David puts on the front of a heterosexual man to the outside world, only letting down his defences when he enters his lover’s room. Baldwin bookends the story on the evening before Giovanni’s death,implying that the tragic ending was inevitable.ĭuring our first lecture on the novel, we discussed the title. He wrestles with this inner turmoil while awaiting Giovanni’s execution. David desires Giovanni, but is torn between him and the idea of a “normal” life with Hela, all while feeling an intense shame for loving another man. One night, he meets an Italian bartender named Giovanni and the two begin a passionate, albeit toxic, affair. His girlfriend and “mooring post,” Hela, is sightseeing Spain while he explores bars and cobblestone quays with a group of gay men. Giovanni’s Room follows David, an American expatriate, as he delves into the homosexual subculture of 1950s Paris. For me, this feeling occurred when, in my American Literature class, we studied James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room. However, every now and then, a lesson comes along that feels pressing and immediate. As an Arts student, I sometimes feel we are just drifting from exam to exam, essay to essay, without any real care for what we are learning besides what will earn us the highest possible grade.
