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Alekos
The Italian officer in charge of controlling the Italian troops on Cephalonia. Corelli describes him as someone who rose to the top by following orders, but who doesn't know how to give them. In the weeks before the Italians surrender to the Allies, Gandin tells the troops to trust the Germans rather than disarm them. After the Italians surrender, he's paralyzed by indecision and refuses to issue orders to the troops.
General Gandin Quotes in Captain Corelli’s Mandolin
The Captain Corelli’s Mandolin quotes below are all either spoken by General Gandin or refer to General Gandin. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 51 Quotes
"If he had an impulse that quickened the seeds of his inactivity, it was foolish hope and the desperate need to spare the blood of the hapless men he loved. He took a sightless road and shortly condemned them to a grisly doom, failing to see in the Nazi promises so thick a mask of falsehood that by trusting them he condemned his beautiful youngsters to abandon their bones..."
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Chapter 52 Quotes
The general had an obsession with Stukas. The thought of those crook-winged howling birds of destruction made his stomach turn with dread. Perhaps he did not know that from a military point of view they were one of the most ineffective weapons of war ever devised...
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General Gandin Character Timeline in Captain Corelli’s Mandolin
The timeline below shows where the character General Gandin appears in Captain Corelli’s Mandolin. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 24. A Most Ungracious Surrender
...the peaceful beauty of the island. Corelli is a consummate jokester, loves children, mocks General Gandin, and loves to make ladies blush. He runs the opera group La Scala, which performs...
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Chapter 43. The Great Big Spiky Rustball
...house with snails, and Pelagia is horrified to see that all her snails escaped. General Gandin later charges Corelli with acting without permission, because Axis troops swarmed to the island thinking...
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Chapter 50. A Time of Hiatus
...have to surrender before the Germans do. He says they can't get married, and General Gandin won't let the Italians disarm the Germans now. Pelagia sees Father Arsenios and Bunnios and...
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Chapter 51. Paralysis
The narrator asks the reader to imagine if Homer had written about General Gandin. Homer would've written that Gandin was vague, foolish, and couldn't make decisions. Gandin wanted to...
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...beginning of September, but the Germans were ready: they sent troops to Cephalonia to prepare. Gandin doesn't order counter-preparations. La Scala stops meeting at Dr. Iannis's house and all the Germans...
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...the Germans are sure to lose. The next day, General Barge moves troops and General Gandin attempts to contact Rome. Pelagia and Dr. Iannis prepare medical supplies and Corelli attempts unsuccessfully...
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Chapter 52. Developments
...game of powerful men. The Germans are flying in more reinforcements and he wonders if Gandin even listens to the radio. The Italians greatly outnumber the Germans and yet they've been...
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General Gandin calls Colonel Barge to tell him that he's withdrawn infantry from Kardakata in a token...
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...partisans. At the same time, Weber feels relieved that the German reinforcements are arriving. General Gandin asked for written guarantees for his men's safety, but Weber thinks they'll teach them a...
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General Gandin asks chaplains for advice. They disagree on whether to give in or fight. Gandin fears...
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...of a code word. It says that prisoners are to be treated as traitors. General Gandin speaks anxiously with one of his men, trying to decipher conflicting orders and figure out...
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Chapter 53. First Blood
...watch more German reinforcements arrive and Appollonio curses when he receives a call saying that Gandin has agreed to a truce. He receives a message of support from Corelli.
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Chapter 55. Victory
General Gandin goes against what his men want and agrees with Colonel Barge: the Italian soldiers should...
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...never meant to evacuate the Italians. Weber knows he'll have to kill his friends, and Gandin knows that his indecision has condemned his men to die. The planes drop bombs on...
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...strategic importance to anyone, however, nobody comes to help and nobody follows the few orders Gandin does give. German troops continue to arrive as displaced villagers run to Argostoli for shelter.
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