Love Story

Love Story

Erich Segal was born 1937 in New York as the son of a rabbi. He was a graduate of Harvard and wrote texts for musicals. Today he lives in New Haven and is a professor for literature in New York.

When the 'Love Story' was published it became a Number 1 bestseller. The film with Ali Mac Graw and Ryan O' Neil tempted more than three million people into the cinemas.

The main Characters z

Oliver Barett IV. û a student at Harvard University and one of the best players in the ice hockey team. His family is rich and noble, but Oliver doesn't like his family's richness and he hates his father, because he suppresses him.

Jenny Cavilleri û a student at Radcliff University and she is of Italian descent. Her family is very different from Oliver's, they are neither rich nor noble.

Jenny and Oliver first meet in the library at Radcliff University and it seems that they hate each other, but they arrange a meeting. While they drink coffee they get to know each other and Oliver invites her to his next ice hockey game. Jenny comes and Oliver doesn't even look in her direction, but he thinks that she believes he glances to her. While Oliver has to sit on the penalty bench, Jenny comes to him and speaks with him, but he ignores her and spurs on his friends, but still he talks with Jenny. Then she disappears and Oliver loses sight of her. After the game they go for a walk and Oliver brings her to her hall of residence. They talk on the phone for hours and they meet every day. One day Oliver confesses her that he loves her.

Some months later they visit Oliver's parents. Jenny is very nervous, because it all seems so luxurious and she is afraid of the first meeting with Oliver's parents but there are no problems. At dinner Oliver and his father start a discussion and as usual it ends up in a quarrel. At the next date with his father they talk about Jenny and their marriage plans. His father says Oliver should postpone the marriage, but Oliver replies that he will not wait and so Oliver walks out of his father's life and starts his own.

One Saturday they visit Jenny's father Phil and he receives Oliver friendly. At dinner they talk about the marriage, because he and Jenny are not religious but Jenny's father is. A chaplain from the university will marry them after both award their degrees.

A single word can describe Jenny and Oliver's daily life during the first years best, it is 'scrounge'. Every waking moment they concentrate on how they could get enough money to get by and there's nothing romantic about it.

After Oliver has finished the Harvard Law School they have to move to New York, because Oliver gets a new job in a prestigious office. Oliver earns a lot of money and so they have no financial problems. They also think about having a baby and they try hard to make one, but they are not successful. Therefore they consult an expert and they are examined quite often. Some days later the doctor calls Oliver and says that he wants to see him in his office. Oliver is sure that Jenny can't have a baby and that's right, but it isn't only that. Jenny has a form of leukemia and she will die. The doctor says that Jenny doesn't know it and tells him to act as normal as possible. Oliver starts to think about God and religion and he thanks God for every moment with Jenny. But one evening he comes home from work and Jenny is ineffably sad. Oliver knows that the doctor has told her the truth. They enjoy each day and try to live normal.

One month later, right after dinner, Oliver cleans up while Jenny plays on the piano. Suddenly she stops and Oliver looks in her direction. She is just sitting there and asks him if he is rich enough to pay her a taxi. Oliver knows that this is the end. Jenny will walk out of the apartment and will never come back. In the hospital Jenny's arrival is not unexpected. She is supervised by doctor Ackerman, a leukemia specialist. He explains Oliver the situation and Oliver tells him he should do what he can to make it not hurt.

Jenny dies in Oliver's arms some days later. Her father is very sad, but Oliver helps him to get through this hard time. Oliver's father comes on Jenny's day of death to console Oliver and he says he is sorry about what has happened. Oliver answers what he has learned from a beautiful girl which is dead now. ' Love means not ever to say you're sorry.' Then he does what he has never done in his father's presence, much less in his arms. Oliver cries.