The Fifth Child

by

Doris Lessing

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Luke Lovatt Character Analysis

Harriet and David’s first child. Though he tries to teach Ben certain skills and mentor him, eventually Luke asks to be sent to boarding school to remove himself from the threatening atmosphere that Ben creates at home. Luke grows up to be a natural observer like David: quiet, reliable and steady. He wants to take after his Grandfather, James, and build boats.

Luke Lovatt Quotes in The Fifth Child

The The Fifth Child quotes below are all either spoken by Luke Lovatt or refer to Luke Lovatt. 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:
Nature vs. Nurture Theme Icon
).
Pages 3 – 33 Quotes

Happiness. A happy family. The Lovatts were a happy family. It was what they had chosen and what they deserved.

Related Characters: Harriet Lovatt, David Lovatt, Luke Lovatt, Helen Lovatt, Jane Lovatt
Page Number: 21
Explanation and Analysis:
Pages 33 – 74 Quotes

“Suddenly the little girl found she was alone. She and her brother had lost each other. She wanted to go home. She did not know which way to walk […] She wandered about for a long time, and then she was thirsty again. She bent over a pool wondering if it would be orange juice, but it was water, clear pure forest water […] She bent over the pool […] but she saw something she didn’t expect. It was a girl’s face, and she was looking straight up at her. It was a face she had never seen in her whole life. This strange girl was smiling, but it was a nasty smile, not friendly, and the little girl thought this other girl was going to reach up out of the water and pull her down into it.”

Related Characters: David Lovatt (speaker), Harriet Lovatt, Paul Lovatt, Luke Lovatt, Helen Lovatt, Jane Lovatt
Page Number: 44-45
Explanation and Analysis:

He watched the children, particularly Luke and Helen, all the time. He studied how they moved, sat down, stood up; copied how they ate. He had understood that these two, the older ones, were more socially accomplished than Jane; and he ignored Paul altogether. When the children watched television, he squatted near them and looked from the screen to their faces, for he needed to know what reactions were appropriate. If they laughed, then, a moment later, he contributed a loud, hard, unnatural-sounding laugh.

Related Characters: Harriet Lovatt, Ben Lovatt, Luke Lovatt, Helen Lovatt
Page Number: 68-69
Explanation and Analysis:
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Luke Lovatt Quotes in The Fifth Child

The The Fifth Child quotes below are all either spoken by Luke Lovatt or refer to Luke Lovatt. 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:
Nature vs. Nurture Theme Icon
).
Pages 3 – 33 Quotes

Happiness. A happy family. The Lovatts were a happy family. It was what they had chosen and what they deserved.

Related Characters: Harriet Lovatt, David Lovatt, Luke Lovatt, Helen Lovatt, Jane Lovatt
Page Number: 21
Explanation and Analysis:
Pages 33 – 74 Quotes

“Suddenly the little girl found she was alone. She and her brother had lost each other. She wanted to go home. She did not know which way to walk […] She wandered about for a long time, and then she was thirsty again. She bent over a pool wondering if it would be orange juice, but it was water, clear pure forest water […] She bent over the pool […] but she saw something she didn’t expect. It was a girl’s face, and she was looking straight up at her. It was a face she had never seen in her whole life. This strange girl was smiling, but it was a nasty smile, not friendly, and the little girl thought this other girl was going to reach up out of the water and pull her down into it.”

Related Characters: David Lovatt (speaker), Harriet Lovatt, Paul Lovatt, Luke Lovatt, Helen Lovatt, Jane Lovatt
Page Number: 44-45
Explanation and Analysis:

He watched the children, particularly Luke and Helen, all the time. He studied how they moved, sat down, stood up; copied how they ate. He had understood that these two, the older ones, were more socially accomplished than Jane; and he ignored Paul altogether. When the children watched television, he squatted near them and looked from the screen to their faces, for he needed to know what reactions were appropriate. If they laughed, then, a moment later, he contributed a loud, hard, unnatural-sounding laugh.

Related Characters: Harriet Lovatt, Ben Lovatt, Luke Lovatt, Helen Lovatt
Page Number: 68-69
Explanation and Analysis: