Characters
Goodbye to All That is an autobiography by the English poet Robert Graves, written upon his "bitter leave-taking" of England in 1929 when he left his home country to live with his mistress, Laura Riding, in Mallorca. Graves was only 34 years old, but much had happened in his short life. His earliest memory was of Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee, and he had been unable to take up his scholarship at St. John's College, Oxford because of the outbreak of the First World War.
Graves joined the Royal Welch Fusiliers and served in France alongside his close friend and fellow soldier, Siegfried Sassoon.
Graves is obviously the principal character in the story. A man of tempestuous temper, he is unapologetic about his own sometimes anti-social behavior and about the choices he has made. He describes his upbringing in a Wimbledon home by upper-middle-class parents; his father was an Irish poet and his mother the descendant of German writers, one of whom Graves was named after: Robert von Ranke Graves. He later describes how this name plagued him in the trenches of World War I.
Graves was not at home for long, however; his parents are not major figures in the story. Soon enough, he was sent off to prep school, and then to Charterhouse. At Charterhouse, we meet two other major figures in Graves's early life: Peter, a boy with whom Graves fell in love, and George Mallory, who was best man at Graves's later wedding and who would subsequently die in the attempt to climb Everest. Peter was a slightly fickle young man, who ultimately turned away from Graves, but Graves describes his intense devotion to him in an atmosphere wherein homosexual (or homo-romantic) "pashes" were common. Mallory was Graves's teacher, a steadying influence who would invite his particular favorite boys into his study and, later, teach them to climb. Graves describes treasured memories of climbing in Wales with Mallory.
Wales was important to Graves. His family had a house in Harlech, and this is largely why he chose the Royal Welch Fusiliers as a regiment when he joined the army. Quite by chance, Siegfried Sassoon had chosen the same regiment. Sassoon was a young man ten years Graves's senior, from Kent, the son of a Jewish father and a gentile mother. He had been raised Christian but was always conscious of his semitic surname and German first name; he and Graves bonded over feeling slightly ostracized because of their names. They also bonded over their mutual love of poetry. The two became fast friends, and when Sassoon, later, decided to object to the war, it was Graves who persuaded the authorities to send Sassoon to a psychiatric hospital, Craiglockhart, rather than have him court-martialed or shot. This experience plays a significant role in the story, and Sassoon is a significant character.
Accompanying Sassoon is David Thomas, a young man who was a friend of both Graves and Sassoon during their time in the trenches. Both were very attached to him; a friendly, pleasant Welshman, his death affected his friends badly.
Most of the characters in this book, given Graves's upbringing and history, are male, but there is also a significant female character, Nancy , a tomboyish young woman who Graves married when she was still a teenager. Graves describes their courtship and marriage and their early married life in Oxford, where Graves eventually went to take up his scholarship after the war. Nancy, as described by Graves, was something of a free spirit but perhaps even younger in some ways than her...
(This entire section contains 608 words.)
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years; she found it difficult to adjust to life as a young wife and mother toJenny.
Dick
The Enigmatic George Johnstone
Biographers have meticulously linked the mysterious figure, whom Graves affectionately calls "Dick," to be none other than George Johnstone. At Charterhouse, Dick emerges as a pivotal presence in Graves' life, a vibrant thread woven into the fabric of his existence. Though three years his junior, their paths serendipitously cross in the harmonious realm of the choir. Subtle hints, never quite spelled out, suggest a deeper, romantic bond between the two. Within the narrative of chapter VII, Dick flits in and out like an ephemeral muse, consistently underscoring his significance to Graves. Remarkably, the book recounts Graves' profound connection to Dick without detailing their interactions. When a poem penned by Graves about Dick provokes the headmaster's ire, labeled "filthy," Graves counters with a scandalous threat to expose the headmaster’s own indiscretion—a kiss shared with Dick. When summoned, Dick corroborates the tale, only to later confess its fabrication.
War's Shadow and a Shattered Illusion
Amidst the harrowing trenches of war, Graves is confronted with unsettling news—Dick, as it turns out, "was not at all the sort of innocent fellow I took him for." The revelation, tarnished by the sender's underlying animosity—a cousin nursing a vendetta—leaves Graves resolved to dismiss it. Yet, the shadow of disillusionment looms larger when a colleague forwards a newspaper clipping. It chronicles a court case involving a sixteen-year-old boy—Dick himself—arrested near Charterhouse for soliciting a soldier. The article, laden with indignation, rebukes the leniency of his sentence, attributed to his aristocratic lineage. Reading these words, Graves concludes that the war's madness must have unhinged Dick's mind, given the spectral existence of insanity in his lineage. In a moment of poignant resignation, Graves muses, "It would be easy to think of him as dead."
Robert Graves
Ancestral Roots and Childhood
Graves stands as the pivotal character in his own life story, a journey that embarks with a meticulous chronicle of his lineage. The narrative unfurls centuries of familial history, on both his mother's and father's sides, meticulously highlighting notable figures who have crossed paths with his ancestors, thereby cementing his esteemed social standing. His formative years unfold in Wimbledon, punctuated by sun-drenched summers spent in Germany, where visits to his maternal kin form cherished memories. Throughout these years, he attends a succession of six preparatory schools, driven by his father's critical stance on their curricula. This itinerant education cultivates in Graves a disdain for the rigidity and pretentiousness that pervades the academic system. He subtly broaches the subject of sexuality, observing, "In English preparatory schools romance is necessarily homosexual," yet the narrative only teases at romantic entanglements, such as those hinted at with a boy named "Dick," offering no explicit confirmation. At Charterhouse, his final institution, Graves finds his place within its rigid social hierarchy through boxing, carving out a reputation as an athlete and earning a broken nose as a testament to his prowess.
The Crucible of War
A vast portion of his tale is dedicated to his wartime service during the First World War. Graves serves with the Second Battalion of the Royal Welch Fusiliers, where his direct combat experience is limited. Situated in elaborate trench networks, the French and Germans face off across desolate stretches, with "No-Man's Land" serving as the perilous frontier where gunfire lurks. The ever-present threat lies in the snipers' crosshairs, where a single moment of exposure can prove fatal. During the rare occasions of full-frontal assaults, such as the Somme offensive where Graves sustains injuries, he paints vivid, harrowing scenes of the carnage surrounding him. As a gentleman-officer, Graves refuses to let a punctured lung sideline him permanently, returning to his battalion posthaste, only to find his injuries render him incapable of enduring the relentless demands of warfare.
Post-War and Literary Pursuits
With the war behind him, Graves redirects his focus toward the literary world. He enrolls at Oxford, a choice made possible by the government's willingness to fund his education. Here, he mingles with a cohort of distinguished and influential writers. However, the prospect of teaching English fails to ignite his passion. After departing from Oxford with his wife and children, they settle into a modest abode in Islip, subsisting on the brink of poverty and relying on the kindness of friends for support. Some acquaintances champion him for a teaching role at the University of Cairo, and the book concludes with his observations of Egyptian culture. Notably, this account omits significant details of his personal life during these years, a time when the poet Laura Riding accompanies his family on their travels.
Nancy Nicholson
Nancy Nicholson is not just Robert Graves' life partner but also the mother of his children, four in number. Their paths cross in 1916, during a period when Graves is recovering from nasal surgery while on army leave. A mere sixteen at the time, Nancy captivates Graves during his visit to her brother, a fellow soldier. The memory of her lingers long after he departs, and their connection deepens through their correspondence over children's poems she is set to illustrate. Amidst the letters, Graves discovers a burgeoning love for her. By January 1918, they are wed, Nancy at eighteen and Graves at twenty-two.
A fervent advocate for feminism, Nancy, as Graves describes, chooses to keep her maiden name and extends this choice to their daughters, who bear the Nicholson surname, while their sons take on Graves'. As Graves returns to the battlefields, Nancy becomes the muse fueling his poetic endeavors. Post-war, they establish their home in various locales—initially at Harlech under the familial roof of Graves' parents, then in Oxford, and later in Islip. In these places, Graves pens his works while Nancy diligently tends to their growing brood, ushering four children into the world in five short years.
In Oxford, inspired by her nurse's entrepreneurial spirit in Devonshire, Nancy opens a quaint shop. However, the demands of the business soon draw her away from both her art and her children, prompting her to sell the shop a mere six months after its debut. While residing in Islip, Graves finds comfort in domestic tranquility, yet, at Nancy's behest, they occasionally embark on spontaneous journeys using a loaned vehicle, embracing the thrill of uncharted adventures and encountering a tapestry of intriguing individuals. Although unmentioned in the book, these travels eventually lead them to Egypt, accompanied by Laura Riding, officially dubbed Graves' secretary. Upon their return to England, an unspoken understanding exists between Graves and Nancy regarding his involvement with Riding, a facet subtly alluded to only in the ‘Dedicatory Epilogue’ of the 1929 edition.
Other Key Figures
Daisy
In the quiet suburbs of Islip, the Graves family leads a serene life, extending kindness to the unemployed wanderers cast adrift in the turbulent postwar economy. Many among these drifters are veterans, and Daisy is the thirteen-year-old daughter of one such man. To spare her the uncertainties of the road, the Graves embrace her into their home, proposing to make her part of their family.
Yet, as Mr. Graves candidly remarks, Daisy "was not a success." Large in stature, coarse, and ungainly, she shuns school, quarrels with peers, and yearns for her itinerant past. When vagabonds come seeking charity, she shoos them away, discerning the able-bodied slackers from the truly needy far better than her benefactors. Upon her father’s return to town, he whisks Daisy back to the life she pines for.
Laura Riding Gottschalk
See Laura Riding.
Thomas Hardy
Among England’s literary giants, Thomas Hardy stands unmatched. His global fame was cemented by the quintet of novels he unveiled before the 20th century dawned, spanning from Far From the Madding Crowd in 1874 to Jude the Obscure in 1895. When Graves and Nancy pedal their way to Hardy's doorstep during a cycling adventure, they are invited to linger overnight. Their conversations drift through the realms of literature, neighborly tales, and the whims of fashion. By then, Hardy neared his eightieth year, amused by Nancy's feminist ideals, and he heeded Graves' counsel on managing autograph-seeking admirers.
T. E. Lawrence
T. E. Lawrence, revered as a hero of the First World War, rallied the Arabs to defy Turkish dominance, thereby destabilizing Turkey and the Ottoman Empire. By the time Graves encounters him in 1919, Lawrence's legend is already etched in history. They revel in each other's company, their discussions rich with poetic musings. In 1927, a publisher approaches Graves to pen a biography of Colonel Lawrence, a project that catapults him to bestseller status, marking Graves' first sweet taste of financial triumph.
George Mallory
George Mallory, a young instructor at Charterhouse school, forges a friendship with Graves. His youthful appearance belies his age of twenty-five or twenty-six, often leading others to mistake him for a student. Enthralled by Graves' poetry, Mallory shares it widely. It is he who introduces Graves to the thrilling world of mountaineering. "George was one of the three or four best climbers in climbing history," Graves notes. The narrative later reveals Mallory's fate, meeting his end while navigating the daunting heights of Mount Everest post-war.
John Masefield
Masefield, celebrated as a poet of the World War I era, hosts Graves and his family on his Oxford property after the war. They expand their abode to incorporate a quaint shop, yet struggle to maintain it, ultimately facing bankruptcy. The Masefields show no desire to revive the shop once Graves and his wife depart.
Laura Riding
Although absent from the text and omitted from the 1957 edition, Laura Riding’s influence pervades Good-Bye to All That. Her poem "World's End" serves as the book's epigraph, and a "Dedicatory Epilogue" is addressed to her. Riding was more than a mentor and poetic guide to Robert Graves; she became his lover. She accompanied the Graves family to Cairo, transforming their marriage into a trio. Upon their return to England, she mentored another writer, Geoffrey Phibbs. When Phibbs left, Riding attempted suicide, an incident alluded to in the 1929 epilogue. Though surviving, she remained an invalid, and she and Graves continued together for another decade.
Raymond Rodakowski
Raymond, another student at Charterhouse, becomes an ally of Graves through their shared interest in poetry. It is Raymond who nudges Graves towards boxing, a pursuit in which he excels. Their camaraderie dwindles at school due to Raymond's "complete and ruthless atheism," prompting Graves to ponder religion as he prepares for confirmation. Graves later reminisces about visiting Raymond during their army years and hearing of his friend’s death at Cambrai.
Siegfried Sassoon
Siegfried Sassoon, a potent poetic voice from World War I, shared a battalion with Graves during the conflict. After Graves is sent home with lasting injuries, he continues corresponding with Sassoon, who remains in combat despite his own wounds and submits his poetry to pacifist outlets. In 1917, Graves receives a newspaper clipping—Sassoon's defiant article "Finished With the War: A Soldier's Declaration." Its critique of the "political errors and insincerities" that fueled the war nearly leads to Sassoon's court-martial. Determined to protect his comrade, Graves leverages military connections to argue for leniency on account of Sassoon's injuries. Sassoon is ultimately placed in a facility for neurasthenics, where he inspires the celebrated war poet Wilfred Owen to begin writing.
