Religion Theme Analysis

Religion is constantly in the background of The Good Soldier and there are several moments where it comes to the forefront. Although religion does not provide its central characters with moral scruples, it does still give them a certain cultural cache, which they feel attached to; in other words, characters use religion to be seen as “good people” in the eyes of their peers. Additionally, one’s religion is closely linked to one’s nationality, both of which carry certain assumptions about one’s character. This dynamic between religion and identity is most apparent in the scene where the two couples travel to M—. In M—, Florence, who is a Protestant, reads Martin Luther’s Protest and acts as though it adds value to her identity as a Protestant. She then uses the Protest to feel superior to Leonora, who is an Irish Catholic, arguing that the piece of paper makes Protestants “honest, sober, industrious, provident, and clean-lived”—unlike Catholics like Leonora, who (according to Florence) lack these traits.  In this scene, Florence does not think about or cite particular Protestant beliefs that would suggest her superiority, she simply feels superior because of the identity itself. Florence, though American, is descended from an old English family and she sees Englishness as a fundamental part of her identity.

Later in the novel, John says that Edward and Leonora regularly argued over which denomination they would raise their potential children. Both felt that their respective religious upbringings were crucial to their identities and wanted their children to follow in their footsteps. Ironically, Edward and Leonora don’t even end up having children, rending their argument a performative display of cultural values rather than a substantive matter of belief. Given these examples, it is clear that religion is still alive and well in the characters’ minds. However, rather than providing these characters with a strict set of beliefs and morals, religion gives them a stable sense of their sociocultural and national identities.