The Collector, John Fowles

“We all want things we can't have. Being a decent human being is accepting that.” 

So, The Collector; the first book of 2014, and more importantly, the first book of this blog. While it is not a hugely popular book, nor was it written recently (was written in 1963, if anyone was wondering), this is definitely one of the best books I have read in a long time. I came across this book when wandering around Waterstone's, waiting for my train to arrive. As I was paying for it, the girl serving me gave me a huge smile, saying how much she loved this book. Normally, I'm curious as to whether they say this about most of the books people buy (after all, who wants to buy a book that people don't like?). That said, she wasn't wrong.

In a short summary, The Collector is the story of a lonely young man, whose obsession for a girl from his town leads to him kidnapping her and keeping her captive in the cellar of his house. Throughout the novel, Fowles explores the complex relationship between Frederick and Miranda, in a way that is both disturbing yet intriguing at the same time. Parallels can be made between Fowles' novel and Lucy Christopher's teen-novel Stolen; however, it is in Fowles' novel that the idea of love between a victim and her captor is explored in a much more sophisticated and darker manner. It is also difference in conclusions of each novel that presents an even grosser element of Fowles' work (however, on to that later).

There is no denying that this book is a difficult one to get into. The Collector begins with Frederick as the narrator, documenting his passion for collecting butterflies, as well as his growing obsession for Miranda, a girl from his home town. Frederick's narrative is often hard to understand, due to Fowles' choice of sentence structures and cold, detached language. While at first I was skeptical of Fowles' choice to write this way, the more I read, the more I realised how the text mirrored Frederick's personality. Incapable of understanding intimacy, and almost certainly mentally unstable, Frederick's character is one that initially repulses the reader, yet at the same time manages to fascinate the reader also. His inability to put across his thoughts on the page also reflected his failure at expressing his love for Miranda.

Of course, there is no ambiguity when it comes to the morality of Frederick's actions; kidnapping Miranda and refusing to let her out can not be justified, even though he is lonely and unable to communicate properly with other people. That said, I couldn't help but sympathise with Frederick at some points. An outcast in his home town, Frederick struggles to socialise in the real world, and as a result has very little human interaction. It is perhaps this that leads him to take such an interest in his butterflies, attempting to preserve their beauty and perfection. His ability to see beauty is something that, while still odd, can also be admired. Another reason I found myself sometimes siding with Frederick was mainly because of Miranda's personality. Miranda is not an easy character to like; her cruelness towards Frederick, including her attempt to seduce him as a way of escaping, portrays an manipulative nature, which is unattractive to say the least. Miranda too struggles to deal with her own emotions, not just about Frederick but life itself. While she frequently tries to come off as not caring about what happens to her, in her own POV, we see her deal with her own heartbreak over another man who didn't accept her, in almost the same way as she rejects Frederick. It is only in the second half of the book, therefore, which is in her own perspective, that we are given a better insight into the young art student, along with her struggle to accept the circumstances she is in.

However, despite her imperfections, it cannot be forgotten that she is the victim in the situation. Her own 'despair' is highlighted in this poignant speech within the novel:

“It's despair at the lack of feeling, of love, of reason in the world. It's despair that anyone can even contemplate the idea of dropping a bomb or ordering that it should be dropped. It's despair that so few of us care. It's despair that there's so much brutality and callousness in the world. It's despair that perfectly normal young men can be made vicious and evil because they've won a lot of money. And then do what you've done to me.” 

At the end of the day, what Frederick has done is something that cannot be ignored, even though he wishes that it could be. There are many sexual connotations throughout the novel, even though it is made clear that sex is not something that Frederick appears to be interested in. His buying of books, paint, and nice clothes for Miranda all show his desire to look after her and cherish her. This is something that Miranda herself struggles to accept, as there are some moments when she appears to question her own feelings towards her character. However, while there are some suggestions that Miranda's feelings for Frederick are gradually changing, as the novel continues, Frederick begins to realise that anything that Miranda does is not out of affection for him, but a desire to be free. Miranda also cannot deny that she will never be able to hold a man that holds her captive, even if she wanted to. The reality of the situation is brutal for both characters; for Miranda it is the possibility that she will be trapped forever, whereas for Frederick it is this unrequited love that once again causes him to feel alienated within the world. It is perhaps this that causes Frederick to make such reckless decisions later on in the text.

The structure of the novel is another intriguing aspect of the text. While the novel begins with Frederick as the narrator, midway through the novel the story stops at what appears to be a climactic moment in the text, before reverting back to the beginning again. This time, the story is retold from Miranda's point of view in the form of a diary, as she documents her thoughts and emotions as she comes to terms with what has happened to her. The use of parallels here, documenting the two protagonists' views of different situations throughout the novel is interesting, particularly as Fowles explores the darker side to the complex relationship between the two. Once Miranda's narrative also reaches the same climax as Frederick's, the narrative returns back to Frederick. It is at this point that we bear witness to a series of events that I, for one, was not expecting. AT ALL.

As I said earlier, when reading The Collector I found that this novel could be seen as having some similarities to Lucy Christopher's novel Stolen. In both texts, both victims become sick as a result of their captivity. However, the way in which the captors deal with this issue is completely different in each text...

*Now, it is here that a major spoiler is about to appear, so if you haven't read it, I would avert your eyes until you have scrolled down until the final paragraph. You have been warned*

In Stolen, Gemma (the narrator, and victim of the novel) is bitten by a snake in the outback, and becomes sick as a result. Despite his heartache, in the end Ty (the kidnapper) decides to take Gemma to the hospital, even though he knows he will be caught. In The Collector, Frederick is faced with a similar conundrum, as Miranda appears to begin to suffer from pneumonia. In both narratives, it is clear that Miranda is becoming sicker; Frederick knows it, and Miranda knows it. Miranda's desperation is evoked in the final lines of her diary, in which she begs 'do not let me die'.

And you know what? That is exactly what happens. Yes, HE LETS HER DIE. When I read this, I seriously put the book down and sat in shock for about ten minutes. There was no way that he was going to let her die, I thought to myself, he loves her. However, it is as I thought this that I realised that perhaps he didn't love her at all. Like with his butterflies, he was fascinated at the idea of preserving something that was perfect; when he realised that Miranda was not that, that she was never going to love him the way he loved her, he decided to let her ago. In some ways, it can almost be seen as more realistic, as his obsession overtakes any rationality that he has left. This, however, is not the most shocking part of the novel's dramatic plot twist. After burying her in the back garden (finally letting out into the open air like she always wanted), almost in passing he mentions another girl he has seen in the nearby town. It is in the final few paragraphs of the novel that the chilling reality becomes clear; he is going to do it all again, with 'another M'. It is also here that we begin to have, perhaps, a clearer understanding of Fowles' choice of title, with The Collector reflecting Frederick's desire to both possess and preserve what he desires. It is this desire that makes everything in his life, as Miranda puts it, 'beautiful, but sad'.

Overall, The Collector is a stunning book by Fowles, whose dark and complex explorations of love and obsession are both evocative and disturbing to the reader. The shocking ending also adds to the success of this novel, as we realise that sometimes love is not enough. I am very happy to have found this book, and I hope that it is one that gets more attention, as it is a novel that should not be forgotten.