Essay - Theme in Fifth Business

Rebirth

The term rebirth refers to the mental or physical new phase. A person’s rebirth often related to the progress and improvement. In the novel Fifth Business, the characters experienced several rebirths, as they changed their names to show they have been different from what they were in the past. In the book, Dunstan had learned to find the real self identity, the role he could fit in.
As the main character Dunstan’s life was divided into two stages: Dunny as a boy, Dunstan as a man. He had experienced two rebirths as each time he was given a new name.

When he was Dunny, he had a boy’s scheme and naughtiness. In the very beginning, he was quarrelling with Percy and trying to joke him. Percy was mad and throwing snowball at him. Dunny saw Depmster couple was walking in the out door field and realized Mrs. Dempster “was going to have a baby” while Percy was throwing snowball at him “from time to time”. He knew where this snowball would eventually land and he purposely let the snowball hit Mrs. Dempster.
When he realized the seriousness of the incident, he was “contrite and guilty”, for he “knew that the snowball had been meant for me”. Dunny looked after Mrs. Dempster to show his sorrow, meanwhile he was able to find the adorable part of her. While staying with Mrs. Dempster, Dunny learned how to love someone. “Loving her, I had to defend her.”

Like many boys, since he was Dunny he began to expect the recognition from females. “I wanted to be on good terms with the girls I knew; I suppose I wanted them to admire me and think me wonderful in some unspecific way.” He eagerly wanted to keep accompany with girls at many stages of his life. He thought he was in love with Leola, the prettiest girl in the village; he believed he had loved Diana, the pretty nurse who took care of him; He believed he was in love with the beautiful Fraustina. Until Lisle, a woman who was not so pretty physically, taught him what was the real love, not just the admiration of a girl’s good looking appearance, but her qualities.

Finally when he was in his mid age he became a teacher at school to teach boys, because he knew that boys will become men someday and they need to learn to be responsible in their life, otherwise they will bring pains to others. Dunstan had successfully progressed from a boy to a mature man who knows to take responsibilities and he was eager to teach the young generations the importance of learning one’s own role.