The Nice and the Good has elements of romantic comedy, ending as it does in general reconciliation, forgiveness, and a pairing off of the characters in a manner suggestive of Shakespeare's romances. The light-hearted romance is integrated with a thriller-like plot that begins with a revolver shot and ends with the protagonist uncovering a concealed murder. The action is divided accordingly between a "wicked court at Whitehall" and Trescombe, a "Dorset Arden", both of which are presided over by Octavian Gray.
The supernatural is an important theme in the novel. Radeechy, whose suicide is the object of Ducane's investigations, claimed to a magician. Supernatural elements include Fivey, Ducane's mysterious servant, whose mother "was a mermaid", and the flying saucers that the children at Trescombe House see. Water, here very present in the form of the sea, is a common theme in Murdoch's novels. Ducane's near escape from drowning in the underwater cave is a pivotal point in the plot, and is the second of two instances of katabasis in the book. The first is his descent with McGrath into the air raid shelter where Radeechy performed his magic rituals. During these descents to the underworld Ducane is moved to contemplate his own moral failings, and finally to renounce his power over others.
As the title suggests, the novel is concerned with morality, as expressed through the actions and thoughts of the characters. It was written during the period when Iris Murdoch, a professional philosopher, was working on the concept of Good, particularly the question of how morality is possible without a belief in God. This philosophical work resulted in her book The Sovereignty of Good , in which the essay "The idea of perfection" is most closely related to The Nice and the Good . In a 1968 interview, Murdoch remarked that The Nice and the Good contains "a certain amount of metaphysical conversation, of a non-technical but definitely philosophical kind" which "may be seen as a kind of interpretation of the activities of the other characters".
According to A. S. Byatt, the "aesthetic centre" of the book is Bronzino's painting Venus, Cupid, Folly and Time . This is Richard Biranne's favourite painting, depicting what he calls "the only real kiss ever represented in a picture". Paula goes to see it in the National Gallery during their estrangement, and they meet in front of it when they decide to reconcile. The cover of the first English edition of The Nice and the Good is based on a detail from the painting.
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