Disgrace
by J. M. Coetzee
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Pollux Character Analysis

One of the three men who attack David and rape Lucy. A teenager who is somehow related to Petrus, Pollux has unidentified (or at least unspecified) cognitive challenges, though this doesn’t deter David from attacking him when he catches him watching Lucy dress through the window. This takes place shortly after Pollux moves in with Petrus, and though David wants to call the police to tell them about the young man’s presence, both Petrus and Lucy dissuade him from doing so. As such, David lets a dog maul Pollux when he finds him peeping on Lucy, all the while screaming things he’s never said before in his life, like, “Teach him a lesson, Show him his place.” These phrases draw upon the fraught history of South Africa’s tense race relations, suggesting that part of David’s scorn for Pollux has to do with the fact that the young man is black. Before he truly injures Pollux, though, Lucy rushes out and helps the boy, who runs away saying, “I will kill you!” and “We will kill you all!”

Pollux Quotes in Disgrace

The Disgrace quotes below are all either spoken by Pollux or refer to Pollux. 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:
Desire and Power Theme Icon
).

Chapter 15 Quotes

‘[…] Petrus is not an innocent party, Petrus is with them.’

‘Don’t shout at me, David. This is my life. I am the one who has to live here. What happened to me is my business, mine alone, not yours, and if there is one right I have it is the right not to be put on trial like this, not to have to justify myself—not to you, not to anyone else. As for Petrus, he is not some hired la­bourer whom I can sack because in my opinion he is mixed up with the wrong people. That’s all gone, gone with the wind.’

Related Characters: David Lurie (speaker), Lucy (speaker), Petrus, Pollux
Page Number and Citation: 130
Explanation and Analysis:
In this conversation, David and Lucy argue about whether or not Petrus can be trusted. Having just found out that Petrus knows Pollux—one of Lucy’s three attackers—David insists that they call the police. According to him, they have finally tracked down one of the offenders, so there’s no reason not to take immediate legal action. Lucy, on the other hand, doesn’t want to call the police. Although her decision ultimately lets Pollux go free despite his heinous crimes, there’s no denying that it should be up to her how she handles this particular situation. This is what she tells David, Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At

Chapter 23 Quotes

‘I don’t trust him,’ he goes on. ‘He is shifty. He is like a jackal sniffing around, looking for mischief. In the old days we had a word for people like him. Deficient. Mentally deficient. Morally deficient. He should be in an institution.’

‘That is reckless talk, David. If you want to think like that, please keep it to yourself. Anyway, what you think of him is beside the point. He is here, he won’t disappear in a puff of smoke, he is a fact of life.’

Related Characters: Lucy (speaker), David Lurie (speaker), Pollux
Page Number and Citation: 203
Explanation and Analysis:
This conversation takes place between David and Lucy directly after David catches Pollux spying on his daughter through the window. When Lucy comes outside and rescues Pollux from David’s wrath, David tries to explain himself, saying that the young man is “shifty.” Going on, he once again reveals his fondness for the past, saying, “In the old days we had a word for people like him. Deficient.” Although this sentence in and of itself doesn’t necessarily have to do with apartheid, David’s overall sentiment is one of intolerance and nostalgia, as he longs for the days when it was more Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Si
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Pollux Character Timeline in Disgrace

The timeline below shows where the character Pollux appears in Disgrace. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 22
Love and Support Theme Icon
...tells him that the boy who was at Petrus’s party has returned. His name is Pollux, she explains, and he is living with Petrus. Apparently, Pollux is Petrus’s brother-in-law and has... (full context)
Violence and Empathy Theme Icon
Love and Support Theme Icon
...with Petrus, this time lamenting the fact that Petrus lied to him about not knowing Pollux. Now, though, Petrus doesn’t pretend to be friendly, instead saying that he’s simply protecting his... (full context)
Chapter 23
Violence and Empathy Theme Icon
Time and Change Theme Icon
While walking Katy the next morning, David comes upon Pollux watching Lucy dress through the window. “You swine!” he screams, slapping Pollux in the face... (full context)
Violence and Empathy Theme Icon
Love and Support Theme Icon
Time and Change Theme Icon
Blood leaks from Pollux’s arms, and as Lucy helps him up to bring him into the house, her “sash”... (full context)
Shame, Remorse, and Vanity Theme Icon
Time and Change Theme Icon
In the aftermath of his fight with Pollux, David finds a room in a nearby hotel and works at the Animal Welfare League... (full context)
Chapter 24
Love and Support Theme Icon
Time and Change Theme Icon
...Several days later, he visits Lucy’s farm for the first time since the incident with Pollux. David watches her proudly as she gardens, thinking about how she has become her own... (full context)