The Heat of the Day

Analyze how the novel depicts the effects of war within domestic and civilian spaces. How does Bowen explore the experience of war for the civilian population? What does this focus reveal in comparison to more standard, frontline accounts of war?

Stella is portrayed as an independent woman, but at one point justifies her accusation of Robert by saying that “the more one thinks, the less there’s any outside reality—at least, that’s so with a woman: we have no scale” (214). Using evidence from the text, discuss how Stella’s character either subverts and/or aligns with gender conventions of the mid-20th century.

The novel plays with the idea of trust and doubt, especially in Stella’s dynamics with both Robert and Harrison. How does the novel explore the nature and potential pitfalls of trust?