The Valley of Bones is the seventh novel in Anthony Powell's twelve-volume series A Dance to the Music of Time. Published in 1964, it is the first of the war trilogy.Stacey, Bernard. War Dance : A Glossary of the Military Terms and References in the War Trilogy Novels in Anthony Powell's "A Dance to the Music of Time." Greenford: Anthony Powell Society; 2017.
The novel is separated into four chapters. The concluding sections of the previous novel, The Kindly Ones, show series protagonist Nick Jenkins trying to join the army.Anthony Powell Society, "The Kindly Ones", accessed May 21, 2020 At the beginning of this novel, it is early in 1940 and the reader sees that he has succeeded.Anthony Powell Society, "The Valley of Bones", accessed May 21, 2020
Themes
The Valley of Bones, named for the Vision of the Valley of Dry Bones in Ezekiel, depicts the coming together of very disparate individuals for the massive undertaking of Great Britain preparing for World War II. Unlike in Ezekiel, "The hand and spirit of God are absent; instead, there are men -- never very strong, often ineffective, seldom secure, always troubled....Powell's narrative pictures the partial breakdown of an infantry company: the personal ossification of some men, the cracking of the mold in others, the failure (and even death) of still others."
The novel explores different philosophies toward military life. These include the explicit theories about military life espoused by Alfred de Vigny, who advanced a theory about "the monk of war", and Hubert Lyautey. Nick also observes the implicit attitudes toward military life of those in his unit. That of commanding officer, Rowland Gwatkin, is derived in part from A Song to Mithras from Puck of Pook's Hill, and from Gwatkin's reflections on former military heroes such as Owain Glyndŵr. Gwatkin's failures as a commander, and as a lover, lead to his eventual disenchantment. Other characters in Jenkins' unit are considerably more pragmatic from early on, and they do well in the army. Maelgwyn-Jones says, and Nick finds occasion to repeat, "That day will pass, like other days in the army."
The Valley of Bones also explores the impact of the coming war on civilians. Isobel Jenkins observes, "The pressures of war were forcing action on everyone" and "The war seems to have altered some people out of recognition and made others more than ever like themselves."
Characters
Series protagonist Nick Jenkins, in every volume of A Dance to the Music of Time, is found very closely observing the people he encounters. So far in the series, this has meant observations about those of his own social class as they congregate at boarding schools, in country homes and making their way around London, as well as the bohemians and artists who interact with Nick's social peers. In The Valley of Bones, Nick trains his eye on those serving with him, finding himself "in the midst of a group of middle-class South Welsh bank officers, clerks, and miners few if any of whom have attended university or had any exposure to metropolitan life." His observations lead him to claim to David Pennistone, an officer, that "it is a misapprehension to suppose, as most people do, that the army is inherently different from all other communities".
This list shows the characters in the order in which they appear in the book. Every character in Chapters 1 and 2 is making his or her first appearance in Dance. This is also true of Chapter 4, with the notable exception of the very late, and much anticipated, appearance of Kenneth Widmerpool.
Chapter 1:
Nick Jenkins, the novel's protagonist and narrator. Rowland Gwatkin, Company Commander. In civilian life, he is a banker. Idwal Kedward: One of three Platoon Commanders reporting to Gwatkin; he is about 21 years old. Evan ("Yanto") Breeze. Along with Nick Jenkins and Idwal Kedward, he is a Platoon Commander reporting to Gwatkin. Breeze is about 25. Pendry, a Platoon Sergeant who reports to Nick Jenkins CSM Cadwallader. He "like the rest of the 'Other Ranks' of the Battalion, was a miner." Lyn Craddock Bithel. He commands a platoon and is eventually appointed to higher things. Pumphrey, a subaltern. In civilian life, he sells second-hand cars. Jones, D. Williams, W.H. Maelgwyn-Jones Iltyd Popkiss, a Church of England military chaplain or padre. At the end of Chapter 1, he delivers a sermon based on the Vision of the Valley of Dry Bones in the Book of Ezekiel, and quotes it in its entirety. Fr. Ambrose Dooley, a Catholic priest
Chapter 2:
Corporal Gwylt: "One of the company's several wits, tiny, almost a dwarf, with a huge head of black curly hair." Lance-Corporal Gareth Gittins. He is CSM Cadwallader's brother-in-law. "He was a man not always willing to recognise the artificial and temporary hierarchy imposed by military rank." In civilian life, he works in a mine. He manages the distribution of items in the Company Store to members of the company. Sayce. Sayce is "the Company bad character." "Small and lean, with a yellow face and blackened teeth, his shortcomings were not to be numbered." Gwatkin exerts himself, unsuccessfully, to reform Sayce. Deafy Morgan. Deafy in civilian life is a miner. "It was probably true to say that Deafy Morgan did not have many thoughts, disturbing or otherwise, because he was not outstandingly bright, although at the same time possessing all sorts of other good qualities." "Deafy Morgan was the precise antithesis of Sayce." "He was prepared at all times to undertake boring or tedious duties ...in what could only be called the most Christlike spirit." He is courtmartialled after his rifle is stolen and sent home to his "nagging wife". Bithel's soldier-servant Daniels. Major-General Liddament, who is appointed as the new Divisional Commander. Rees, J. Davies, E. Davies, Clements Ellis and G. Williams. These men are members of Nick's platoon. Major-General Liddament asks them for their views on porridge.
Chapter 3:
David Pennistone. Nick runs into Pennistone on a train journey at the beginning of the chapter. They discuss paintings by Bruegel. Nick eventually remembers that he previously met Pennistone at Milly Andriadis' party in A Buyer's Market. Barnby. Nick runs into him on the streets of London. Barnby is now an RAF officer who creates disguises for the military. Odo Stevens. He shares Nick's billet at Aldershot. His trade prior to the military was selling imitation jewelry. He has also done "a spot of journalism in the local paper." Jimmy Brent. He is taking the same course at Aldershot as Nick. Croxton. On the course at Aldershot, throws gravel at Nick and Odo. Macfeaddan. A schoolmaster in civilian life, assigned to a unit with Brent and Nick in a tactical exercise. He is full of zeal. Frederica Budd, Nick's sister-in-law, and her two sons, Edward and Christopher. Priscilla Lovell (Nick's sister-in-law and wife of Chips Lovell) and her daughter Caroline. Robert Tolland and the woman he is seeing, Flavia Wisebite Dicky Umfraville. Barry, the child of Frederica's maid Audrey. Buster Foxe, now a Commander.
Chapter 4:
Maureen, a barmaid who works in an unnamed pub in the village near Castlemallock. She is "short and thick-set, with a pale face and lots of black hair." Gwatkin is in love with her. These feelings are not reciprocated. Emmot, a Mess waiter at the bar in Castlemallock. Bithel, who is drunk, stumbles and falls against Emmot in a way that looks from some angles as if Bithel is kissing Emmot. This leads Gwatkin to order the arrest of Bithel. Pinkus, an Adjutant-Quartermaster. Philpotts and Parry, two military officers at Castlemallock Kenneth Widmerpool. Kenneth makes his first appearance in the last few pages of the book. He is now a DAAG, and Nick's new boss.
Cultural references
Ekphrastic literature is inspired by works of art, as is famously true of A Dance to the Music of Time. Poems, paintings, painters, games, bar songs, marching songs, parts of the Bible, hymns, crafts, Greek myths, novels, Shakespeare's plays and cultural touchpoints for the British military in the early years of World War II are woven throughout each chapter of The Valley of Bones. And yet, according to the magisterial "Pictures in Powell", "perhaps as a result of the grimness of the early years of the War, it has the fewest references to visual art of all the volumes. Jenkins is isolated from his cultured friends, aristocratic homes, and the galleries of London, and Modernism no longer gets his attention."
Chapter 1:
The Marine Cemetery by Paul Valéry. El Greco. Nick is in an unidentified town, the location of his first assignment in the military. The streets have a "bleak charm; an illusion of tramping through Greco's Toledo". Quattrocento portraits. The streets in the unnamed town are "built at constantly changing levels" and remind Nick of the "castellated upland townships of Tuscany" that are represented in the background of Quattrocento portraits. Honoré Daumier Seven churches of Asia The song South of the Border (Down Mexico Way) Chapter 3 of Revelation Cavaliers and Roundheads The poem, "Roland the Paladin" Stendhal Ernest Meissonier The Walrus and the Carpenter (from Lewis Carroll) Vision of the Valley of Dry Bones, a prophecy in chapter 37 of the Book of Ezekiel.
Chapter 2:
Guide me, O Thou Great Redeemer. The first verse is sung by the members of Nick's platoon as they march toward their new assignment. The Ash Grove, sung by the company as it marches. "Haw-Haw's propaganda broadcasts from Germany". Officers in Nick's company listen to this at night from the Company Store. Dai and Shoni stories Puck of Pook's Hill Judges 5:12. "Arise, Barak, and lead your captives away, O son of Abinoam!" This is cited by Gwatkin in a speech to the Company about the proper care of rifles. Owain Glyndŵr, who comes to Nick's mind when he sees how Gwatkin is attired for a thirty-six hour Divisional Exercise. A Song to Mithras. Gwatkin discusses this with Nick in the wake of learning about the infidelity of Sgt. Pendry's wife, suggesting that the poem makes one think, "Don't have to bother any more about women." A reprise of Guide me, O Thou Great Redeemer. The final verse is sung by Lance Corporal Gittens as he sorts through supplies. Lines from the song are the last words in the text of Chapter 2.
Chapter 3:
Without yet knowing each other's names, Nick and David Pennistone stand in line to buy tea on a short break from their train voyage. They fall into a discussion of the Kunsthistorisches Museum and a painting they've both seen there: The Hunters in the Snow by Pieter Bruegel the Elder. Pennistone adds that he also admires Bruegel's Two Monkeys, which he has seen at the Kaiser Friedrich Museum in Berlin. Descartes. Pennistone tells Nick he is writing "something awfully boring about Descartes. Really not worth discussing." The Servitude et Grandeur Militaire by Alfred de Vigny. Pennistone claims, "Vigny says a soldier's crown is a crown of thorns, amongst its spikes none more painful than passive obedience." Nick responds: "True enough." Persephone. Travelling to the course he will be taking for about a month, Nick thinks, "I knew how Persephone must have felt on the first day of her annual release from the underworld." Nick mulls over a Dai and Shoni story about a hot air balloon and contemplates what an aerial voyage would feel like. Bottom and Titania. Feodor Chaliapin, mentioned in an anecdote about Jean Duport. Jean had said at a dinner, "Poor Peter, he really sees the most dreary people. One of the men at dinner had never heard of Chaliapin." The Song of the Volga Boatmen. Nick considers singing this to Brent "to confirm his inexperience of opera".