Captain Mainwaring often a sympathetic subtext to his own personal neuroses; it is apparent several times that he devotes his energies to his Home Guard unit for a sense of comradeship and purpose lacking in other parts of his life, such as his career and marriage. On one occasion when his men spurned a parade to play darts against the ARP he expressed bewilderment, saying coming to the platoon is "the highlight of my day". It is frequently implied that he is trapped in a loveless and unhappy marriage to Elizabeth, his unseen wife, who is domineering, neurotic and withholding of affection.
Marion Mainwaring Marion Mainwaring Marion Jessie Mainwaring (April 21, 1922 – December 12, 2015) was an American writer, translator, and critic. Mainwaring is best known as the author who completed Edith Wharton's novel "The Buccaneers", published in 1993. She earlier assisted R. W. B. Lewis in researching his Pulitzer- and Bancroft-prize-winning 1976 biography of Wharton. A novelist in her own right, she wrote the novels "Murder in Pastiche: or Nine Detectives All at Sea" (1954), parodying nine famous fictional detectives, and "Murder at Midyears" (1953), based on her experiences in teaching at Mount Holyoke College. She translated "Youth and Age: Three Novellas"