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Chapter 39
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
War: Horror, Beauty, and Humanity
Power, Reality, and Absurdity
History and Storytelling
Politics and Friendship
Family, Opportunity, and Gender Dynamics
Summary
Analysis
As Corelli and Pelagia pass each other going through the door, she, without thinking, kisses him on the cheek. They're both astonished and she stops at the edge of the courtyard. He asks her what's for dinner and she accuses him of teasing her and threatens to not speak to him. At this, he throws himself at her feet and pleads with her to speak to him. He says he's drunk with agony, so she teases him about losing another football match. He delightedly leaps to his feet and says his team actually won their most recent match. Corelli invites Pelagia inside, but in the doorway he kisses her on the forehead and then runs away. She tries not to laugh.
Again, the way in which Pelagia behaves affectionately towards Corelli without thinking implies that deep down, she does think of him as a person just like her and not a faceless oppressor. By making the entire thing into a joke and a charade, Corelli is able to make their romance seem less serious and in turn, less dangerous. This, however, doesn't diminish the fact that their relationship is actually dangerous for them and for those around them.
Themes
