Between The Acts

Bart is the widowed patriarch of the Oliver family. He is Giles’s father, Mrs. Swithin’s brother, Isa’s father-in-law, and George and Caro’s grandfather. He is a former officer of the Indian Civil Service and fondly remembers his time serving in India. In his old age, he has become nostalgic for his youth in India. He is also rather cantankerous, especially toward his sister, grandson, and daughter-in-law. Bart holds onto traditional ideas of masculinity and wishes to instill these values—of strength, stoicism, and logic—in his young grandson George. When he ends up scaring the boy and making him cry, he calls George a “cry-baby” and a “coward.” Bart has successfully instilled this idea of masculinity in Giles, thereby contributing to Giles’s distaste for the feminine or domestic. However, though Bart disagrees with Mrs. Swithin on superstition, faith, and logic, finding many of her ideas ridiculous, they are nevertheless close and have a strong sibling bond.

Throughout the pageant, Bart enjoys Mrs. Manresa’s company because her extroversion and flirtatious manner make him feel young again. Though he enjoys watching the pageant, he dislikes that it ignores the history of the British Army, showing both his nostalgia for his time in the British Army and his desire to see the Army’s significance in the country’s history. However, he also believes that Miss La Trobe was too ambitious and should have made the pageant simpler and more accessible, especially given her financial struggles.

Mrs. Lucy Swithin (née Oliver) is the widowed sister of Bart Oliver and aunt of Giles Oliver. Mrs. Swithin returned to live with her brother in their childhood home after her husband died and her children moved away. She holds unusual ideas—such as her belief that fish have faith—that many, including Bart, see as ridiculous, causing the other villagers to call her “Old Flimsy” and “Batty.” She also has a childlike curiosity about nature, literature, and many other subjects. Mrs. Swithin is a devout Christian and wears a crucifix necklace that she clutches when she is nervous about her ideas being dismissed or disproven. She also dedicates a significant amount of time to her faith, kneeling for several hours every morning in prayer.

Mrs. Swithin is also fascinated by prehistoric England and nature. She reads a book about prehistoric England every day and loves to imagine the rhododendron forests that the book says were once in Piccadilly. She idealizes the prehistoric age with her pre-evolved ancestors in a similar way that Bart idealizes his youth in India. Though she follows Gender Roles and Expectations, she idealizes nature in a way that implies that she values the pre-patriarchal world of nature. Mrs. Swithin loves to read about and watch birds and fish, the latter of which reminds her of her childhood living by the sea. Despite her eccentricities, she is curious about Miss La Trobe’s work on the pageant and wants to learn its meaning. She is also kind-hearted, warm, and welcoming to William, and she has a close relationship with Isa.

Giles Oliver is Isa’s husband. He is also Bart’s son, Mrs. Swithin’s nephew, and George and Caro’s father. He works as a stockbroker in London and is away from Pointz Hall much of the time for work, but he wishes he could have been a farmer. Though Giles loves his wife and wants to repair his relationship with her, he feels frustrated by Isa’s obvious resentment of him. Even after his sexual encounter with Mrs. Manresa, he chooses to talk to Isa to discuss their issues. They agree to talk to each other and fight with one another, showing that both of them still care enough about their relationship to attempt a reconciliation.

Like his father, Giles has a strong admiration for traditional masculinity. He despises the passivity and domesticity of Mrs. Swithin and many others in the village, though he excuses quieter living on his father’s part. Part of his distaste for passivity is his knowledge of the growing violence in Europe. He knows that a war is coming and wants to be actively involved in it in some way, rather than ignoring it like the other villagers. This causes him to act and appear sullen throughout the pageant. When Giles sees a snake trying to swallow a frog, he is reminded of an inverse birth and, in disgust, crushes them both with his shoe. The action “relieved him,” making him feel stronger and more validated as a man. Mrs. Manresa’s open admiration of him endears her to him and eventually leads him to take the initiative and invite her to visit the greenhouse, where they have a sexual encounter.

Mrs. Manresa is a woman who happens to visit Pointz Hall while she and her friend, William, are looking for a picnic spot. Isa and Mrs. Swithin invite them for lunch, and they end up staying for the pageant. Her husband’s name is Ralph Manresa. Mrs. Manresa is descended from a grandfather who was sent to Tasmania after a scandal, and she has had two wealthy husbands, the first of whom likely died. She is known by the village to be a flirt and a “wild child,” but she is often accepted by men because she charms and flatters them. She is a jovial woman who enjoys food and drink and delights in the pageant. She is also accepting of her friend William’s sexuality and praises his talent as a writer. At the pageant’s conclusion, most villagers cannot stand to look at themselves in the mirrors that the actors hold up, but Mrs. Manresa unapologetically uses the mirrors to reapply her makeup, showing that she does not fear seeing herself as she is.

Mrs. Manresa breaks many rules regarding societal standards for women, since she is not openly flirtatious with men but also cheats on her husband. She, however, does use her sexuality to win men’s approval, forgoing equality for acceptance. She also dislikes socializing with women, seeing them as rivals for male attention. She values machismo in men and becomes more attracted to Giles after seeing the blood on his shoes, calling him her “sulky hero.” She then has a sexual tryst with Giles in the greenhouse.

William Dodge is Mrs. Manresa’s artist friend who attends the lunch at Pointz Hall and the pageant with her. He appears worried when Mrs. Manresa calls him an artist and tells the others that he works as an office clerk. Giles and Isa believe that he might be gay. Giles finds this detestable, while Isa accepts him and is untroubled by his sexual orientation.

Over the novel, William bonds with Mrs. Swithin, being moved by her kindness to him and treating her with kindness as well. He enjoys seeing the house with her and contemplates thanking Mrs. Swithin for inviting him to see the house and for being so kind to him—he wants to tell her “you’ve healed me” after being mistreated in life (40). Later, he goes with her so she can thank the actors for their performances and, after seeing they are gone, William comforts the disappointed Mrs. Swithin by thanking her for giving him the opportunity to see the pageant. He also forms a friendly, conspiratorial bond with Isa. Isa enjoys his company, and they quote the play together as they socialize during the intervals.