Throughout Andrew Sean Greer’s Less, Arthur Less encounters many unique individuals which all have a lasting impact on Arthur’s story. Although Arthur seems lost in his own mental journey, battling anxiety, self-hate, and doubt, the people he meets while traveling around the world shape his thoughts and feelings about himself. Two of the most interesting people Arthur interacts with, in my opinion, are Zohra and Lewis, who he meets when he travels to Morocco. Both Zohra and Lewis have very different perspectives on life than Arthur does, and they provide contrast to Arthur’s feelings.
The reason Arthur stopped in Morocco in the first place was to meet with his old friend, Lewis. Lewis is a 60 year old man that Arthur has known for years, and going to Morocco to meet with him again was a great excuse so that Arthur could stay away from Freddy’s wedding. Throughout his time in Morocco, Arthur is continually struggling with memories of Freddy and longing for their relationship. Lewis, however, has a very different experience of love that contrasts Arthur’s. Lewis, after telling Arthur that he is divorcing his husband of twenty years, says, “No, Arthur, no, it’s the opposite! I’m saying it’s a success. Twenty years of joy and support and friendship, that’s a success” (Greer 181). Instead of being sad that the relationship is over like Arthur does, Lewis looks at the positives of the time they had. Lewis thinks that love cannot last forever, and that he can still move on from a relationship and be happy, as well as still be friends with his former husband. Instead of trying to forget his past, he embraces it and does not run away from it. Lewis even goes on to say that he is going to Clark’s (his ex husband) next wedding, which obviously parallels Arthur’s situation. This leaves Arthur in shock, and he believes that Lewis made a mistake. Lewis provides a different perspective to relationships in life than what is typically seen in this book. His choice to not take break-ups so seriously, and to move on and be happy, provides Arthur with a different way of thinking. Perhaps if Arthur thought like this, he would avoid a lot of the self hatred that he feels within himself.
Zohra, however, provides a very different perspective to love and life. Zohra, like Arthur, is turning 50 years old, and she is fresh off of a relationship. Unlike Lewis, Zohra finds herself dwelling on the break-up, and she lets destroy her. When she is talking to Arthur, Zohra says, “Arthur, happiness is bullshit. That is the wisdom I give you from my twenty-two hours of being fifty. That is the wisdom from my love life” (189-190). Zohra seems to be even more upset and longing for the past than Arthur is throughout the book. She and Lewis have almost opposite feelings about love. Lewis likes to think of the good times in the relationship, while Zohra just wants the relationship to come back. Zohra’s situation shows Arthur where he could be if he keeps dwelling on his former relationship with Freddy, and perhaps shows him that it is okay to move on. I think these two characters do a lot to help alter Arthur’s feelings about love, and they might be two of the most important characters in the book.
I like the analysis you bring comparing Arthur Zohra’s and attitudes towards their past relationships and Lewis’ attitude. Arthur’s attitude is definitely less optimistic in that he is constantly dwelling on the past. Instead of looking at the relationship between Freddy and him as a success because there were years of love in it, he continuously thinks about the times shared and refuses to move forward. I think Arthur’s attitude is very relatable in some ways as it can be hard to let good relationships go, but I do think Lewis has a good perspective as well. Arthur’s dwelling on the past could be because of his lack of knowledge about his identity in the present. The book states, “Without the suit, there is no Arthur Less” (23). The only identity Arthur finds is in a suit, and when one does not know their identity, they tend to dwell on the good times of the past. It seems as though in every place Arthur travels, he thinks of a memory with Freddy. Although this drives the love story forward, it does show how Arthur’s attitude differs greatly from Lewis’ attitude. Lewis says, “‘Is the sun a failure because it’s going to end in a billion years?’” (181). Lewis acknowledges that many things come to an end, and that does not necessarily mean they are a failure.
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