Right from the start of this classic South African novel, our protagonist, David Lurie, has toyed with the idea of writing an opera and putting what he perceived to be his musical and writing skills to good use. At first, the idea was to write an opera about the relationship between Lord Byron and his lover, Teresa. He is conceited enough to think that he can identify with Byron, and he feels quite sure that when he gets around to writing his opera, it will be a masterpiece.

The big change that comes for David in this novel is when he and his daughter, Lucy, are attacked on their farm. The duo is robbed, their home is vandalized, and Lucy is raped. After this, the edge of David's arrogance and pride seems to have worn off, and he no longer has illustrious visions of himself as a sought-after man and brilliant writer.

His idea for the opera shifts in tandem with the changes in his personality—changes which were probably inevitable in the aftermath of an experience like this. Instead of writing an opera about great love, he decides to focus on the story of Teresa, once Byron had no more part to play in her story.

As it turns out, David never gets around to writing an opera at all. This is linked to his sobering realization that he is just an ordinary man—not a man of great romance or a brilliant writer.