Allies and Enemies

The Ally - Julia Wells

Julia Wells is a closet writer who is interested in Jerry's endeavour to publish a novel having had her own creative ambitions drummed out of her by family and friends. Once she sees Jerry getting closer to his dream by working for a publisher she extends the hand of friendship by cooking him a meal. But it is only half a meal because she cooks him something that he doesn't eat. In effect, she is feeding herself because she wants to extract the necessary information from him that will enable her to get closer to her dream.

Ally turned Enemy - Kerry Cerberus

Jerry's success in securing employment is met with an atmosphere of resistance by Kerry when Julia informs her of the new development in his life. She observes Kerry's mounting opposition against Jerry and tries to appease the situation by cooking him a meal. Kerry, on the other hand, has given up on Jerry because she is convinced that romance will not develop between them. She has invited him to salsa dancing, bought him a drink and cooked him a meal to establish a feeling of romance, only to discover that there is no room in his life for her. There is now bad blood between Jerry and Kerry which has transformed her from an ally to an enemy.

Approaching the Inmost Cave

Imprisoned in Jerry's Mind

Kerry Cerberus is imprisoned in Jerry's mind as an upper working class girl with aspirations to enter into middle class society through her education. He is a projection of what she will become, and in him she recognises her own faults.

Approaching the Inmost Cave

She walks up the stairs to his room, hypnotically drawn to her quest to interrogate him. It represents her crossing the line from being an initial ally to evolving into an enemy. She invades his room, sussing out an emotional weak spot in his character and starts to needle him. She continues to belittle him, judging him by the standards of the culture she wants to enter into. But in passing judgement about him being unemployed she has condemned herself.

The Ordeal

Kerry's Ordeal

Kerry's ordeal comes when she is stripped away from all the exterior trappings of young professional society and reduced to unemployment.

Jerry and Kerry's Lives Converge

Her life converges with Jerry when he returns home as a young professional in the publishing industry and looks at a parallel of himself in her, thrown back onto her own resources, reduced to the passive voyeurism of unemployment. Kerry Cerberus has now turned into the old Jerry Downing.

Expelled from the Garden of Eden

The hidden energy at work below the surface of his relationship with his flatmates culminates in Jerry's ordeal - eviction from the house. But who is responsible? Jerry Downing is now a drifting soul with no roots in search of a home.

The Reward

A Drifting Soul

Jerry Downing spiritually drifts into work with the mental lapse of a man without society. Karen invites him for a drink during his lunch break, but again he is a man who is metaphorically not there. He shares his ordeal with her, and she extends the hand of friendship by taking him under her wing in order to help him grow as a writer. Karen Glinda now becomes his new father figure.

Jerry typing up novel

Karen begins a series of workshops to help Jerry improve his novel so that she can present him respectably to the world of publishing. Her involvement in his life provides him with a living relationship that helps him to grow as a person and move on with his life. When the novel is finally accepted for publication, Jerry returns the dream of being a published writer to its rightful owner - his father. The novel represents his father's unfulfilled ambition of being a published writer, but now that Jerry has compensated his father for what he didn't achieve he can now move on and live his own life.

The Road Back

The New Jerry

Jerry returns to his flat with a new personality to re-present himself to his flatmates. He has been pulled out of his passive voyeurism by Karen, and has experienced a re-birth through his relationship with her. He looks at the house of his old personality, but his memory of the place has been healed. Now it is time for him to re-establish contact with his flatmates to release them from the memory of his past.

The Resurrection

The Empty Tomb

Redeemed through the healing power of a balanced relationship, Jerry stares at the empty tomb of his old personality, mourning the death of his old self. He doubles the bedsheets in half, as if to bury the cozy womblike retreat of his bed in a coffin. He has conquered his old life and fulfilled his father's dream. He then moves to the window, ready to become a member of the outside world.

A Christlike Figure

Jerry stands at the window with his arms raised in a Christlike image, looking out into the world that he is now a part of. He has risen from the darkness of his old personality and conquered the paralysis of unemployment. Removal from the house has made him more able to feel and love.

Return with the Elixir

The Resurrection of the New Jerry

Jerry re-presents himself to his flatmates in order to heal their memory of him. His spirit is refreshed, and he has a stronger sense of self.

Jerry Inspires Julia's Better Self

Jerry inspires Julia's better self by living out his calling as a novelist and returning with the elixir of his new personality. It empowers her with hope to live out her own calling as a writer, bringing out her talent from the shadows into the light.

Return with the Elixir of Repentance

Jerry re-presents himself to Kerry in an attitude of repentance to restore her to wholeness. She manages to find a place in her heart to forgive him, healing the memory of his old personality. Both of them are now able to move on with their lives as redeemed human beings.

A Member of the World

Having learned how to live and love, Jerry Downing leaves the house for good, ready to be a full participant in life.