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Captain Corelli's Mandolin is a 1993 novel written by Louis de Bernières. It is a story about an Italian captain (Antonio Corelli) and the daughter (Pelagia) of the local physician (Dr. Iannis) on the island of Cephallonia set against the background of the Italian/German occupation of the island during World War II.
Most notable is de Bernières' ambiguity to heroes and villains. Following the traits of the modern novel, de Bernières presents characters rather than stereotypes and avoids explicit judgement of them as individuals. Many of the characters, despite committing atrocities, are viewed sympathetically.
For example, Gunter Weber carries a great degree of sympathy from the writer, despite the fact that he fully engages with the Nazi ideology and is guilty of taking part in the killing of an entire Italian regiment, part of which is made up of his friends. This is shown in both the titles of the chapters in which he appears "The Good Nazi", his moral scruples and reverses of decision in that he at first hates the Italians for surrendering then tries to convince his superior not to kill them, citing examples of international law.
Similarly Mandras, the young fisherman to whom Pelagia is engaged before the war, is guilty of murder and attempted rape, yet the author portrays him sympathetically, showing him to be more a victim of circumstance "just another life tarnished... by war" than a one-dimensional 'bad guy'.
This said, many other characters are portrayed in a not-so-flattering light, such as Mussolini, shown to be petty, uncultured and irrational despite his pretentions towards 'sensitivity' and intellectualism or Hector (or the andartes who take Dr.Iannis away), who is brutal and takes no responsiblity for his actions despite his confessed belief in the brotherly love of the Communist ideology.
Themes
Captain Correlli's Mandolin deals with a wide variety of themes from politics and history to romance. The theme of love is explored all throughout the novel. We see the initial love between Pelagia and Mandras, which burns out as a result of the war, and the change it prompts in both of them. We come to realise that this was a relationship based on lust rather than love. Corelli and Pelagia's love is the central focus of the novel, developing slowly. The endurance of this love despite the physical degradation of both characters makes us feel a much deeper sense of love than at the beginning. Love is described by Dr. Iannis as, "what is left when the passion has gone," and it certainly appears that this criterion is fulfilled by the love of Corelli and Pelagia. The paternal love of Iannis for Pelagia is also strong and is heavily compared and contrasted to that of Corelli's.
The theme of music is predominant, offering a direct contrast to the horror and destruction that the war brings, showing how something beautiful can arise from something horrible. The war is described in graphic detail, particularly the death of Francesco. It is responsible for the fall of Mandras and Weber, and for the deaths of Carlo and Francesco. It is also responsible for the separation of Pelagia and Corelli.
Throughout the novel de Bernières takes a harsh view of all forms of totalitarianism, condemning Fascism, Nazism, and Communism alike. De Bernières described this as a novel about: "what happens to the little people when megalomaniacs get busy."
Another theme of the novel is the study of history. This can be seen through the character of Dr. Iannis who spends much of his spare time attempting to write a history of Cephallonia. However he usually finds his personal feelings and biases running through whatever he writes. There is also a strong feeling against 'professional' history which is suggested by Carlo Guerico's statement that "I know that if we [the axis] win then there will be stories about mass graves in London and vice versa". This is reinforced by De Bernières' quote that: "history ought to be made up of the stories of ordinary people only." From this view point it can be seen that de Bernières as very much a revisionist historian, considering social history superior to that of political.
Criticism
From a critical point of view the novel has received a great deal of acclaim, certainly more than any of de Bernières' other work, such as Birds Without Wings[citation needed]. However some have suggested that the story of Captain Corelli's Mandolin is plagiarised from a remarkably similar true account written by a former captain in the Italian Army[citation needed]. De Bernières denies all knowledge of this account before writing Captain Corelli's Mandolin[citation needed] but the extraordinary similarity between the two stories leaves the veracity of the claim ambiguous.
Referenced
Near the end of the novel, Pelagia receives a photograph from Gunter Weber with a German passage from Goethe's "Faust" written on the back. It reads:
- "Meine Ruh' ist hin,
- Mein Herz ist schwer,
- Ich finde sie nimmer
- Und nimmermehr."
Which translates as:
- "My peace is gone,
- My heart is heavy,
- I will find it never
- and never more."
In film
A movie version of Captain Corelli's Mandolin was released in 2001, with Nicolas Cage as the Italian Captain Corelli, John Hurt as Dr. Iannis, and Penélope Cruz as his daughter, Pelagia. It also starred Christian Bale and Irene Papas. It was directed by John Madden. The plot of the movie departed notably from that of the book.
The Italian film Mediterraneo also features Italian occupants in an idyllic Greek island.
At the end of the film Notting Hill, Hugh Grant's character William Thacker is seen reading the book in a park.