The Passion of the Man of Feeling

After watching The Passion of the Christ for Thanksgiving holiday, one cannot help but be observant of the potential for Christian allegory. With this in mind, looking back unto The Man Of Feeling becomes quite interesting.

One thing noted in the portrayal of Judas in the movie is the concept of the wicked seeing evil and the good seeing purity. Similarly, in The Man of Feeling, we have this sort of humanity portrayed as potentially problematic. Harley is abused for his inability to blame anyone, though he is also potentially saved (especially when a prostitutes father bursts down the door). Though Harley is not crucified explicitly for his vulnerabilities, he is "too good for this world" (class notes). He cannot survive in this world, for his soul is too sensitive and is like an open wound.

It is also hinted throughout the novel that Harley is highly impractical. He plays cards as a social gathering and loses his money; he is led quite easily by the hand into situations that could potentially end in disaster (and sometimes do). When the prostitute asks for his help, he is eager to give it, and for this he is reprimanded by his friends.

However, if the tale is a Christian allegory, than there are potential problems. For instance, there is the potential for sin inherent in the following quotation:
He took her arm, and they walked on to one of those obsequious
taverns in the neighbourhood, where the dearness of the wine is a
discharge in full for the character of the house. From what
impulse he did this we do not mean to enquire; as it has ever
been against our nature to search for motives where bad ones are
to be found.
(33)

Here, his sexuality is questioned. The writer/editor presents the reader with not the possibility that improper motives lead Harley to the prostitute, but that it is the case that bad motives 'are to be found.'

Although Harley is here portrayed as potentially sexually-corrupt, whatever his intentions, his wish to help the prostitute when she proves faint overcomes his potentially animalistic impulses. He is forgiving of her obvious sins, and only wishes to offer her aid.

Similarly, his attitudes toward the misanthrope prove passive. Although Harley is seen as a lighthearted fellow, he does not chastise the misanthrope for the brutalities of character. Quite the contrary, he sees the brutalities as necessary for the world to operate, for
it is curious to observe how the nature of truth may be changed
by the garb it wears; softened to the admonition of friendship,
or soured into the severity of reproof: yet this severity may be
useful to some tempers; it somewhat resembles a file:
disagreeable in its operation, but hard metals may be the
brighter for it.
(29)
Throughout the tale, Harley becomes a potential for Christian allegory (forgiveness of sins, passivity, 'loving thy neighbour'), but he also can be related to Albert Camus' L'etranger. In Albert Camus' The Outsider, the hero of the novel becomes deeper and deeper in trouble because of one sad fact: he cannot tell a lie. It is unclear whether Harley can or cannot tell a lie, but he is most sincerely saved by his honesty and is both saved and destroyed by his faith in people. He cannot contemplate the possibility of wicked being inacted unto the good: it is unheard of for him. Thus as the novel reaches its pragmatic conclusion, it is inevitable that this naivité will be his doom.