2022 IB Diploma Extended Essays

Similarly, in Knockemstiff , the initial short story Real Life recounts the story about the first time the main character Bobby witnesses violence by his alcoholic, wife-beating, father. “[His] father showed [him] how to hurt a man one August, … when [he] was seven years old. It was the only thing [his father] was good at.” 3 Violence is introduced as something Bobby had only ever known since he was a kid, which positions the readers into a sympathizing point of view – allowing insight toward why Bobby should turn out the way he has. Furthermore, in Holler , a short story where the main character Tom lives with the family of his casual girlfriend whom he “shags” every day after being kicked out by his wife, exclaimed that “it’s the same for most of [them], forgetting [their] lives might be the best [they’ll] ever do.” 4 Again, empathy for the characters is created while readers are left to reflect upon the statement that is made. This eliminates distance and establishes a connection between readers and the character, granting a deeper understanding of the reasons for corruption. Both writers make a significant point that although the stories are shockingly amoral, they unflinchingly depict reality. Throughout both novels, one of the often explored topics is moral depravity. The small-town depression and brooding glumness amongst its residents in Knockemstiff are captured by an assimilation of wit humor and allegory. In Bactine, when the narrator describes the women in town as “women who, out of sheer loneliness, end up doing kinky stuff with candy bars, wake up with apple fritters in their hair,” 5 or in Holler, when Tom’s dad claims that if his mum “had all of ‘em stickin’ out of her that’s been stuck in her, she’d look like a fuckin’ porcupine,” 6 the

3 (Bullock, 2008) Knockemstiff pg. 18 4 (Bullock, 2008) Knockemstiff pg. 155 5 (Bullock, 2008) Knockemstiff pg. 113 6 (Bullock, 2008) Knockemstiff pg. 149

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