Volltext - ub-dok: der Dokumentenserver der UB Trier - Universität ...

journey of Alexandra Wheatfield. One is the subplot of Sutrisno and Maruli, both Indonesian
versions of the Australian ‘Coming Man’—hard-working, strong individualists who come to
quick prominence followed by their growing desire, fall, and dehumanisation. In the second
instance, that dealt with here, d’Alpuget draws on Indian sacred biographical literature where a
‘dark’ character pulls himself and the ‘saint’ he accompanies into greater risk of self-delusion
and regressive reincarnation.
11.2.1. The Spiritual Journey of Alex Wheatfield and Her Dark Brother
Anthony Sinclaire has little of the experience or canniness seen in Sutrisno and Maruli,
but shares the preponderance of ‘hindrances’ in their personalities, which motivate him ever to
upset the order of things as he works to establish himself morally and socially above all others.
Alexandra Wheatfield is young, innocent, and rather too inspired by her goodness, a fault
caused by a lack of solidifying tamas in her character. In a case of attracting opposites,
Sinclaire is as driven to darkness as Alex is to light, and the question is only which one will
ultimately prove strong enough to impart direction to both. In this sense, Monkeys in the Dark
is just one episode in the story of the spiritual journey of Alexandra Wheatfield and Anthony
Sinclaire. Part one includes all background material which is recounted after the fact and
which serves to associate metaphorically Alex Wheatfield with Sutrisno, Maruli and Sinclaire,
and to establish her role as a spiritual heroine satisfying both Australian and Asian paradigms:
Born into a wealthy, aristocratic family, she and her sisters exhibit exceptional qualities of
independence and fortitude to go along with their beauty. Young Alex is, however, seduced by
her cousin Sinclaire. After a years-long secret affair, Alex is forced to have an abortion. She
takes all of the blame and disappointment of her family on herself, never divulging the name of
her lover. The result is that her share of the inheritance is reduced, and this to the advantage of
Sinclaire’s. Part two includes the events represented as current: Alex and Sinclaire are
reunited in Djakarta when Sinclaire helps her get a job as the assistant press officer in the
Australian Embassy where Sinclaire is working as a recruiter of Indonesian informants. The
strong attraction between the cousins remains, and Sinclaire’s activities throughout the novel
- 259 -