan, or Lucifer, a figure who appears as a normal-looking, short, cheerful horse dealer who emerges out of the dark to guide Father Donissan to his destination. Father Donissan is immediately attracted to him and confides the secret of his soul to him. As Satan embraces him and declares his love for him, the young priest becomes violently aware that he is being kissed by Lucifer himself. The priest resists Satan's temptation and is empowered thereafter to read the souls of sinners. His victory over Satan comes as a result of the pity and love he expresses toward him.
Antoine Saint-Marin (sahn-mah-RAN), a middle-aged, wealthy intellectual. He is a famous author whose book, The Paschal Candle, is a scathing indictment of the mystical practices of the Catholic Church. He has come to see the now-famous, aging Father Donissan and to prove to himself that his agnosticism is correct. Although he never meets the aging saint, his rationalistic skepticism is damaged somewhat by the moving stories he hears about the holy pastor. He discovers the priest dead in his confessional at the conclusion of the novel.