Arms and the Man
by
George Bernard Shaw
(Character of Raina Petkoff)
Raina
seems to be the only child of Major Paul Petkoff and Catherine, Raina tells us
that her family is the richest and best-known family in Bulgaria and that her
father holds the highest position assigned to a Bulgarian in their national
army. She is accustomed to a very comfortable establishment. The mantle of furs,
that Raina has, is "worth, on a moderate estimate, about three times of
the furniture of her room" which tells us that Raina is doted upon by her
parents. Catherine still treats her as a child, on one occasion - wondering why
Raina is not in bed.
Raina
is a young lady whose notions are derived from her reading of Byron and Pushkin.
As Bluntschli rightly puts it, her imagination is “full of fairy princes and
noble natures and cavalry charges and goodness knows what!” Having read Byron
and Pushkin, and a lot of fiction, she is extremely romantic in her view of
life. Shaw introduces Raina in this manner: "On the balcony a young lady,
intensely conscious of the romantic beauty of the night, and of the fact that
her own youth and beauty are part of it, is gazing at the snowy Balkans."
This introduction suggests Raina's youth, beauty, and dreamy, romantic nature.
War,
in Raina's view, is an opportunity for the gallant soldier to earn glory, even
if it is by dying. For this reason, she thinks that Sergius has performed a
supremely heroic deed by leading a triumphant cavalry charge against the
Serbians – it is Bluntschli who later informs her that the Bulgarians won the
battle by accident, and not through Sergius’ leadership skills. Raina has
unrealistic ideas regarding love also. Almost all her dialogues with Sergius
are artificial and affectatious, and are suffused with the notion of “higher
love”. Both Raina and Sergius are posing and pretending; they behave as though
they are searching for something divine. Also, their love does not stand the
test of time, since it has no foundation in real feeling.
Catherine
has chosen Sergius as the future husband for her daughter because they both
come from the same class in society; Sergius is an "extremely
handsome" man and he is an officer in the Bulgarian army. Raina's
imagination has been fired by the obviously exaggerated version of events at
Slivnitza as narrated to her by Catherine and Sergius immediately becomes
Raina's "soul's hero". When Sergius and Raina meet they use such
words as "hero", "king", "queen" and
"saint" to describe each other. She has a trusting nature and has
absolute faith in Sergius. Even though she sees Sergius and Louka together
through her window, she does not yield to serious misgivings. When the truth
about Sergius’ interest in Louka is revealed, her break with Sergius is
completes and she accepts Bluntschli as her suitor.
Raina
is initially as fanatically patriotic as Catherine is. She argues and defends
Sergius from 'the Man' who calls him a fool and compares his action to Don
Quixote slashing at the windmills. She claims to only have given refuge to 'The
Man' because she and her mother have the "notion" that a guest is
sacred".
She
is a compassionate person and is genuinely troubled with the reports of
suffering and slaughter which accompany war - she notes "I wish our people
were not so cruel. What glory is there in killing wretched fugitives?" In
Act I itself, Raina is attracted towards Bluntschli, who is realistic and
practical, yet witty and humorous. She is brave and shows no fear when a
stranger intrudes into her chamber, instead she boldly argues with the
intruder. She does not become nervous when the Russian soldier enters her room
to search for the Serbian officer. She is impulsive, yet kind hearted and
noble. When the Swiss soldier is depressed, she is moved, and feeling pity for
him, tries to cheer him up: "Come: don't be disheartened. (She stoops over
him almost maternally.) Oh, you are a very poor soldier, a chocolate cream soldier!
Come, cheer up!" This sympathy and pity that she feels on seeing
Bluntschli’s helplessness and her admiration for his sound logic and realistic
temperament, gradually lead her to loving him. She boldly confronts Sergius
with his duplicity and unfaithfulness. Even when at the very end of the play
when her father and mother are more than willing to have her married to
Bluntschli when they realize that he is so wealthy - she days "I am not
here to be sold to the highest bidder." She proves that she is truly the
modern woman who chooses to marry for the sake of love alone.
Raina
is very down to earth, perceptive and realistic. Her sixth sense has cautioned
her not to follow her mother's direction in immediately agreeing to the
arrangement for marriage with Sergius. Her knowledge of life is revealed when
she says "Real life is seldom like that! Indeed, never as far as I knew it
then" Raina has been viewing life and has the good sense to note that the
fiction of romances either in literary form or on the stage need to be tempered
with the experience of reality.
Even
the "noble attitude" and "thrilling voice" which she has
put on, has been a conscious action - she is surprised when Bluntschli dares to
challenge her. She has shrewdly learnt how to charm all those around her -
especially the significant men in her life - her father and Sergius and puts on
a show in front of them which sweeps them off their feet. However, she shows
her disdain for them - for such men who are not intelligent enough to see
through her disguise - she says of her father "poor father - as if he
could help himself". Of Sergius she says "I always feel a longing to
do or say something dreadful to him - to shock his propriety - to scandalise
the five senses out of him".
Raina
is also very self-aware. Early in the play we are told that she is fully aware
that "her own youth and beauty are part of" the wonderful natural
view she beholds. It is this self-awareness which is the root of her strength
of character.
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