Unseen commentary - Calvin's

It was one of those normal boring thursday in school and it was lunchtime where students were around and about the school doing their things while teachers were in the staffroom having their daily gossip. Coming to school was like a routine for Pho and today, he had his Music, French, Maths and after lunch, was English which would conclude his day.
That bell rang soon after, and the corridors started to quieten down and as the class entered English, everyone was looking tired and had a sulky face as they had to endure another hour and twenty minutes till freedom! Mr Valentiny, the English teacher of the best English class in the world seemed different today, he would usually give an enthusiastic welcome and ask everyone how their day was. However, today he glued himself onto the chair and was staring straight looking stunned into the plain air. Whist everyone took their seats, the whole classroom suddenly turned charcoal black, even the natural light did not enter, it was very weird and Pho could sense that something was wrong in this English class and he knew that this day would not be his usual routine. All of a sudden, Mr Valentiny brought out a remote which looked something like a detonator, and to the class surprise it actually was!
"I guess you guys thought I was that normal English teacher huh"
He mentioned that he was from a secret terrorist society and he was chosen for this mission to suicide bomb the best English class in Ho Chi Minh city. Just as he was about to press the trigger...........

Challenging stereotypes - post by Annika x x

There is a man in a shop at the till purchasing a necklace encrusted with a few jewels. He is dressed in a tight fitting pink v-necked t-shirt with white trousers. On his feet he wears newly polished black pointy shoes and his hair is carefully arranged with various hair products and gels so that each strand sticks up at perfect angles; even a small gust of wind would ruin his hairdo.. As he approaches the till to buy his jewellery, the woman at the counter immediately assumes that he is homosexual from one sweeping glance of his dress style. When he starts talking to her, his accent resembles that of a stereotypical homosexual, further certifying her initial speculation. She does not notice the golden ring on his left hand until he hands over a wad of £10 notes. She politely asks him if he is married and he replies yes, just recently. The cashier feels guilty about making assumptions but hands him back his change and wishes him a good day as he exits the store.

Unseen commentary extract

It was a cold and gloomy winter night in a ghetto neighbourhood of Paris; the canal was frozen and the streets were completely empty with the exception of the odd shadows walking past. Damian was sitting at a cafe terrace with his friend, Ballantine. They were chugging down mouthfuls of Kronenbourg’s and stayed at the cafe for several hours. At around one in the morning, they decided to go home. Damian got up left five euros on the table, said goodbye to Ballantine and started to make his way home with a determined but unbalanced march; he was meandering on the sidewalk.

Ballantine was too drunk to drive himself home but not drunk enough to decide to drive anyway. So he completed the bill and walked home; taking a stroll along the frozen canal. He perceived a group of people further away, standing on the bridge. They had a large stereo and were playing loud rap music. As he got closer he could distinguish five guys in their twenty’s, from Maghrebian origins. They were making a tag on the side of the bridge. As he walked past them, Ballantine threw a quick glance their way. When one of them shouted out to him he realized he shouldn’t have looked at them. Ballantine quickened his pace but the guy shouted louder, telling him to stop. The man started to run after him and he placed his hand on Ballantine’s shoulder to stop him. Ballantine was terrified and asked, in a stammering, frightened voice, “what do you want?” The man held his hand out with a fifty euro bill in it and said “you dropped your money sir.”

Unseen commentary extract

It was the beginning of the Worlds FEI Cup, an extremely important and significant event that requires months of training for both horse and rider. The three-day event involves dressage, eventing and jumping.
It was the morning of October 13th 1993, when Jane Grey approached her 17hand black eventer. It was a big morning, as both horse and rider was about to embark on one of their most momentous event of their careers. Naturally both athletes were extremely nervous, the butterflies weren’t helped when it was overheard earlier that morning that Jane was expected to have a nervous break-down and embarrass herself in front of everyone present in the stadium and national television. “Morning handsome” She whispered to Chestar, he answered with a lit whinny his eyes shinning at the sight of his beloved rider. “You ready for today?”
He blew a raspberry in response, Jane knew her partner well enough to know what he meant, it was very unlike Chestar to be blowing raspberries, and it usually meant he was unsure of something.
“Yea, me too” Jane answered simply.
It was left unspoken but both were nervous and uneasy. Jane’s hands trembled as she gently caressed Chestar’s head, he in turn was very unlike his playful self, his ears and eyes were circulating the room alertly.

It was an hour before they were making their first appearance; Jane was up in the lockers running last minute strategies through her head as she was pulling on her show jacket. The grooms were finishing with Chestar. The course was being checked by the commentators and the judges were refreshing their memories on rules and regulations. The stage was set.

10:00 am Jane Grey mounted her steed.
10:15 am, Chestar and Jane Grey left the warm up ring for the starting post.
Jane felt her heart beating in her mouth, Chestar was moving uneasily from side to side beneath her.
The starting bell sounded.

Chestar leapt with astounding power onto the course his muscles tensing and relaxing in unison and even intervals as he took on each jump with flying grace, ferocity and eagerness. Jane Grey was standing firmly on each impediment looking for the next hurdle that stood in their way, team work between the two was almost clockwork as horse and rider seem to be reading each other’s minds.
They were finally approaching the final obstacle: a six meter wide watering ditch with three ox-bow jumps towards the end. Water had always been Chestar’s best field, as his ears pricked forward and picked himself into a gallop, Jane eased her reigns to hand over control, she knew he wouldn’t let her down.

Chestar entered the water.
The cold, he flinched.
His haunches lifted.
He scooted from under Jane as he tried to dodge the sudden shock.
Jane Grey lost a stirrup she struggled to latch her foot back on as she also desperately tryied to steer Chestar into the right direction.
They made it.
First place.

Captain Corelli as a typical Italian

In the novel Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, Louis De Bernieres uses stereotypes for some characters. Antonio Corelli fulfills the typical stereotype of an Italian. The stereotype of an Italian, in De Bernieres view, is being loud, musical, chivalrous, romantic, and charismatic.

Captain Corelli is described to the reader only in chapter twenty-four through the eyes of Carlo who has been the main character and is a likable character so what he says and how he describes Corelli seems to be truthful and sincere. He describes him as being dramatic and humorous as he “say things for the sake of their value as amusement, with an ironic disregard for the truth”, this shows that Corelli is easy-going and funny. Captain Corelli is described by De Bernieres as very humorous, this is shown when he orders his troops to stare at Pelagia, the “Bella bambina at nine o’clock”. She had to endure “a march-past of the most comical and grotesque antics and expressions devisable by man”; it was so funny that she had to go against her “duty to hate them” and “put her hand to her mouth” to hide that she is laughing. His humorous and entertaining character portrays an archetypal Italian.

He is also portrayed as a chivalrous man. He is very respectful and polite towards women. When he learns that he is taking Pelagia’s bed he says that it is “out of the question”. He wouldn’t have even thought of taking her bed and making her sleep somewhere else, showing that he is very gallant and well-mannered. Corelli feels guilt and “shame of having displaced a rightful owner from her own bed”. Being chivalrous and courteous is typically associated with Italians.

After Francesco’s death Carlo thought he could never love again, he was completely broken, until there he saw “a small miracle whose name was Captain Antonio Corelli”, he became Carlo’s “source of optimism”, this shows that Captain Corelli is extremely charismatic and captivating. It shows that Captain Corelli is so energetic and joyful that he manages to make Carlo come out of the breakdown that he fell into after Francesco’s death. He even “grew to love him as much as I had loved Francesco”. These qualities of being charismatic and charming are very much stereotypically attributed to Italians.

Captain Corelli is linked to music throughout the novel. Even the title ‘Captain Corelli’s Mandolin” shows that his mandolin is extremely important to him and he even names it Antonia because “it’s his other half”, suggesting that music is inside him it is half of him. The way Captain Corelli speaks about and protects his mandolin shows how much it means to him; he “clutched it tightly to his chest”. Without music he isn’t full, he isn’t his full self. He has also created “La Scala”, “a little opera club” showing that he is very musical and he pushes others to sing as well, for example, Carlo.

To conclude, Captain Antonio Corelli fills the stereotype of a typical Italian very closely. All these stereotypes that Captain Corelli fulfills aren’t bad stereotypes so I think that De Bernieres is trying to suggest that not all stereotypes of any country are bad ones. Corelli should be detested by the Greeks as it is their “duty to hate them” but he still manages to befriend them showing that even during the war, people from enemy countries could still be friends and live amongst each other. Louis De Bernieres is suggesting that people are individuals and that even someone so representative of a typical Italian can become friends with Greeks.

IOP Examples

If you want to see Mr Minford embarrassing himself on You Tube, then follow the link below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RztOPyosr-c

There are also 'examiner's' comments on the relative qualities of the IOP, along with a word document outline of the presentation itself. I've put these onto the student Z drive under:

Z:\Public-Students\Secondary\A1_LEARNING_RESOURCES\A3_KEYSTAGE5_IB\G1_LANGUAGES_A1\ENGLISH\YEAR_12\IOPs

Oh, and there's some stuff from Mr Pollicutt in there too.

Happy Viewing!

"O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN .. CORELLI!"

Explore the ways in which the character Corelli fulfils the role of a stereotypical Italian.
Italians are usually stereotyped in a way that they have specific characteristics such as musical, charismatic, chivalrous, and romantic. However at this time, the Italian army had gained control of the Greek island Cephallonia therefore there was inevitable hatred to the Italians from the Greeks. The Italians were despised in Cephallonia as they were seen as low lives - 'who hiss when I [Pelagia] walk by, or try to pinch my backside' - however ever though Captain Corelli indeed fulfils the role of a stereotypical Italian, he is not represented as a low life under any circumstance.

Even before Corelli made consecutive appearances in the book he is described by others to be 'charming' as one of his most essential traits is his charismatic flair. Pelagia who is still in the ruins of her "love" for Mandras and the daughter of a doctor who initially dislikes Italians continuously tries to convince herself to dislike Corelli. She mentions that she can poison this Italian any time she wants or shoot her easily as he is living in her house however we then learn that she falls madly in love with Corelli. This is all due to the fact that Corelli wins her over with his stereotypical trait of being charismatic. Corelli learns how to say "good morning" to Pelagia which makes her smile as he leaves the room and he has conversations with her about what she wants to be or music and in his humourous and chivalrous manner, she then falls madly in love with him. Corelli often makes her laugh or teases her such as saying he wanted to kill his mother because she dropped his mandolin or that she has greasy fingers. In chapter 16, Corelli examines the vest that Pelagia made, and then beings to talk about symmetry and the beauty of something not being symmetrical. He then talks about "it is these things [imperfections, unsymmetrical features] that make you [Pelagia] attractive and beautiful". I found that this was a romantic moment in which Corelli uses his charisma. The times where Corelli and Pelagia talk causes Pelagia's feelings for him to grow deeper which are due to his charisma which is a very Italian trait.

Corelli is also portrayed in the book as a very musical character and his choice of instrument is a mandolin. A mandolin goes back very far in time where the Italians developed it making it an Italian choice of instrument. Corelli plays his mandolin which almost serenades Pelagia as she gets lost in the beauty of it. Corelli also uses music in the army section of his life, when meeting Weber on the beach he labels his men with ranks of semi quavers and breves etc. This shows that music branches out throughout his life, Corelli also tells Pelagia that he wants to be a musician later on in life even though he's inevitably be poor, he would still be happy.
Some of De Bernieres' most beautiful descriptions in the book is of Pelagia listening and admiring Corelli's playing of the mandolin which forces the reader to fall in love with Corelli as well! This strong musical trait is also fit into the Italian stereotype and instead of being this violent murdering Italian in the war he is said to have "won battles with nothing but a mandolin"

A stereotypical Italian is thought to be loud however Corelli fulfils this stereotype however not in the negative connotation of being loud. Corelli is loud in the sense that he is confident and talks often, in the sense that his mandolin wakes Pelagia up, in the sense that Carlo talks of him telling stories to lots of people however he is not loud in the sense that it could be negatively put as obnoxiously loud or other negative perspectives. So this is Corelli furthering his fulfilment to the Italian stereotype in a somewhat positive manner.

One of things most known to others is Italy's family values due their religion, and Corelli shows these values through his respect to the doctor for appropriate space from his daughter at times, respecting his concerns. Carlo also when describing Corelli said that "he [Corelli] adored children, and I saw him kiss a little girl on the head and whirl her in his arms". Captain Corell, in chapter 31, sits at a table trying to sort out family problems of his soldiers which show that he has important values and morals. When offered Pelagia's bed, Corelli refuses as he does not want to put her out even when he is suffering from a sickness, this shows his morals where he is shown to be an upright upstanding man. This enforces the idea that he is a "Good Italian" to the Greeks as Weber is a "Good Nazi"

De Bernieres bought Corelli so late in the book but the effect of Corelli's presence in the book signifies alot. Pelagia's father says that it is the Greeks' "duty to hate them" however De Bernieres including him as a character in the book creates a rift for Pelagia. Stereotypes are commonly mentioned in the bad way where "the English are arrogant", "the French are frogs" and many others however Corelli enforces the Italian stereotype by being such a musical, charismatic, chivalrous and romantic character, all of which is not negative. The reader would think that if a character were to possess the characteristics of a stereotypical Italian then the Greeks would unwaveringly detest him. However De Bernieres uses Corelli to show that not all the stereotypes have to insinuate flaws in a person (and people from their country) but it can create a man so charming and impossible to detest in the book. It is the Greeks' "duty to hate them" as they had occupied the Greek island of Cellaphonia yet Corelli wins them over with his mandolin playing, his values and his charisma. De Bernieres includes him in the book to show that even in the time of war, where stereotypes are enforced more to insult one another, someone comes along fitting exactly to the stereotype and is still loved by many. Therefore De Bernieres could be giving the message that stereotypes don't always have to connote a bad thing.

Corelli, stereotypical Italian.

In the novel, Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, de Bernieres creates the character Corelli as a stereotypical Italian. It is shown through the way de Berneires describes Corelli’s characteristic through the eyes of the other people around him, as well as through Corelli own feeling and thoughts. De Bernieres uses the symbol of music, such as the mandolin, in Corelli’s life to emphasise the charismatic of an Italian in him. De Berneires creates such a character to questioning the stereotypical of nationalities that the society views on people during the time of war.

De Bernieres describes Corelli through the uses of vivid imagery from the point of view of people around him, such as Carlo to show that he is quite dramatic. In the chapter, A most ungracious surrender, through Carlo point of view “he was prone to dramatic in the telling of the story because everything about him was original, he was always larger than his circumstance, and he would say things for the sake of their value as amusement, with an ironic disregard for the truth.” this long and detailed sentence is clearly shown the characteristic, de Bernieres suggests to the reader that the image of Corelli is someone more carefree and quite charming in a way. De Bernieres seems to be attached to Corelli’s speaking and action the words “dramatic”, such as “the captain fell to his knee before her and exclaimed dramatically, ‘Please don’t kill me, I am innocent’” as though he wants to exaggerate the movement Corelli makes. This shows that the way he acts and speak is very exaggerate and bizarre which makes him quite charismatic.

De Bernieres shows that he is chivalrous, through the way he acts toward a situation. In the chapter, The Great Big Spiky Rustball, “‘It’s too close’ persisted the engineer, ‘the shock wave will pass straight through this hole and suck your eyes and brains out,… ‘it was a real sporcaccione of an explosion,’ said Carlo ‘absolutely better than anything I’ve ever seen.’” in this passage Corelli bravely discharge a mines by blowing it up, the danger of the situation can make the reader to see that Corelli is quite mad to do such a thing. However, this shows that he has bravery to spare. That he is not afraid to dead. Another example of chivalry is in the chapter, A Good Nazis (2), “‘Let’s sing boys,’ said Antonio Corelli as the truck they were in lurched from one rut to another… ‘Let’s sing, boys,’ he repeated, ‘Carlo, sing’” at this point every soldier are in sorrow as they where about to be sentence to dead, however Corelli in this sorrow he comforted the soldiers this can show that he is chivalrous in this kind of situation. In different kind of situation, Corelli shows the chivalrous face of an Italian.

De Bernieres uses the mandolin and music in general, as the symbol to show the charismatic in Corelli. In the chapter, La scala, “The man’s mad, and he’s a wop. But he’s got nightingales in his fingers.” this is the remarks from Kokolios as he heard Corelli’s mandolin, this shows that Corelli is quite a good musician and people admired him for that even though his action is strange to some people. The image of “nightingales” gives a smooth and relaxing picture of how Corelli’s fingers moved. furthermore, music can also shows his charismatic as music as what attract attention, Pelegia notice him for the first time was through his music. As well as, “My first experience of La Scala was hearing the Anvil Chorus…conducting the concert with the aid of a feather in his right hand” Carlo first meeting with Corelli was through the song he heard from the La Scala, which emphasise that music bring people together as it brought Carlo to Corelli.

De Bernieres create Corelli in such a way to question the people stereotypical view during the time of war. Corelli, an Italian captain, in the view of people in Cephallonia is a person they need to be detested and hated. However, through the way de Bernieres put the Italian in Corelli act toward the people in Cephallonia they begin to like him. Pelegia, who suppose to treat him like enemy had fall in love with him. Dr. Iannis detest every part of Corelli agreed for him and Pelegia to get married. Even Kokolios like the music Corelli makes.

Explore the ways in which the character Corelli fulfils the role of a stereotypical Italian.

In the novel of Captain Corelli’s mandolin, the character of Corelli is portrayed as a person who possesses stereotypical characteristics of an Italian, whom is very musical and chivalrous.

Though the title of the novel is Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, the character of Corelli is not introduced officially till a third of the book in chapter 24 ‘A Most Ungracious Surrender’. He is introduced by Carlo, who has been the main character throughout the earlier chapters, where the story chapters will alternate and always link back to Carlo. Now he is introducing the captain, and from his view the reader is told that Corelli is a very humorous person, being the captain of a battery who makes a “mockery of everything soldierly.” Having formed the “La Scala” which is an opera club that “shat together there at the same time every morning” shows that Corelli is a keen musician as well who enjoys music and is very passionate about it, which is another stereotypical characteristic of an Italian being musical, where famous composers like Antonio Vivaldi, composer of the Four Seasons is from. Carlo’s loss of Francesco left a huge impact on him, but after encountering Corelli, he has “grew to love him as much as I had loved Francesco”, also shows another stereotypical characteristic of an Italian that Corelli possesses, being very charismatic.

The way De Bernieres has structured his chapters can be seen as being very symbolic as well. Before ‘A Most Ungracious Surrender’, was the chapter ‘April 30^th 1941’, the highlight of the latter chapter was the mood, where Mandras was now “demanding” Pelagia to read the letters she wrote which was making her change her feelings for him which “grown first to pity and then to hate” . This makes the mood very dull and sad. However in the next chapter where Corelli is introduced, the mood of the novel suddenly changes and it feels bright, happy and free, as the reader is told of the humorous actions that Corelli does. So the structure is symbolic as it seems to represent that Corelli has been introduced now after the many disasters that has happened like the death of Francesco whom is Carlo’s love and also the tension between Mandras and Pelagia, making him as though a hero coming out all of a sudden in the novel, where he is the main character that every reader has been awaiting for. So through the chapters being symbolic, De Bernieres has shown the stereotypical characteristic of being a brave Italian in that Corelli is emerging as a hero. A key stereotypical characteristic of an Italian is being very musical, and Corelli and his mandolin represents the heart of Italy very clearly, the way Corelli talks about his mandolin and the way he looks after it seems as though that it is his life. He is bold when he talks about his mandolin. The way he is so protective of his mandolin, not allowing anyone including Pelagia to touch as he “clutched it tightly to his chest” supports this. Hence, the reader can see more stereotypical characteristics of an Italian through Corelli being very musical and bold.

In my opinion, I think that De Bernieres has included the stereotypical character of an Italian who is Corelli in this case as this allows a reader to maybe relate more to a fictional character. De Bernieres is not biased on his view of an Italian, and so he shows the good and bad stereotypes of an Italian through the character of Corelli. With these characteristics, a reader can agree more with their actions which makes the novel more interesting for the reader.

Explore the ways in which the character Corelli fulfils the role of a stereotypical Italian

Louis de Bernières uses stereotypic characters throughout the novel for many different reasons. Captain Corelli is arguably a stereotypical Italian character. Louis de Bernières uses Captain Corelli to show how war makes us judge people stereotypically and that this prejudice creates misunderstandings that can be consequential.
In Louis de Bernières’ perspective the Italians are hated by the Greeks, musical, chivalrous, charismatic, humorous, charming, and loud and likes to party. This is a universally accepted stereotypical characteristic of an Italian. When Captain Corelli is first introduced in the novel it is almost half way through the story. He instructs his whole battery to salute towards Palegia and makes it humorous like a stereotypical Italian would. This moment was described to be so hilarious that Palegia had to “endure a march-past of the most comical and grotesque antics and expressions devisable by man”. From this we can see that Corelli is flirting with Palegia and in a humorous manner. However, in the viewpoint of the Greeks, a stereotypical Italian was a threat to them and an enemy therefore Palegia “endures” the humor so that she doesn’t laugh or smile in the crowd. When she accidentally smiles she “puts her hand to her mouth” and the doctor tells her that “it is (the Greeks) duty to hate them”. Corelli is obviously a funny man who likes to flirt with girls but the stereotypical judgment from the Greeks make him the opposite, who is a man who makes Palegia guilty for smiling.
Carlo describes him to be charismatic, humorous and that he enjoys singings, which are all aspects of a stereotypical Italian. He is described in this manner because Carlo shows feelings towards him and thus giving an optimistic view of him. He would “make pretty women giggle by snapping his heels together and saluting them” this is charismatic because he does this to Palegia who laughs without her will. His humor isn’t “prevented (from) fragile self-pride” and he would “say things for the sake of their value of amusement”. On top of that he fulfills the role of a stereotypical Italian by singing, his battery called the “La Scala” gave the first experience to Carlo of them singing the “Anvil Chorus at 7.30am”. The way it is at a precise time suggests that it is almost their duty to sing at this time and thus showing the importance of music for this battery.
Corelli also fulfills the chivalrous aspect of being a stereotypical Italian by trying to give Palegia her own bed and suggesting that he sleeps somewhere else. He says “its out of the question” after he finds out that he is taking her bed. He is appalled by the idea. But the Doctors stereotypical view of Corelli suggests to him that he is trying to interrupt his trade of medical supplies with the quartermaster, furthermore that he is insulting the Greek manner of hospitality. Corelli wakes up every morning feeling “guilt” for sleeping in Palegia’s bed. At one point when he woke up and saw Palegia still asleep in the kitchen he didn’t want to “embarrass” her by seeing her in her night clothes, nor wake her up from her sleep and he didn’t want to be reminded of the “shame of having displaced a rightful owner from her own bed”. This shows how much he cares for her in a chivalrous manner from just seeing her in bed.
Corelli also likes to play with children and so he was playing with Lemoni by throwing her up and down in the air by the armpits. “The child was whooping and laughing”. Even Palegia “smiled as she watched”. But she sent Lemoni away because of “fraternization”. She believes that getting friendly with an enemy is “indecent” even for a child like Lemoni. This shows how the stereotypical judgment of Corelli is changing his loveable and caring way of him playing with children into a “fraternization” with little children.
Corelli wants to learn how to greet people in Greek and so he asks the doctor how to say it. The doctor tells him that he has to say “Kalimera” and “Ai gamisou”. So he goes to Palegia and says it but doesn’t get any response while he says it to others they “spit into the dust” or “scowled darkly”. This is because he was actually swearing at them and saying “Go fuck yourself” and “Son of a whore” and he was making a fool of himself. This shows how Corelli is actually trying to be nice but is misunderstood because he is given the wrong translation and thus thought to be a rude and vulgar mannered stereotypical Italian to those he said that to.
Louis de Bernières makes Corelli a character that plays the optimistic roles of a stereotypical Italian so that she can show how the war consequentially makes Corelli stereotypically misjudged in a prejudice manner by the Greeks and is thought to be rather a rude, vulgar, and insulting. Louis de Bernières tries to show how the war makes people stereotypically misjudge others just because they are the enemy.

Corelli fulfuling his role as a stereotypical Italian

Antonio Corelli is an Italian captain that is chivalrous, musical and bold. Always looking on the bright side of life and is an inspiration to his men in the army. De Bernieres had chosen to stereotype Antonio Corelli in this manner to convey a series of different connotations and messages to us, the reader.

Although de Bernieres’s novel was named ‘Captain Corelli’s Mandolin’, it wasn’t until chapter 24 was the captain introduced to the reader. To achieve this, de Bernieres had chosen to present Corelli through the eyes of Carlo, as the reader knows Carlo has been the only character to express any intimate emotion or explain and so explicitly describe his feelings, and up to this point Carlo had been a tragic figure, who gains the sympathy and liking of the reader. To use Carlo to introduce Captain Corelli, de Bernieres had been able to achieve a “handing-over-of-the-spotlight” effect; where one significant character is stepping out of the reader’s attention for another. Corelli was first introduced as “a small miracle” and “my source of optimism, a clear fountain, a kind of saint who had no repellent taste of piety…” all illustrating to the reader an uplifting and chivalrous character, who looks on the bright side of life and always making those around him comfortable and happy. This very much is a stereotype of Italians, for they have been said to be gallant, dynamic and, at the same time, respectful.

Another interesting point made by de Bernieres is when he had written Corelli to be a musician. Italians are notorious for being musical and romantic. Antonio Corelli had been used to depict this stereotype as a mandolin player; he had used his music to charm and woe Pelagia “…followed the rhetorical question with the same two notes, ritardando, played four quaver chords, then a bar which disrupted one’s expectations by the introduction of a rest and a pair of semi-quavers, and very shortly broke into cascades of chorded and unchorded semiquavers that left Pelagia open-mouthed.” And with this quotation, displayed his charisma and flamboyant attitude. Corelli’s music had also been the source of unification, either it be the boys in ‘La Scala’; bringing people together in times of harsh realities as well as helping them look on the bright side of life; that war shouldn’t bring a person’s spirits down “singing their hearts out, hammering at their steel helmets with spoons.” Or entertaining those around him “That evening the doctor himself demanded a concert, and he and Pelagia found themselves outdoors whilst the captain spread a sheet of music upon the table…” showing that Corelli has managed to fulfil his role as a typical Italian as being loud, bold and, to an extent, heroic.

Corelli had also depicted a dedicated, charming and brave soldier; de Bernieres had allowed Antonio Corelli to carry out this role fulfilment when, being a courageous character that he is, had risked his own life in the place of his division to blow up the mine himself while everyone was ordered to safety “‘…so when the time comes I want you all to go back to the top of the cliff and watch from there, because otherwise there would be a serious accidental massacre.’”. This again shows charisma and optimism; that in times of danger Corelli had not backed down nor appear cynical. This further emphasises the role fulfilment of an Italian. A person usually said to be strong-willed and valiant.

Of all of the above, when it comes to role fulfilment, Corelli best of all, fulfils a caring and insightful person; “‘Tell Lemoni that if she ever finds anything, anywhere, that is made of metal and she doesn’t know what it is, then she mustn’t ever, ever, touch it, and she’s got to run and [tell me] it straight away...” Here, Corelli is concerned for the well-being of those in Cephallonia, a trait not usually associated with when someone had been named an ‘invader’. The contradiction here would have only been made possible through the use of stereotype; this is a clear example to one of the reasons why de Bernieres had chosen to use stereotype quite frequently throughout the novel; to allow the reader to make their own assumptions and realise the irony in his work.

An additional point made by de Bernieres to illustrate a more vivid portrait of a “typical Italian” was the use of Antonio’s dialogue. The manner in which Corelli speaks and presents himself is very bold, confident and out right, “The captain sprang to his feet. ‘I am Captain Antonio Corelli, but you may call me maestro if you wish, and this…’ he took Carlo by the arm ‘…is one of our heroes. He has a hundred medals for saving life, and non for taking it.’” This quotation signifies poise a very strong association with Italians. Corelli is also polite and endearing, “In addition he did not want to cause her any [embarrassment] that might arise from being in his presence in her night clothes…” showing that Corelli is distinguished and respectful, that he knows etiquette which thence relates to a gentlemen.

To conclude, de Bernieres had chosen to present Captain Antonio Corelli in this approach because it allows the reader to have a closer and more personal relationship with the character. Throughout his novel, de Bernieres had used stereotype frequently, and all achieving different effects. The chivalrous and boisterous stance of Corelli allows a more vivid image of the character, bringing him more to life. As well as allowing de Bernieres the leverage for irony and humour, making the novel more engaging.

THE COMPARISON OF CARLO + MANDRAS

In Captain Corelli's Mandolin, De Bernieres creates two characters who both suffer the disaster of war and the consequences it has on love and other aspects of their life. However both characters contrast through their different opinions and attitudes to war and they both react differently to how war affects them.
On first look, both characters join war for different reasons. Carlo joins war to find love, this looks into the theme of "Love Between Men". This theme was introduced to war as a platonic love between men, that the love between men should strictly be due to the union of cooperating and working hard together in war. Carlo joining the war creates a tear in this statement. Carlo wants to be accepted into society therefore joins the war in the hope that he won't feel as isolated as he states in his L'Omosessuales. This creates irony in the fact that he tries to fit in with an army that is supposed to be enforcing this strict platonic love between men.
As for Mandras, he joins the war in thinking of Pelagia, his love. He doesn't want Pelagia to see him as nothing but a fisherman so he joins to prove to her that he is more than that. He wants to prove his courage and bravery for his country in order to show Pelagia the man that she is in love with is not just a fisherman. The motives for joining war between these two characters are different as for Carlo it is in search for love and for Mandras it is for love that he already has. However the similarity is that their motives are both to do with love.
The manner in which the two different characters express their love is also very different as Carlo's expressing of his love to Francesco is through these beautifully poetic letters however Mandras is not as emotional and sensitive as Carlo in expressing his "love" for Pelagia. The similarity between both character's loves is that both their loves seem more like lust than the true and meaningful amplitude of love itself. It is more obvious in Mandras' case as him and Pelagia's love deteriorates easily and there is alot of watching from a distance when Mandras appears. In Carlo's love for Francesco, I take from his admirations that it is lust over love. Carlo's admiration of Francesco consists of alot of descriptions about his appearance rather than something true and real.
The impact on the characters after war are also very different. For Carlo it appears to have benefited him since he joined war trying to find a place and leaves war being more strong and confident and comfortable with himself. In war, Carlo had lost his loved one and suffers tramatically from it however his manner in dealing with it is very different from Mandras' manner when he returns from war. Both characters were left feeling tortured due to war however Mandras deals with this by acting pathetic and cruel at some points. Carlo is presented through his letters which inevitably allows the reader to feel deep sympathy for him as we see him as an emotional tortured yet inspiring character. However with Mandras' attitude towards Pelagia, we form a more disgusted view of Mandras' suffering. Both characters and similar in the sense that they both lost love in some sense in front of their eyes. In Carlo's case, he lost his love obviously in front of his eyes as Francesco dies right in front of him. And in Mandras' case, his love deteriorates right in front of him with the barriers of communication with Pelagia.
Although they suffer different experiences, they both have their own similarities but there is a great contrast between both characters which evokes different reactions from the readers to the different characters.

Comparison of Carlo and Mandras

Louis de Bernières presents the two characters Carlo and Mandras to be similar with their ways of affection, reason for war, affects of war and motivation for war; however both characters also show some differences. Louis de Bernières presents this carefully throughout the novel of CCM.
Mandras’ way of visualizing the purpose of war for his personal benefit is very different to Carlos. Mandras views war as a way to act honorably with dignity and those men who follows that path is given the righteous respect from its people. He says that he will “walk with (his) head held high” and that everyone will say “that’s Mandras who fought for his country” this shows how he wants to get acknowledged and gain respect from his people. On the other hand Carlo view’s the war as a place where homosexuality proves to be an advantage. He believes in “Phaedras” which was a state of the soldiers in the army being in love with one another and thus being a strong army that would die for one another.
These views of the war affect their reason to join the army in the first place. Carlo joined the army to see all the “young and beautiful” men and for “love”. His view of “phaedras” made him join the army. Mandras joined the army to gain respect and honor.
The thing that motivates the both of them throughout the war is their affection for the people they love. Mandras is motivated by Palegia and Carlo is motivated by Francesco. Mandras describes how he fights for his home and that “Palegia is (his) home” which makes Palegia sound extremely significant and as though she is Greece itself. Carlo gives the reader a sense that he would die for the person he loves in war as he explain the theory behind “phaedras”. Although he didn’t save Francesco he did save Captain Corelli later on in the novel which shows the same striving motivation between the two characters.
Louis de Bernières presents the idea that war makes us lose things that are important to us. To the two characters, Carlo and Mandras, they both had very important people to them. For Carlo it was Francesco who literally died and could not be saved. He died in the war which shows how Carlo lost somebody important to him. We saw how tragic this is with the chapter that used a lot of juxtaposition to emphasise the tragedy, in chapter 19 “L’Omosessuale (6)”. For Mandras he lost Palegia who stopped loving him when he didn’t write back to her letters. In one of the letters she writes “all I feel now is emptiness” this is emphasized when she uses the word “overflowing” to describe her feelings that she used to have. The two words are a complete opposite.
The fact that they both lost the people they love is suggested through the description of their affection because it suggests that it is more lustful rather than a deeply meaningful love. Louis de Bernières uses language in describing the affection between Mandras and Palegia to be similar to the affection between Carlo and Francesco. Both are compared to being an animal. Francesco as a cat and Mandras as a dolphin. Both animals represent a harmless and friendly creature but we can also view this to describe the distant between the human Carlo and the cat-like Francesco or the human Palegia and the dolphin-like Mandras. The description for both of the characters seems lustful. Carlo talks of the muscle line and “parallel” muscle structures, parallel suggesting perfection without and fault. Palegia sees the “one with the sea” like body structure and describes it to be “sleek”.
Later on in the novel the description of Francesco and Mandras still shows form of similarity but they both changed description from the first lustful appearance. Francesco is said to have “deliberately shat himself” the word “deliberately” is a way that a savage thinks especially when it’s about excreting. Mandras is also described to have “shat himself” when a bomb exploded near him. This gives us an uncourageous image of Mandras. They are also described with very similar appearances such as the overgrown facial hair, lice in the hair and smelling really horrible.
The level of sympathy that the two characters get is also different to an extent. Carlo is given deep sympathy through his letters that are followed through by the chapters of “L’Omosessuale” The letters describes his childhood to be as if “concealing leprosy” which gives us a gruesome imagery of a skin disease to replace homosexuality. The letters describe a lot about Carlo which makes us feel sympathetic towards him. For Mandras we don’t feel as sympathetic. Father Arsenios defines him as having a mental illness and says that he should be “sent to a madhouse”. Mandras also humiliates Palegia by making her read the letters. However there are chapters that describes Mandras’ viewpoint of things. He explains how he can’t read.
There are similarities and differences when comparing the two characters. Both characters are affected deeply by their affection and war. These affects make the two characters at some point similar but at others completely different. But Louis de Bernières presents both of the characters tragic characters.

Carlo and Mandras, similarities and differences

In the novel, Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, the characters Carlo and Mandras have some similarities and differences. It is shown in the way de Bernieres shows the reason they join the war, Carlo is to find love within the Army and he found Francesco and Mandras is to love Pelagia. De Bernieres shows how they are changed in the course of war, Carlo through the lost of Francesco and Mandras is losing himself from the horrible experiences of war. As well as how de Bernieres portrays Carlo and Mandras through his writing, which this emphasises the stated points.

Their reason of joining the war is not for a greater good for their country. It is connected to the theme of love. Carlo reasons to joins the war is to find love in the Army in which he hopes he obtained a pure way of loving someone, and he found Francesco. De Bernieres Carlo loves toward Francesco through Carlo poetical description of the beauty of Francesco, “he was like one of those elegant, lanky cat” these flowing words create a simile to show how slender and healthy Francesco is. Different to Mandras, he joins the war to show to the people that he can be important and he wants the acceptation from Pelagia and the doctor, so that Mandras is worthy to love Pelagia. Their reason to join the war is different, but it is similar in the way that both of them are seeking and wanting to gain something in the war that can satisfy their love to someone.

The war brings both of them sorrow. Carlo loses Francesco, this show Carlo’s love to Francesco as well as emphasise the tragedies of war toward Carlo. Carlo is heart broking and grieved as the consequence of war. However, he is still sane and powerful. Contrast to Carlo, Mandras becomes unbearably mad in a sort of way; he is the ‘shadow’ of his former self. This clearly shows through the different images that de Bernieres delivered before and after the battle at Arsernos. Before the war, Mandras is shown as “a man like Adam” a simile de Bernieres creates to show that Mandras has the pure beautiful handsomeness like Adam, which is god perfect view of man. After the battle, he is described as “a most horrible and wild” which is an image of complete savagery that possibly shone in a man. These contrast images shows the downfall of Mandras through the course of war, which is damaging him far physically than Carlo.

It is different how their love is answered. Carlo confessed to Francesco at the last moment of Francesco’s life. In someway Francesco accepted Carlo loves but he is unable to gives it back as obviously he is dying. However, Carlo is content that the man he loves knows that he love him even though Francesco is unable to give it back. Compare to Carlo, the love between Mandras and Pelagia is clearly shows that it is fading. Pelagia’s love to Mandras is different which clearly shows through the length of the letters that she wrote to him without reply. As well as with the new personality, Mandras is quite disturbing and somehow mad that turned Pelagia’s love into pity. In the end both of their love is lost but in different form. Carlo’s love is lost because Francesco is dead but it still life on in his mind. Mandras’s love to Pelagia turned to be demanding toward Pelagia which he lost the love he once had from Pelagia.

De Bernieres ways of writing changes for different character and different situations. To shows the sorrow and the tragedies of war on to Carlo which create sympathies toward Carlo from the reader, de Bernieres conveys Carlo thoughts and feeling in form of a diary like letters. To emphasise the madness of war on Mandras and creates disgusted feeling as well as pitied from the reader onto this character, de Bernieres viewed the reader as a third person perspective that as well as through the thought and feeling of Pelagia toward Mandras. De Bernieres creates different way of viewing the characters to set a different mood as well as emotion toward that particular character. Carlo is mostly sympathy and sadness and Mandras is pitied and angered at the end.

The characters Carlo and Mandras are both different and similar. They are both victim of war and the war creates sorrowful impacts onto them. However the ways they accepted and received from these experiences are different. Carlo continues to fight so that he can die an honourable death. Mandras changes entirely different both inside and outside which later on the novel he lost his life from the dismissal of Pelagia and his own mother.

Comparing Carlo and Mandras

In the novel Captain Corelli’s Mandolin by Louis De Bernieres, Carlo and Mandras are contrasting characters. They are differentiated through their attitudes towards the war and their loved ones, through how war has affected them and through how De Bernieres presents them.

Firstly, both characters have different outlooks towards war. Carlo joined the military to find someone to love and he thinks that in the army ‘love between men’ would seem like platonic love and not homosexuality. In a way, he joins seeking acceptance by society. Mandras joined to prove to Pellagia and her father that he is worthy and brave. He wants to gain honour and respect from them and wants to show that he is more than just a fisherman so that he can marry Pellagia. They have both joined for different reasons however, a similarity between them is that they don’t join to help their country, but they join to try to be accepted.

Their attitudes towards their loved ones are very different. Carlo’s love is shown in the l’Omossesuale letters, his letters show he is a reflective and emotional character. Carlo has complete unconditional love for Francesco, even when Francesco “shits himself deliberately” and starts to lose his mind, even when Francesco’s “head had been blown away”, Carlo still loves him and “gather(s) him into (his) arms”. It shows that Carlo truly cares for Francesco whether alive or dead. In contrast to Carlo, Mandras isn’t a very emotive and caring character. Mandras and Pellagia’s love is described as lust more than love. When Pellagia first sees Mandras, she describes him as a “human dolphin” and “a man like Adam” suggesting physical perfection. She looks at him “with pleasure that was entirely aesthetic”, this clearly shows that there is no true love for Mandras, she is simply “transfixed by his beauty”. The word transfixed suggests that she is under a spell and cannot look away however her love for him is merely physical attraction. Furthermore, Mandras doesn’t care for Pellagia as much as Carlo does for Francesco. When he comes back from the war, he forces Pellagia to read the letters with an aggressive and violent attitude. He voluntarily hurts the person he says he loves.

Both men had different experiences during the war, however they were both changed by all the traumatic experiences that war throws at you. When Mandras comes back from war he is a “horrible and wild stranger” to Pellagia, showing the extent to which war can change you; he is unrecognizable. He is described by Pellagia as “quite motionless” and “fluttering and trembling” which contrasts with how she described him before the war as “one with sea, so much like fish”. It clearly shows the consequences of war on a man, it also suggests he might be shell-shocked. De Bernieres has used negative verbs to describe Mandras after the war to portray a man who is broken both physically and mentally. However, Carlo has positively been affected by war. He leaves the battlefields a stronger and more determined men. War has caused them both to lose a loved one but the reader sympathises much more for Carlo’s loss of Francesco because it was in no way his fault and he couldn’t do anything about it whereas Mandras is the one who drove Pellagia away. He was violent towards her which creates resentment towards this character, to contrast with the sympathy we have for Carlo.

De Bernieres has presented Mandras and Carlo very differently. Carlo is presented through letters in the l’Omossesuale chapters. We feel strong sympathy for Carlo as the letters talk about how he has been alienated by a narrow-minded society. De Bernieres presents Mandras as a physically beautiful character but doesn’t allow the reader to have any true emotional connection with him. The reader even feels resentment for this character as he is aggressive towards Pellagia, the women he supposedly loves. This shows how different Carlo and Mandras are.