Guilt is “an unpleasant feeling of remorse or sadness regarding a past action” (GoodTherapy). Guilt that occurs because of a wrongdoing can lead one to experience greater sympathy for others, and take responsibility for their actions. In Robertson Davies’s Fifth Business, the guilt of Dunstan, Percy, and Paul begins with an incident in which a snowball thrown by Percy misses Dunstan and instead hits a pregnant Mrs. Dempster. As a result of this, Mrs. Dempster gives premature birth to her baby, Paul, and goes insane. This guilt plays a major role in their lives. Firstly, guilt shapes the course of Dunstan’s life, as he devotes his whole life caring for Mrs. Dempster, has troubles forming relationships with others, and becomes Fifth Business.
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Firstly, he devotes his whole life caring for Mrs. Dempster. Dunstan’s guilt stems from the snowball incident, “I was contrite and guilty, for I knew that the snowball had been meant for me, but Dempster’s did not seem to think of that” (Davies 3). When Dunstan approached Percy about the situation, Percy rejects it, and Dunstan is left, “alone with [his] guilt” (Davies 15). Dunstan’s guilt grows further as he keeps believing that he inadvertently caused Mrs. Dempster to go insane. This forces Dunstan to look after Mrs. Dempster. He would, “chop and pile wood, sweep away snow, cut the grass, weed the vegetable path […] keep an eye on the baby” (Davies 19). For Dunstan, taking care of Mrs. Dempster was no longer a moral obligation, but rather a sense of commitment. He commits himself to her again when he returns from war. When Mrs. Dempster’s caretaker, Miss. Shanklin, dies Dunstan assumes control of Mrs. Dempster’s guardianship. He feels happy after her death as he states, “I experienced a remarkable rising of my spirits, which I can only attribute to the relief of guilt” (Davies 148). Dunstan is happy to be the guardian of Mrs. Dempster as he feels it is another way to atone for his wrongdoings in his childhood. He believes that his leg was not a, “full and fair payment for an evil action” (Davies 148). So the only way to fully make amends for his sins was to take control of Mrs. Dempster’s care. Secondly, he has troubles forming …show more content…
Firstly, guilt is the reason Boy became such a successful person. In his childhood, Boy tried to repress his guilt about the snowball incident. Even when Dunstan confronted him about the premature birth of Paul, and Mrs. Dempster’s simple-mindedness, he completely ignored the situation stating, “I threw a snowball at you, and I guess it gave you a good smack” (Davies 14). This contributed to his growing shadow. When Boy goes to war, he changes his name, “Percy, somewhere in his Army experience, had thrown aside that name and had lopped the “d” off the name that remained. He was now Boy Staunton” (Davies 99). As Dunstan explains, “he was the quintessence of the Jazz Age, a Scott Fitzgerald character. It was the characteristic of Boy throughout his life that he was the quintessence of something that somebody else had recognized and defined” (103). Boy’s new identity had allowed him escape from his life in Deptford, and start a new one. He used his denial of guilt as a means to become “a very rich man-richer than his father by far” (Davies 101). His success also allowed him to forget about the snowball incident, and further grew his shadow. Secondly, his guilt led to the death of his first wife, Leola. When Boy returned from war, he married Leola. He wants Leola to be “the perfect wife for a rising young entrepreneur in sugar” (Davies 114). However she could never live up to Boy’s expectations, “She was trying hard, but she
Firstly, he devotes his whole life caring for Mrs. Dempster. Dunstan’s guilt stems from the snowball incident, “I was contrite and guilty, for I knew that the snowball had been meant for me, but Dempster’s did not seem to think of that” (Davies 3). When Dunstan approached Percy about the situation, Percy rejects it, and Dunstan is left, “alone with [his] guilt” (Davies 15). Dunstan’s guilt grows further as he keeps believing that he inadvertently caused Mrs. Dempster to go insane. This forces Dunstan to look after Mrs. Dempster. He would, “chop and pile wood, sweep away snow, cut the grass, weed the vegetable path […] keep an eye on the baby” (Davies 19). For Dunstan, taking care of Mrs. Dempster was no longer a moral obligation, but rather a sense of commitment. He commits himself to her again when he returns from war. When Mrs. Dempster’s caretaker, Miss. Shanklin, dies Dunstan assumes control of Mrs. Dempster’s guardianship. He feels happy after her death as he states, “I experienced a remarkable rising of my spirits, which I can only attribute to the relief of guilt” (Davies 148). Dunstan is happy to be the guardian of Mrs. Dempster as he feels it is another way to atone for his wrongdoings in his childhood. He believes that his leg was not a, “full and fair payment for an evil action” (Davies 148). So the only way to fully make amends for his sins was to take control of Mrs. Dempster’s care. Secondly, he has troubles forming …show more content…
Firstly, guilt is the reason Boy became such a successful person. In his childhood, Boy tried to repress his guilt about the snowball incident. Even when Dunstan confronted him about the premature birth of Paul, and Mrs. Dempster’s simple-mindedness, he completely ignored the situation stating, “I threw a snowball at you, and I guess it gave you a good smack” (Davies 14). This contributed to his growing shadow. When Boy goes to war, he changes his name, “Percy, somewhere in his Army experience, had thrown aside that name and had lopped the “d” off the name that remained. He was now Boy Staunton” (Davies 99). As Dunstan explains, “he was the quintessence of the Jazz Age, a Scott Fitzgerald character. It was the characteristic of Boy throughout his life that he was the quintessence of something that somebody else had recognized and defined” (103). Boy’s new identity had allowed him escape from his life in Deptford, and start a new one. He used his denial of guilt as a means to become “a very rich man-richer than his father by far” (Davies 101). His success also allowed him to forget about the snowball incident, and further grew his shadow. Secondly, his guilt led to the death of his first wife, Leola. When Boy returned from war, he married Leola. He wants Leola to be “the perfect wife for a rising young entrepreneur in sugar” (Davies 114). However she could never live up to Boy’s expectations, “She was trying hard, but she