The book revolves around the life David, American who came to Paris to "search for himself." In the same place, he meets a young Italian Giovanni, who works as a waiter. They have a novel that forever changed the lives of three people: David, his bride Hella and Giovanni. And for the latter, this novel became fatal. David and Italian waiter Giovanni created their own world in a small dirty room. They also destroyed it. Everyone paid for their actions. The protagonist might seem controversial but is trapped between his desires and societal norms. He is at a crossroads, his doubts are torn apart. He basically has two options: a quiet life with Hella or forbidden happiness with Giovanni. So without making a choice, he, therefore, condemned all to a tragic outcome.
Given that Baldwin’s novel “Giovanni’s Room” was written in the 1950s, it can imagine that societal norms in regards to sexuality were much more rigid than now. That’s one of the key themes of the novel. During World War Second, women engaged more in labor market, often liberating themselves financially and professionally. This progress was reversed in the aftermath of the war when the increasing prosperity put women back the realms of the private sphere. David embodies the problematic of masculinity or even toxic masculinity. His father was strict and cruel to him, hence was raised with a notion that of what a real man is about, thus falling into alcoholic addiction, a circle of instability.
‘All I want for David is that he grows up to be a man. When I say a man, Ellen, I don’t mean a Sunday school teacher’(Baldwin, 15).
This image goes against his secret life of homosexual man which even intensifies his conflict with masculinity. Life in Paris felt freer than back in the United States but nonetheless, David couldn’t hide this skeleton in his closet, literally and metaphorically. Even though he enjoys to be with Giovanni, he is confined to the closet which can be seen his gay relationship and a small dirty room of Giovanni. David often feels emasculated because of his relationship with a man, which in turn makes him unhappy.
‘What kind of life can we have in this room?—this filthy little room. What kind of life can two men have together, anyway?’(Baldwin, 142).
To prove himself his ostensible attraction to women, David periodically tries to date women which he hates. The whole thing is getting more complicated at the end of the novel when he is ditching Giovanni for his bride Hella. Without choice, Giovanni has to hang out with rich men to survive. Consequently, he ends up killing Guillaume. At the same time, American bride gets to the truth. Giovanni is being executed for the crime he had committed. Apart from the problem of heteronormativity, a class aspect is also important in the life of Giovanni and David. Although we cannot compare the tragedy of David’s life comparing to Giovanni’s, it is fair to say that the low social status of a former puts him even in less fortunate position. Often with no choice, he is forced to live with older wealthy men, whereas David, who has better resources cannot make a step further in their relationship because of his personal issues with society and masculinity.
To sum up, it can be said that both lovers or main protagonist David and Giovanni suffer from the constraints they face in their lives and relationships. Giovanni is even in the more difficult situation. On the one hand, Because of David’s inability to accept his sexuality, he cannot live with his beloved one. On the other, his unfavorable working class positions and the lack of resources forces him to lose dignity because to survive.
Works cited
:Baldwin, James. Giovanni's Room. , 2016. Print.
