Combination of Characters and the Problem of Doubles in John Barth's The Last Voyage of Somebody the Sailor

The article focuses on the combination of characters in John Barth’s The Last Voyage of Somebody the Sailor (1991). The problem of duplicity, important for Barth’s literary heritage in general, has attracted many scholars’ attention but has not yet been explored in relation to this particular novel. This article aims to analyse the system of mutual reflections in the novel and reveal its function. The Last Voyage of Somebody the Sailor is inhabited by a large variety of doubles, represented by twins, namesakes and characters connected by the similarities of the plot. The combination of characters is further complicated by the fact that the plot unfolds simultaneously in two realms: the “real” USA of the 1930s–1980s and the fabulous East from the tales of A Thousand and One Nights. The article closely examines the mutual reflections of all the female characters of the book, as well as the bond between Sindbad the Sailor and his next-to-namesake, Somebody the Sailor, and interrelations among a number of secondary characters. The research hereby shows that the main function of the combination of characters in the novel is to help reveal the hidden meaning of the plot on every narrative level. This is by means of decrypting the fabulous plot by the “real” and vice-versa. The other important function of the doubles in the novel is to connect motives and themes (such as birth, death and love), as these are also closely related to the combination of characters.