Character Sketch of Mr. Gessler:
Introduction:
Mr. Gessler is a man of peculiar quality. He is a character by himself. He is not an average man; he is rather a typical sort of person. He is the younger of the two Gessler Brothers and the protagonist of short story. He has been described as a passionate and hardworking shoemaker. He has been portrayed as stubborn artists trying to keep the dying art of handmade things alive in the world of advertisements and publicity.
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| Galsworthy’s Story Quality: Character Sketches of Mr. Gessler and The Narrator |
Physical Traits:
Mr. Gessler has been presented as a little, short - statured man. His face is pale. He has a lot of wrinkles on his face. His hair and beard are reddish. His voice is guttural, in conformity with his German origin. He has been described as if made from leather, suggesting that he is firm like leather but also “slow of purpose”, i.e., slow in execution. The narrator brings to us the importance of Mr. Gessler's “gray – blue” eyes by divesting them with the simple gravity of one secretly possessed by the ideal”. This clearly indicates that Mr. Gessler's ideal of being perfectionist reflects in his eyes.
His Being A Passionate and Hard Working:
For Mr. Gessler, Boot - making is his passion. He can go to any length to make boots for people. Shoemaking is a sacred vocation and he is wholly dedicated to it. Once when he is asked by the narrator if his work of shoemaking is awfully hard, he replies that it is an art. So for Mr. Gessler, shoemaking is not merely a craft but a sublime art. He is highly passionate about shoemaking as is evident from the fact that he performs all the activities himself like working on leather, taking measurements and stitching the shoes. While making the shoes, he remembers the comfort and satisfaction of his customers. His passion for his work is also justified from the fact that while making the shoes , when he has to leave his work to attend to the customers , he appears as if he has been awakened from some dream of shoes or like an owl who feels surprised in daylight .
His Being A Perfectionist in His Profession:
Mr. Gessler is so well - versed in his vocation that he can tell whether the shoes are made by him or somebody else by simply looking at them. Once, the narrator goes to Gessler Brothers to place an order. That day the narrator is wearing a pair of shoes that he buys from a large firm in an emergency. Mr. Gessler can immediately recognise that these shoes are not made by him. He puts his hand down and presses a finger exactly on the place where the left shoe is not comfortable. In spite of facing the hardships fallen in his way, he keeps on making efforts to maintain excellence in his work.
His Showing Honesty in His Work and Maintaining Quality:
Mr. Gessler is genius in his profession. He knows and loves the art of making boots heartily. He makes boots so strong that they last terribly for years. He always makes sure that he makes the best boots for every client. That is why, he takes a pretty long time in making boots according to the specifications of his customers. He feels hurt if anybody complains about the shoes not fitting or hurting him. Once the narrator goes to the Gesslers’ shop and complains to him that the last pair he had made for him creaks. Mr. Gessler is surprised at this complaint and replies that the narrator might have got them wet otherwise they would not have creaked. Like a true gentleman for whom quality matters more than anything , he asks the narrator to send that pair back to him and he would try to repair them if possible and if not he would refund the money to him . Not only does this show dedication, but also integrity because he is honest about his work and wants to satisfy his customer to the utmost even at his personal financial loss. In his last days of adversity, when he finds his business on the verge of drowning, he, instead of compromising the quality of shoes, tries to make the best shoes with the same dedication and honesty without increasing the price of his shoes.
His Commitment to Excellence, His Enduring Hardships and His Tragic End:
It is true to all that Mr. Gessler devotes his entire life in making the best quality shoes. He lives and dies for quality. He has to face tough competition from big firms which have sophisticated machinery and huge capital to advertise their products. But he remains stubborn and resolute to practise the craft by paying for it with his breath and blood. He never compromises on quality and always uses best quality leather. Though his business is dwindling, he continues his struggle for existence without giving in to the pressure of competition and advertisements. He is forced by circumstances to give away a part of his shop. His elder brother dies because he cannot get over the shock of losing one of their shops. Mr. Gessler, despite losing his elder brother and part of their shop, continues his business of shoemaking with the same commitment as earlier. Mr. Gessler who commits himself to the art of making shoes , has to fade away from this world of commercial materialism that takes a toll of sincere traders of art pursuing it as the profession . In fact, he meets a tragic end. He dies of slow starvation.
Character Sketch of The Narrator:
Introduction:
The narrator's qualities have been brought to us by his acquaintance with the Gessler Brothers. The narrator knew the Gessler Brothers from the age of fourteen when he used to visit them to get his father's shoes made by them. In his youthful days, the narrator seldom thought about the. uniqueness of the shop. By the age of fourteen, he began to realise that it was no ordinary cobbler's shop, but the workplace of two splendid craftsmen.
His Being a Quality - Conscious Man:
The Gessler Brothers were known to the narrator from his father's time. His father wore the shoes made by the Gessler Brothers. His father loved the quality of their shoes. So the narrator knew them as those who were wholly committed to the quality of the shoes. As his father showed great fondness of the shoes of the Gessler Brothers, he was also gradually inclined to their shoes. He always got his shoes tailor - made by the Gessler Brothers. Once in Emergency, the narrator had to buy a pair of shoes from a big firm. The shoes were attractive in their look but they were not comfortable to him. Mr. Gessler put his hand down and pressed a finger exactly on the place where the left shoe was not comfortable. In the beginning, the narrator was suspicious about the display of a few pairs of boots in the window. He thought that the Gessler Brothers have bought the shoes from outside for the display. But, later on, his suspicion had gone when he came to know about the reality of the Gessler Brothers. He also came to know that the Gessler Brothers were wholly committed to the quality and that they did all the work with their hands from working on the leather, taking measurements, designing and finalising the shoes as per the demands of each and every customer . They never compromised the quality and always used best quality leather.
His Appreciating the Art, Beauty and Quality of the Shoes:
The narrator had great appreciation or admiration for the true art and the artists. It has been indicated by the fact that he visited the Gessler Brothers’ shop a number of times as he appreciated the beauty and quality of shoes made by them. He seemed to be awestruck by the beauty of the shoes made by them to such an extent that he described them as “too beautiful”; “making water come into one's mouth”. He admired Gessler Brothers “art of shoemaking as” incarnating the very spirit of all foot - gear. He felt that such beautiful shoes could only be made by the artists, who had seen the very soul of the shoes and who even seemed to “dream of boots”. The narrator found the Gessler Brothers different from the other shoemakers visiting Gessler Brothers, to him, looked like entering a church as boot - making was pursued by them religiously with honesty and integrity. Moreover, the atmosphere of their shop was very peaceful. Hence, it was the narrator's inclination to their art of shoemaking which forced the narrator to visit them again and again and order more than his need.
His Being Generous, Kind and Sympathetic:
Because of being associated with the Gessler Brother for a long time, the narrator was greatly pained by the pitiable state of the Gessler Brothers. The narrator came to know of their pathetic state only when Mr. Gessler once spoke bitterly about the hardships of his trade. Mr. Gessler was annoyed at the commercial approach of the big firms. He railed against their advertising, sales promotion and everything else they did to entice the buyer at the cost of quality. Such derisive comments seldom came to Gessler. Displeasure and annoyance were palpable in his face, wrinkled by years of toil in his trade. The narrator was moved by the commitment and dedication of Gessler to his trade. He felt bad that he had some time back complained about the boot he had bought from this master artisan. To make amends for any feelings of hurt he might have caused to the embittered artisan, the narrator ordered a quite a few pairs of shoes. When the narrator went there after the lapse of two years, the narrator was surprised to see that one of the two windows of the old shop bore a signboard. It became clear to the narrator that another business had started operating from the premises. It soon emerged that Gessler had rented out a part of the shop to curtail cost. The narrator ordered three pairs though he wanted only two and left the place quickly. The narrator had developed a sentimental bonding with Gessler's shop that made him return there again and again. When, after many months, the narrator again visited the Gessler Brothers, he got the shocking news of Elder Gessler's death. The narrator showed sympathy for Mr. Gessler by placing an order for several pairs and went abroad. When he returned from abroad, he again went to the Gessler Brothers. This time Mr. Gessler seemed to the narrator as seventy five years old man though he was sixty - five. His business too had been all time slacker. The narrator had empathy for Mr. Gessler and tried to help him by ordering all kinds of shoes on his next visit, although he had doubts whether Mr. Gessler would be able to deliver his order. On getting the shoes, the narrator immediately sent a cheque to pay for the order. A week later, when the narrator comes to know about Mr. Gessler's death, he feels extremely sorrow.
