Fifth Business

Originally, there were five main roles in an old style opera. These roles were the Hero, the Heroine, the Villain, the Confidante and the Fifth business. There were also five main characters in Fifth Business, each representing one of the five main characters in which were used in operas. There were many incidents in the book that designated each character to one of the five roles. Percy Boyd Staunton was characterized as the villain through his smoothly procured riche

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There is much evidence provided throughout the novel and many associations given to the fact that the characters in Fifth Business were related directly to that of an old style opera. He was the odd man out, always searching for meaning and significance. Paul had always held a grudge on Boy for the insulting remarks that he had made as a child against his mother.

Outside of each characters role there were also many schemes that unfurled throughout the novel, which related directly to the schemes that took place in old style operas. She also followed the tradition of the heroine loving the hero, Paul, even though he was her son. Dempster throughout her hardest times, supplying her with the money she needed and being her only friend. When the heroine is at loss, it was the duty of the fifth business to come to her aid, relative to how Dunstable helped Mrs. He is the one who brings resolution or meaning to the story, or the observer who explains the story. From the description given by Liesl of what roles opera characters played and of the plots and schemes that transpired during an old style opera, we can easily see the similarity in relation to the book. Finally, there was the fifth business who was usually the odd man out. He could have been seen as the centre point of the novel because he was always turning up and bringing excitement and life into the novel. The confidante, being odd but trustworthy was obviously Liesl. Her traditional rivalry with the heroine was subtle in the novel but still present for she knew that Dunstable loved Mrs.

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Approximate Word count = 721
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

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