The Ballad of the Sad Cafe

In the aftermath of his father’s death, John Ferris’s brief reunion with his ex-wife Elizabeth amplifies his insecurities and fears about his present loneliness and fear of aging. As Ferris considers their marriage, the story explores the way time affects The Mysteries of Love and Affection: “at one time he had called this stranger, Elizabeth, Little Butterduck during nights of love, […] they had lived together, shared perhaps a thousand days and nights and—finally—endured in the misery of a sudden solitude” (121). Ferris is amazed that he and Elizabeth, who are now so independent from each other that they haven’t spoken for eight years, were once so close and connected. His love for her was real, but now, Elizabeth is basically a “stranger” he barely knows. As he reflects on the jarring difference between a life with a partner and one without—“nights of love” turned into “the misery of a sudden solitude”—it is telling that he does not compare his former marriage to his relationship with Jeannine, which is clearly less committed than he let on. The realization has a transformative effect on Ferris going forward.

McCullers uses nature imagery—particularly the moon—to symbolize Ferris’s worry that he is wasting his life. After Ferris leaves Elizabeth’s home, the description of the night sky echoes his emotional turmoil: “A high, thin moon shone above the jagged, dark skyscrapers. The streets were windy, cold. […] He gazed at the nocturnal city with the deliberate attentiveness of departure and perhaps farewell. He was alone” (124). The moon is “high” in the sky, seemingly under assault by the “jagged” buildings. It casts only a “thin” light—a sliver that is mostly hidden in the “nocturnal city” full of “dark” buildings. The “windy, cold” inhospitable night reflects Ferris’s sensation of being completely “alone” and devoid of warmth—not just on the street, but also in a life devoid of love or attachment. 

When Ferris returns home to Europe, he hopes to start over. Embracing Valentin both physically and emotionally, he wants to stop wasting time and build a family with Jeannine. As they sit, the boy reminds Ferris of the music Elizabeth played for him in New York—a symbol of the love he and Elizabeth once shared that Ferris now has a chance to recapitulate with his current partner: “The child looked up and Ferris drew him closer to his knees. The melody, the unfinished music that Elizabeth had played, came to him suddenly. Unsought, the load of memory jettisoned—this time bringing only recognition and sudden joy” (125). In New York, the music only highlighted his feelings of isolation and lack of purpose. Now, however, Ferris seeks to combat The Detrimental Power of Loneliness by establishing a deeper connection to Valentin. Doing so transforms the music into a source of “joy” once more as feelings of love rise within him.