The Waterfalls of Slunj: Analysis of Major Characters
"The Waterfalls of Slunj: Analysis of Major Characters" delves into the intricate relationships and diverse personalities surrounding the lives of Robert Clayton, his son Donald, and other key figures in their world. Robert, an accomplished engineer and director of a British firm in Vienna, is portrayed as charismatic and socially engaged, particularly after the death of his first wife, Harriet. In contrast, his son Donald is depicted as emotionally distant and struggling with a debilitating fear of water, further complicated by his complex relationship with Monica Bachler, a determined woman who initially pursues Donald but later falls for his father. The narrative also introduces Josef Chwostik, a resourceful office manager who rises through the ranks despite his humble beginnings, and Zdenko von Chlamtatsch, a schoolboy who idolizes the Clayton family. The backdrop of the picturesque waterfalls of Slunj serves as a poignant setting for pivotal events, including Donald's tragic demise, which is shrouded in themes of fear and emotional disconnect. This exploration of character dynamics reveals broader themes of love, loss, and societal expectations within the context of early 20th-century Vienna.
The Waterfalls of Slunj: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Heimito von Doderer
First published: Die Wasserfalle von Slunj, 1963 (English translation, 1966)
Genre: Novel
Locale: Vienna and environs
Plot: Historical realism
Time: The 1870's to 1910
Robert Clayton, an engineer and the industrialist director of the Vienna branch of the British firm of Clayton Powers, Ltd. At the age of twenty-eight, in 1877, he marries Harriet. They honeymoon in the southeastern part of the old Austro-Hungarian Empire, including the town of Slunj and the waterfalls of the Slunjcica River in this remote area of Croatia. After their return to England, Robert's father informs them that he has arranged to open a branch factory of their agricultural machinery plant in Vienna to serve the southeastern provinces of the British empire. Robert, an efficient director, has a prosperous business established eighteen months later. Robert enjoys the social life of Vienna at the turn of the century after a respectful period of mourning following the death of his wife. He is an active, charming, and extroverted man who continues to bring success to his business and brings a host of people from various social circles into his home. Although he is thirty years older than his son, he is often mistakenly identified as a younger brother. Only a short while after he meets the vivacious Monica Bachler, then Donald's lover, Robert decides to marry her.
Donald Clayton, Robert's son, born in Vienna on May 10, 1878, exactly nine months after his parents visited the waterfalls of Slunj. He is sent to England when he is of school age to live with his grandfather, a typical Englishman who takes great interest in Donald's education. Donald's personality is the complete opposite of his father's. He is incapable of responding to human emotions and actions and has a deathly fear of water in any form. When Monica Bachler tries to seduce him, he notices that it is raining outside and simply does not respond to her advances. At the age of thirty-two, while on an extended business trip, Donald decides that he should marry Monica, most likely because he thinks that a wife belongs in an orderly and well-appointed home. While in Slunj, a place his father has often praised for its beauty and vitality, Donald receives two unexpected letters. One comes from his father, announcing his intended marriage to Monica. The other letter comes from Monica, telling of her love for his father and her resolve to marry him, with the pernicious suggestion that she and Donald should remain friends. This news drives Donald to the waterfalls, where he climbs out on a rickety walkway. The handrail gives way, and he falls a short distance onto a protruding rock. His would-be rescuers find him dead. It is said that Donald did not die from the fall but from fright of the falling waters.
Monica Bachler (BAKH-lehr), who, at the age of thirty-seven in 1910, is the director and engineer of a Swiss technical publishing firm that has just opened an office in Vienna. She falls in love with Donald immediately after her arrival in the capital and pursues this relationship with unusual vigor. Donald, however, is incapable of responding to her amorous and sexual advances; he merely sits, smokes his pipe, and smiles. While Donald is on a business trip to England, Monica is invited to the Clayton tennis parties, where she meets Chwostik, with whom she spends one evening. There she also meets the “alive Donald,” Robert Clayton. They fall in love and make plans to marry before Donald returns from another business trip.
Josef Chwostik (YOH-sehf CHVOS-tihk), who is approximately thirty years old, the office manager and, later, business managing director and deputy director of Clayton Powers in Vienna. Chwostik is the genius who makes the business a profitable enterprise. Although his educational background is very limited, he quickly learns English, Serbo-Croatian, and numerous other foreign languages that help him in business dealings for the firm in the multilingual and multinational Austro-Hungarian Empire. Even though his background is socially and materially disadvantaged, he learns respect and discretion and is included in the social life of his employer, serving as a highly trusted and respected member of Viennese society.
Zdenko von Chlamtatsch (ZHDEHN-koh fon KHLAHMtatsh), who in 1910 is a fourteen-year-old schoolboy in Vienna. He and several school friends imitate the “Clayton Brothers,” as Robert and Donald are called. The boys even form the Metternich Club, in which they affect a kind of dandyism not uncommon in Vienna at that time. Through Augustus, Robert Clayton's nephew, Zdenko becomes acquainted with the Claytons and is frequently invited to their tennis parties. His personality and behavior resemble those of Donald Clayton. While on holiday at his aunt's home in Hungary, Zdenko goes riding and arrives at the waterfalls of Slunj just in time to witness Donald's fall and death.
Harriet Clayton, Robert's first wife and Donald's mother. She is an unassertive woman who prefers the rural life of horseback riding at her uncle's estate in England to the social life and engineering world of Vienna. Her husband and son rarely accompany her on these trips to England. She dies of tuberculosis in 1898 and is buried in Chifflington, England.