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Fifth Business Quotes

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In the novel Fifth Business by Robertson Davies, Davies uses Fifth Business to show that every character in a novel is significant in their own way, no matter the impact they make. Dunstan Ramsay, lives an ordinary life, with events occurring around him that are extravagant. In each event he plays an essential role, but he never directly causes anything. Fifth Business is defined as “the one who knows the secret of the hero’s birth, or [the one] who comes to the assistance of the heroine when she thinks all is lost… or may even be the cause of somebodies death if that’s part of the plot” (Davies 218). Davies uses a variety of riveting plot points in Dunstan’s journey of life to portray him as Fifth Business, this can be seen through the lives …show more content…
Dunstan tells Paul about the snowball incident and how Boy is responsible for his childhood events. If Dunstan never said anything about the incident, Paul would not have any reason to hypnotise, which is implied, Boy off of the cliff, to his death. Therefore Paul could possibly be the cause of Boy’s death, but it is that Dunstan gives him the reason. Also, Boy and Dunstan had a sort of rivalry when they were younger, in which Boy was always competing with Dunstan and this carries on into Boy’s adult life. When Dunstan tells Boy about the snowball incident and claims he forgets about it, this fuels Paul’s anger. “The difference between us is that you’ve brooded over it and I’ve forgotten it,” Boy tries to one up Dunstan and this is also how he indirectly causes Boy’s death (254). Dunstan is also still alive, despite being a part of the snowball incident with Boy, so without Boy’s attempt to overpower everyone, he may still be alive. While there are many conclusions to be made about Boy’s untimely demise, Dunstan seems to have played a role in his

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