Fifth Business focuses on Dunstan Ramsay, a man stricken with deep guilt stemming from a childhood accident. At just ten years old he dodges a snowball thrown at him, which instead hits Mary Dempster, the young pregnant woman next door. As a result, her baby is born prematurely and she is left with a simple state of mind. As a result, Dunny's mother takes control of the house and acts as the child's mother. Dunny, in turn, builds a thriving relationship with Mrs. Dempster. This complex relationship becomes a way for Dunny to eradicate his chronic guilt. This multi-layered relationship unfolds into her larger internal conflict, as Mrs. Dempster plays four roles in her world: a child, a wife, a mother, and a saint. The complexity of this relationship, along with Dunny's love for Mrs. Dempster, makes him constantly feel inadequate, which only amplifies his guilt. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Following the snowball incident, Mrs. Dempster is abandoned by both her husband and son and ends up living with her Aunt Bertha. For several years Dunny visits her, against Bertha's better judgement. After Bertha's death, Mrs. Dempster is truly left alone, which causes Dunny to immediately rush to her rescue. Due to his simple state of mind, he treats her like a child by constantly taking care of her and taking full responsibility for her. On page 150, immediately after Bertha's death, Dunny asks himself, "but what was I to do with her?" This diction, particularly the phrase “to do with her,” highlights the fact that Dunny sees it as a primary responsibility, similar to the responsibility a father feels towards his child. Furthermore, he is unsure of himself and does not know whether he will provide the care that Mrs. Dempster needs. From this inability to take care of her adequately he feels a sense of inadequacy, which aggravates his sense of guilt. Ultimately, Dunny decides to send Mrs. Dempster to a public hospital for the insane. He does this with deep anguish and on page 131 he says, "I dared not look back and felt worse than I had ever felt in my life." The hyperbole: “I felt nastier than I had ever felt in my life,” emphasizes the profound difficulty Dunny has in leaving her at the hospital. He wants the best for her, but fundamentally believes he can't give it to her: this is the crux of the internal conflict. He believes he owes it to Mrs. Dempster to take care of her every need and provide her with the most comfortable life, since he was the one who robbed her of a normal life. The use of hyperbole adds to Dunny's role as a father and more importantly, her role as Mrs. Dempster's daughter, which further amplifies his guilt. After Mrs. Dempster becomes homely, Dunny's mother spends a lot of time caring for her and helping around the house. Subsequently, Dunny devotes most of his time to the Dempster house. The large amount of time Dunny spends with Mrs. Dempster makes him fall in love with her and, in turn, increases his guilt as he cannot save her from her toxic marriage to Amasa. When Dunny turned 16, he joined the army, during the Great War. The idea of ​​"war fever" was especially common in these times, and is illustrated when Dunny says goodbye to Mrs. Dempster just before leaving: "When I had to leave she kissed me on both cheeks, a thing she had never done before ." -and said, 'There is only one thing to remember; whatever happens, there is no need to be afraid.'”The atmosphere created at this point in the book is one of passion which not only emphasizes the war fever motif but highlights Mrs. Dempster's role as a wife. The proximity of death intensifies their feelings for each other and allows them to emerge, revealing the truth of Dunny's feelings: he is in love with her. Because he is secretly in love with Mrs. Dempster, Dunny feels guilty about being trapped in a destructive marriage with Amasa, who prays to God every night to take Maria away from him. After Mrs. Dempster is caught with the Tramp, crowds of people show up at her door and bully her. On page 42, when Amasa has done absolutely nothing to stop them, Dunny says, "I wish I could record that Amasa Dempster came out and confronted them, but he didn't." The formal diction used in this sentence implies that Amasa is expected, and practically required, to defend his defenseless wife. Using a word like "record" suggests that Dunny is keeping score between him and Amasa, and Dunny is winning. Furthermore, by using Amasa's full name, he emphasizes his responsibility as Mrs. Dempster's husband and, as a result, emphasizes his inability and lack of desire to protect her. The internal conflict that arises from Dunny's romantic love for Mrs. Dempster is that he, once again, wants what is best for her and wants her to be treated well, but cannot save her from her cruel husband and fake marriage. This internal conflict makes him feel helpless, which consequently compounds his guilt, because, once again, he cannot reverse what happened that night with the snowball. In addition to a son and a wife, Dunny considers Mrs. Dempster a mother figure. When Dunny's real mother practically abandons him for Mrs. Dempster's son, and starts spending more time at the Dempsters' than at her own home, he becomes very vulnerable. These mommy issues, along with the amount of time spent by the Dempsters, allow Mrs. Dempster to easily take on the role of her mother. On page 55, after Mrs. Ramsay notes Dunny's childish affection for Mrs. Dempster, she "concluded by demanding that [Dunny] make a choice between her and 'that woman'." The diction that Davies employs in this sentence, particularly the phrase The phrase "that woman" highlights Mrs. Ramsay's insecurity in her relationship with Dunny and emphasizes Mrs. Dempster's maternal position. As the sense of desperation returns, Dunny believes he could have served Mrs. Dempster better in his role as her son. After Mrs. Dempster's death on page 230, Dunny says, "And then I begged forgiveness for myself because, although I had done what I imagined was my best, I had not been loving enough, or wise enough, or generous enough in my relationships". with her." The repetition of the word "enough" further emphasizes his inadequacy as a son to her. Although he acknowledges that he did his best, Dunny will not let go of the feeling that he could have done more, or even that she deserved someone better than him as his "son" and caretaker. Mrs. Dempster's role as mother creates an internal conflict with Dunny: he believes that she is too good for him and cannot serve her well enough. This once again confirms his sense of inadequacy. His guilt is increased as he believes he is unable to repay her for his "naivety" that he has caused. ***Mrs. Dempster's most significant role is Dunny's saint in life is to test Mrs. Dempster's holiness to justify her deep sense of survivor's guilt. She can use her holiness for two things: an explanation for the unknown in her life and as vindication.