Contrasting differences between Clara and Fosca

I.U Tarchetti’s novel, Passion, tells the story of a young military officer known as, Giorgio, and his two love affairs. The women that Giorgio falls for are not only complete opposites in their appearances, but in their personalities as well.

 Giorgio meets the first woman, Clara, in Milan. Clara is “tall, pure, robust, serene”(Tarchetti 20) and also married to another man with whom she has a son. Clara symbolizes youth to Giorgio, and heals him of his unhappiness. After two months of intoxicating love with Clara, Giorgio receives a letter stating that he has been reassigned to Parma. Leaving Clara is not easy for Giorgio he “felt struck by lightning”(24).

While in Parma, Giorgio meets his second lover, Fosca. Fosca is the cousin of his Colonel, and is ill with “every illness”(38). When Giorgio first meets her he does not know “how to express in words the woman’s horrendous ugliness”(41). As he spends more time away from Clara his memories of he begin to fade from his mind. As he starts to lose the image of Clara, images of Fosca begin to fill his mind. He finds a passion for Fosca that sickens his mind; sucking away the energy he had received from Clara.

Clara and Fosca are strikingly opposites on both the physical and mental level. Clara is described as blonde, beautiful and active, whereas Fosca is described as ugly, dark haired, ill and passive. The love between Clara and Giorgio is symbolized as a romantic love, with happiness bursting in every moment. However the love between Fosca and Giorgio is sickly and is connected to disease and death. How can Giorgio be so passionately attracted to both of these women when they are so different?