The Vivisector Essay Questions

In what ways can this novel be considered a bildungsroman? In what ways does it depart from the form?

The bildungsroman is a genre of novel in which the primary plot concerns the psychological and moral growth of the protagonist as they grow up. Though often used interchangeably with "coming of age novel," the bildungsroman in the western literary tradition is less interested in reaching a certain goal of adulthood and more interested in the changes that occur as a character transitions from adolescence to adulthood. In this way, The Vivisector is on one hand a perfect example of this genre: even on his deathbed, Duffield still has more to learn and discover about his aesthetic and spiritual vision. On the other hand, a counterargument could be made with regard to Duffield's morals, which remain essentially unchanged throughout the novel; the artistic selfishness he had as a child never waned as he aged.

Discuss the treatment of women in the novel.

Women in White's novel primarily serve to support Duffield. That support comes in many forms, though artistic inspiration, financial support, and caretaking are the most recurrent. He uses everyone he encounters – it would be hyperbolic to say he solely takes advantage of the female characters – but the women are far more vulnerable than the men, in most cases literally dying after knowing Duffield. Nance Lightfoot, Hero Pavlossi, Kathy Volkov, and Rhoda were all made subject matter by Duffield, breathing vital life into his work without which he would not be successful.

This a novel that spans the entire life of a character. How does the plot work? What structural patterns and devices does White use to maintain a sense of forward motion or urgency?

While the novel moves chronologically, the sections are organized more notably around the secondary characters Duffield encounters at various phases of his life. Once he leaves the Courtneys, there is essentially always a woman rotating around him: the Nance years, the Boo years, the Hero years, the Kathy years, and then the Rhoda years. In this way the novel has the essence of a picaresque; while he is in the same place doing the same thing – having tortured relationships with these women and painting from it – each of these relationships form a kind of miniaturized plot with their own arc, thus propelling the novel forward. Furthermore, the repeated process of Duffield being moved to the canvas by a form he witnesses gives a through-line of consistency to the novel.

Discuss the significance of the title. How does the thematic idea of vivisection shift and complicate throughout the novel?

Vivisection, or the practice of operating on live animals in the name of science, at first seems to hold resonance with the way adults in the novel are fascinated with Hurtle and his inner workings. When the Courtneys first meet him, they are desperate to understand how he came to be as precocious and charming as he is, so much that they decide to take him in as their own, so they might fawn over him and so he might rub off on Rhoda. Vivisection is made concrete in the story terms of the novel when Mrs. Courtney declares it her new cause, horrified by the cruelty humans inflict on animals. From then on it becomes a kind of catch-all term for the kind of dissection that Duffield does on those around him in the name of his art.

Is Duffield a sympathetic character? How does White play with our feelings toward his protagonist?

The advantage of a novel that spans a character's entire life is that we are more likely to empathize with that character, or at least understand their behavior. Having seen Duffield abandoned as a child and taken in like a science experiment, readers are pre-disposed to feeling more sympathy for him when he goes on to take advantage of the women in his life. While Duffield is in no way likable, this plot trajectory helps explain some of his more repugnant behavior. Where readers' sympathies will likely diminish is in his pedophilic relationship with Kathy, which signifies his true perversions within his creative obsession.