The Two Sides to Every Greek: Hellene vs. Romoi

Louis De Bernieres's novel, Corelli's Mandolin, is a story about time and change. The story itself explores many aspects of life such as love, betrayal, chaos, tradition, history and numerous other elements that are often warped over time. De Bernieres notes that he tried to be as true to history as possible. But beneath the layers of time, change and history there is another element of Greek culture that parallels the stories within the novel. …

…fault line that separates east from west; we are simultaneously a battleground and a site of cataclysmic earthquakes. If the islands of the Dodecanese are eastern, however, Cephallonia is undoubtedly western, whereas the mainland is simultaneously both without being entirely either (121). The dualistic nature of Hellene and Romoi are neither split nor combined. The Hellene and Romoi intervene when necessary, providing a balance as well as a sense of what is essentially the Greek character.