1. Hamilton 1
Buffy Hamilton
Response 2: The English Patient
ELAN 8410
January 26, 2004
“Words, Caravaggio. They have a power.”
p. 234
Initial Reactions
After turning down the last page, the predominant image in my mind was that of a
question mark. To me, the second half seemed to be a very different novel than the
first, but then again, perhaps that is part of its “rhizomatic” structure. I expected that
the second half would go more into the minds of the female characters, Katharine and
Hana, but instead, the novel led us into the histories, hearts, and minds of Kip and the
English Patient, aka Almasy. As I reflect back on the reading, I did not experience the
same sense of “flow” that I did with the first half of the novel. Instead, the reading was
somewhat disappointing because I was left with more questions than answers about the
female characters.
However, I am struck by the idea that books and “words” are important in this novel
and how differently the same words (or lack thereof---non-response as a response?)
transact so uniquely with individuals. On p. 238, Almasy reflects, “She {Katharine} had
always wanted words, she loved them, grew up on them. Words gave her clarity,
brought reason, shape. Whereas I thought words bent emotions like sticks in water.”
What words are not in this book that I wanted to hear? How do the words in this text
provide clarity, reason, and shape for me? How do the words in this book “bend” my
emotions and responses? On a larger scale, how do we distinguish between
transactions with words that clarify or muddy the water?

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Almasy reflects that “I am a man whose life in many ways, even as an explorer, has
been governed by words. By rumors and legends. Charted things. Shards written
down. The tact of words. In the desert to repeat something would be to fling more
water into the earth. Here nuance took you a hundred miles” (p. 231). Again, I am
fascinated by the references and imagery of words, charts, and water. Words again are
portrayed as life giving; even the memory of words, as “shards”, are vital. Where is the
author going with this idea?
Reflections
“What had our relationship been? A betrayal of those
around us, or the desire of another life?”
p. 238
Although this is a question posed by Almasy regarding his affair with Katharine, I
think it could apply to all of the characters’ relationships in this book. Is the relationship
between Katharine and Almasy really a betrayal, or are they trying to transcend the time
and circumstance they happen to be in? Was Kip’s relationship with Hana a betrayal of
his own culture and a betrayal of self (it seemed to be in his eyes after the dropping of
the atomic bomb on Hiroshima), or does he betray Hana by failing to see her as an
individual? In all cases, it seems that for Hana, Kip, the English Patient, and Katharine,
“…what he (they) embraced could explode at any moment” (210).
The most intriguing aspects of this reading for me were not literary or scholarly in
the traditional sense; rather, the relationships fueled my interest in the book. Perhaps
this is why I was not as happy with the second reading---while I eventually did see the
purpose in finding about Kip’s experiences and his journey to becoming who he was in
this section, the reading was tedious. Part of me feels guilty for feeling this way and

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that I ought to see some sort of literary merit or larger, abstract, grandiose purpose in
it, but damn it, I honestly could have cared less! I was much more interested in
learning the true identity of the English Patient and his relationship with Katharine as
well as the true nature of her husband Clifton and how he tried to destroy them all with
his murder-suicide mission. In fact, I found the whole “bomb” metaphor/theme a little
trite. I carry a sense of guilt for feeling this way about this particular reading, and I am
curious to discover how hearing everyone else’s reactions might help me “re-read” or
“revise” my first reading of this part of the novel.
My favorite part of the reading was definitely the coming together of the mystery of
Katharine and the English Patient although I was expecting something a bit more
sinister or shocking about Katharine after listening to some of the hints or veiled
allusions made by those who had already the book. Although their doomed relationship
had the air of your standard “star-crossed lovers,” I found the evolution of their
relationship intriguing. Like Hana and Kip, they were two very different people from
different worlds, yet their love seemed to be that mythical “love of a lifetime.” I think
that I definitely read books very emotionally; I am not always looking for some larger
theme or other literary aspect (although I do enjoy musing on such elements of
literature).
I was truly surprised to learn that the English Patient was not really English, but
rather a spy. I did love the way the story of his true identity and his relationship with
Katharine finally came to light---I found the disjointed weaving of this “history”
intriguing and fascinating although I was not crazy about the interludes regarding Kip
that seemed to interrupt my favorite aspects of the plot. I would also like to
contemplate the parallels between the English Patient and Caravaggio as spies---they

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seemed to draw each other out with their morphine. What have been their subterfuges
in terms of relationships with others in their lives, and how do they disguise themselves?
More Contemplations and Reactions
“I wish for all this to be marked on my body when I am dead. I
believe in such cartography---to be marked by nature, not just to
label ourselves on a map like the names of rich men and women
on buildings. We are communal histories, communal books. We
are not owned or monogamous in our taste or experience. All I
desired was to walk upon such an earth that had no maps.”
p. 261
So is this book really a metaphor about identity? Certainly we have many
characters reinventing themselves and reshaping themselves. Although they all seem to
somewhat try to disguise their former selves and even forget their former selves in
terms of their physical appearances and the way they choose to structure or see the
world, the identities of the characters seems to be constantly evolving with many layers.
In many ways, there is definitely a tension between the public self and the private self
for each character. How do we read each other? It seems the “words” that “write” us
and that people use to “read us” are not our own.

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Questions/Muddy Points/Images/Ideas of Interest
• What is the significance, if any, of the references to Almasy as Odysseus? (p. 241)
• What is the significance, if any, of the desert as a metaphor for Katharine?
• “Someone’s war was slashing apart his delicate tapestry of companions”(p. 241); “He
was a man who knew two or three people in his life, and they now turned out to be
the enemy.” Are Madox and Kip supposed to be parallels or foils for each other? Kip
only knew a few Europeans well (Lord Suffolk, Hana), yet bombs and the war
separated him from himself for a time being in the war, and eventually, it separated
him from the love he had, such as he was capable of feeling, for Hana. What are the
“bombs” and “wars” that divide humans?
• The reference to “mirrors” again on 219—like Hana, he has none.
• Repeated references to hair washing and hair (p. 217---219; 277).
• “”One day you will open your eyes,’ my brother keeps saying.”
• Reoccurring theme of “displaced persons”: “Kip and I both are international
bastards---born in one place and choosing to live elsewhere. Fighting to get back to
or get away from our homelands all our lives” (p. 176).
• p. 209, p. 221----books and Hana writing in books again.
• pp. 232-234---books, stories as a vehicle for Katharine expressing her desire to
Almasy.
• The image of the jackal---I am not sure I understand this completely (p. 259)
• Is there significance to Katharine dying alone in the Cave of Swimmers?
• Metaphors of maps, cartography p. 261, p. 270; “sadness of geography” p. 296
• “Communal book of moonlight” p. 261
• “Warrior saint” p. 273, crucifix p. 207; reminds me of Christ and earlier references to
the English Patient as Christ. Is Kip now her “savior”? Angel as warrior (p. 280)
• References to medieval times (p. 273, 170, 174)
• The idea of self-excavation, self-discovery (through BOOKS) with Katharine---self-
education p. 230.
• p. 178: idea of private self, reading of others.
• Significance of Clara?