Readings in the Genre - Week 4 - Rawhead Rex

Barbarism and Civilization

Sometimes I wonder if we writers don’t just try too hard at times to make our ‘point’ come across at times.  Like the ridiculous chapter in Grapes of Wrath involving a tortoise crossing the road, the very first chapter with its description of the invading horde of tourists in the small town seems to me to be a classic example of this.  It is a blatant obvious and rather distracting metaphor.  I have to wonder if it wasn’t written after the story was first drafted and simply tacked on as if to say ‘This is what the story means’.

It seems excessive, heavy handed, and not really fitting with the rest of the story, but then trying to pull a literary stunt like that often feels false to readers.  Anything that is so obvious a metaphor like that smacks of an elitism that infuriates me.  Of course it could also be completely intentional and designed as a sort of ‘Take that!’ moment for the author. Never underestimate the deviousness of a writer of public fiction.

If it is actually symbolic though, many of the more fantastical elements of the story of Rawhead Rex revolve around a struggle between a pair of dualities.  The barbaric baby-eater of Rawhead Rex stands opposed to a god of fertility, destruction and creation paired together. If one were to seriously put a lot of weight in intentional symbolism for this story, one could see a classic theme of civilization verses barbarism.  Civilization usually does seem to be symbolized by fertility (fertile crescent and so forth) while barbarism seems to be often symbolized by violence and death, let alone something as horrific as Rawhead Rex.

Despite this a lot of the story felt rather routine, with a sort of ‘awakening buried evil’ plotline.  The characterization and development seemed rather flat and there’s extensive use of omniscient point of view and ‘head hopping’ that seems rather distracting considering how much we’re encouraged to avoid it.  I have used the technique of the POV switch in the midst of a lethal encounter myself and have to say it’s tough to use, so kudos for actually using the technique go to the author there.