After the Divorce · Chapter
XV explained
Costantino, newly released from prison, journeys back to Orlei but is overwhelmed by a sense of hopelessness and alienation.
What happens
Costantino, newly released from prison, journeys back to Orlei but is overwhelmed by a sense of hopelessness and alienation. He reunites with his old friend Isidoro Pane, but their meeting is strained; Costantino's demeanor has changed, and he struggles with grief and memories of his lost life with Giovanna.
Free preview opens on this chapter — companions, themes, and character notes appear beside the text.
Narrative arc
Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Rising action.
- Setup
- Escalation
- Breaking point
- Aftermath
- Closing
Costantino reaches his emotional and psychological nadir here, realizing that his heart has "turned black" and…
Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.
Follow the arc while readingThemes in this chapter
- Isolation and Longing
Costantino's profound sense of homelessness and aimlessness, his longing for the past, and his inability to reconnect with his former life.
- Suffering and Resilience
Costantino's physical and emotional exhaustion, his fits of grief, and his struggle to find meaning after years of brutal imprisonment.
- Injustice and Fate
Costantino reflects on his undeserved fate and the irreversible changes wrought by his wrongful imprisonment.
Characters to notice
- Costantino Ledda
Returns to Orlei after imprisonment, grappling with despair and a changed identity; his reunion with Isidoro is marked by emotional turmoil.
- Isidoro Pane
Old friend who welcomes Costantino but is shocked by his altered appearance and behavior; feels pity and diffidence.
- Giovanna Era
Costantino's lost wife; memories of their shared home and bed haunt him during his journey.
- Giacobbe Dejas
Mentioned as dead; Isidoro reveals he confessed to the murder, a key piece of news for Costantino.
- Brontu Dejas
Mentioned as the man Giovanna has married, adding to Costantino's sense of loss.
Key passages
“Oh, that divine melancholy of a spring evening! Felt even by happy souls, may it not be an inherited homesickness, transmitted through all the ages?”
The narrator muses that the bittersweet feeling of a spring evening might be a deep-seated longing passed down from humanity's first loss of paradise.
Reflects Costantino's own sense of loss and exile.
“He was like a young bull caught and held fast in the leash, and made to submit to the red-hot iron.”
Costantino's grief is compared to a calf being branded, emphasizing his violent, helpless suffering.
Highlights the raw, physical nature of his emotional pain.
“The great tempest of sorrow had broken over him long before and seemingly passed on; but instead of that it had only hidden itself for a time; it was there now, stealing along, keeping pace with him.”
Costantino's grief is like a storm that appears to have passed but actually lurks nearby, periodically overwhelming him.
Illustrates the cyclical and inescapable nature of his trauma.
