Commentary on The Shout Essay

Essay

Robert Graves The Shout

The Shout by R.Graves is a rather strange short story it tells a story from the point of view of a visitor in a small town. He meets a peculiar man, who is a patient in the local asylum, and during a cricket game the strange, intelligent man tells the Ill call him the Visitor for the sake of saving time Visitor a story. Crossley it is the name of the asylum patient claims he is responsible for the deaths of three people; he also has a story which is completely true according to Crossley. The story is about a man named Richard, his wife Rachel and a menacing yet at the same time assuringly civil stranger Charles. Charles claims he has mastered a strange shout on that drives a man mad in the least, and kills everything around if performed in full power. The story intrigues Richard and he wishes to hear it, which leads to several surreal events, ending with Charles being arrested and put in asylum. And this is where the reader along with the Visitor finds out that Charles last name is Crossley. The story ends with Crossley and a doctor dying during a sudden thunder and lightning storm.

For me, it is difficult to see if there is a subtext or maybe this is all a metaphor for something else. The story itself is puzzling it leaves the reader wondering about the truth and who the mad man is. The story balances on a line, on one side there is the thriller, the terror of mind and the uneasy feeling the reader gets when reading; on the other side there is the occasional reminder that this is just a story, a dream and nobody really believes it, the reader is reminded that the story is told by a mad man, and it is not real (with strange insertions that assure about the falseness of the story, like You would like Rachel, she visits me here sometimes in the middle of the story). Even if the whole tale is a metaphor for something else, I failed to see it I was puzzled enough by trying to grasp what was told to me.

The main mystery is the question: is Crossley a mad man or is he what he claims to be? He tells a captivating story which is contrary to the reality most of us live in, it entangles dreams with reality, adding a twist of mystique (Crossley claims to have acquired the shouting skill from a shaman in Australia) and even touching Christianity (the conversation between Richard and Crossley starts after a sermon in the local church, and they discuss the matter of soul). In the very beginning the reader is assured about the insanity of Crossley after all, it is an asylum, no matter how intelligent this man seems. But as the story goes on, there is the moment of doubt, because Crossley doesnt show any conventional signs of madness, on the contrary he seems logical, intelligent and fully aware that he is placed in an asylum, not caring much about the latter and seeming slightly entertained by the doctors attempts to cure him ([..]I have a good deal of fun with him [..]I invent significant dreams for him to interpret; I find he likes me to put in snakes and apple pies, so I usually do.). Yet he has a sort of a presence that the Visitor seems to feel an alarming aura, which may or may not be caused by the doctor telling about his recent conjuring performance and the Visitors mind creating a profile of a potentially magical man. Also, Richard seems to have a similar reaction to Crossley(Richard knows him as Charles in the beginning) as they meet he seems to be put on guard by some alarming signs(little things that seem taken from his dream the night before, and also Crossleys strange reaction to childrens playful screaming).

Even though the reader is occasionally brought back to reality, one cannot help but believe Crossley (Charles) when Richard believes. Frankly, I was convinced of Crossleys evil before Richard believed; but then it might be that Richard believed too, but was in denial. The story in all its surrealism and strangeness is also frightening; it is very powerful and leaves one thinking about it for the rest of the day. It is in that way similar to some stories by Julio Cortzar, they are very powerful with their surrealism and the terrifying events described. Similar to Cortzars stories, The Shout starts with scenes from real world, then something fantastic and surreal is introduced and that changes the rules of reality. As the reality changes to something unacceptable, the protagonist is forced to accept these changes to survive and so Richard is forced to accept what is happening with his life, he is forced to accept that this strange man is telling the truth and so he simply follows the events and only at one point decides to intervene.

Whether the souls sealed in stones by the sand hills really are or arent peoples souls, the smashing of one of them acts as a turning point in the story. Richard seemed sure hed crushed his own soul, we dont know if it is true, but the fact is it changed Crossleys story. Suddenly Crossley (Charles) lost his power, got arrested and was put in asylum. From all the confusing and strange parts of the story, this bit about the souls is the most bizarre. The author doesnt dwell much on the matter, but mentions it occasionally, mostly in the first conversation between Crossley (Charles) and Richard. The subject continues through the whole story, and in the end it leaves one wondering about the consequences of shattering someones soul. For some reason, it seemed to me that maybe Richard made a mistake, maybe it wasnt his soul he shattered maybe it was Crossleys. Or maybe in the end it was Richards soul that got crushed, and it wasnt really Crossley in the asylum, but more likely it was Richard. Or maybe it was the other way around all the time because in the end I wasnt so sure which one was which. Maybe they exchanged souls, maybe the soul was the thing that gave Crossley his power in the story there is a moment when Rachel, Richards wife, seems completely overtaken by their guest and not only seems to be falling in love with him, but is also absolutely obedient to him. Graves uses the shoe buckle as a symbol or Charles uses it as a symbol of power over Rachel, it is a sort of an enchanted item that holds a person mentally enslaved. In the story it is the only explanation given to the reader on how could the relationship between he couple change so cardinally over a few days. And then, with no explanation it is all back the way it was before in a few hours Rachel seems impervious to the hypnotizing presence of Charles and is back being in love with her husband, denying all the previous events (her slapping Richard, Charles ordering her to sleep with him etc.). Perhaps I see too much importance in the subject, yet I cant help but notice the occasional mention of it, using objects to enforce the symbolism of the soul a shoe buckle (an unimportant mundane item) or stones (eternal objects, not affected by the surroundings). If it was Richards soul that was smashed in the sand hills, then why does Crossley say its his?

Another unconventional aspect is the depiction of Richard and Rachels marriage it is very unusual in the lack of rules, regulations and the usual bounds. The two seem to be living together on an agreement, that as long as both love each other they are staying together and each does everything not to limit the other. They have agreed to stay together only if the wish is mutual (She had often fallen in love with men before and since her marriage, but it was her habit to tell Richard when this happened, as he agreed to tell her when it happened to him: so that the suffocation of passion was given a vent and there was no jealousy[..]), and it works for them. They both seem content and show no usual signs of tiredness which have been a source for many literary works and films. It does however seem, that it must have been initially Rachels idea, because Richard doesnt strike me as the type of a person who would come up with such proposals, besides, he seems eager to please Rachel (their breakfast routine, for example).

There isnt one opinion on the story, except, I suppose everyone can agree that it is very powerful and captivating and has a very strong mood, that can take over the reader. For all the questions that this story raises, there is more than one answer for each. It is up to the reader himself to determine whether the Crossleys story is true or not, whether there is ir isnt a magical shout, whether it was all real or was it a fantasy. Author has left options to everyone to decide for themselves, not giving any clear answers and always keeping one wondering.

It is not a story for everyones taste, it might be to heavy or too confusing for many people; nevertheless I do think its worth reading. In the end I have come to conclusion that I didnt like it, but I suppose all the confusion is to blame, maybe it is the overall negative mood this story has (theres nothing particular to note it, but I felt uneasy after reading it). Regardless, I dont consider my time wasted on it, and reading it was useful one way or another. And so works on many readers, I think.