Cone Gatherers - Dark Side of Humanity

The Cone Gatherers Essay

"The Cone Gatherers" is a novel written by Robin Jenkins. The novel is set on a country estate in Scotland, during World War Two and features two brothers, Calum and Neil who are collecting cones for the war effort. The kind hearted Calum is disabled in mind and body and relies on his brother to care for him. Whilst on the estate they encounter the gamekeeper, Duror, a handsome, seemingly stoic character, who takes an instant hatred to Calum. Throughout the novel, it dawns on Duror that he and Calum are not as different as he first anticipated. He sees himself in Calum. Before even realising this, he tries to get rid of the brothers by persuading Lady Runcie-Campbell, who is head of the estate where the brothers work - that Calum is evil and dangerous. Eventually, Duror sees no other option other than to kill Calum. This novel deals with the dark side of humanity through the character of Duror, and develops the theme by dealing with appearances and the idea of the external and internal.

As the novel begins, we are introduced to the external of Duror: a handsome, respectable, composed man. However internally Duror had endured years of hardship which have turned him into a bitter, spiteful man, who's full of hatred. Duror takes a trip to the doctors where the doctor comments on Duror's "lean, smooth, handsome, tight-lipped face. For all its composure he suspected a sort of fanaticism lurking in it." Although Duror seems perfectly normal and as sane as everyone else, the doctor looks past his exterior and notices that not all as it seems. He notices Duror is hiding his emotions and believes it's not because of his obese wife Peggy but because of something much more sinister. The doctor however, does not realise it is because of his hatred boiling to the surface because of Calum. During the war the horrid actions of the Germans were coming to light, and the Doctor comments on this: "He had read that the Germans were putting idiots and cripples to death in gas chambers. Outwardly, as everybody expected, he condemned such barbarity; inwardly,...he had profoundly approved."This depicts how sinister Duror really is. He deceives people into seeing his true ugliness by disguising his true feelings and views that anyone who is mentally or physically deformed should be put to death. Throughout the novel he is seen as a supporter of Hitlers regime, which shocks us. Through the character of Duror and his twisted, evil mind we see the novel introduce the theme of the dark side of humanity.

As the novel progresses, Duror's intolerance towards the brothers turns into vengeful obsessive hatred, shown through the deterioration of both his actions and physical appearance. At the deer drive the turning point in the novel, this is when Duror runs from the forest towards Calum and the fatally injured deer, Duror is "laughing in some kind of bererked joy" The image created here is that of a stereotypical madman yet ironically the scene described is disturbing and macabre as Duror fantasises about killing his own disabled wife. After the horrendous attack on the deer, we read that "Duror had the appearance of a drunk man, unshaven, slack-mouthed, mumbling, rather glaikit." At this point people begin to see the complete deterioration in Durors looks and personality. He expresses more of his ludicrous views and people begin to believe he is a drunk whose manners and attitude are strange and bizarre. Indeed Lady Runcie-campbell "thought he looked at least twenty years older than he was." His decaying looks mirror how Duror's mental state is also declining. For him, his inner evil is becoming noticed by those around him. In this then, he represents all that is wicked, so furthering to continue develop the theme of the dark side of humanity.

Later on in the novel, Duror surrenders to his evil impulses. He dangles on the verge of complete insanity and so, although we see his attempts to present the front of a composed exterior, we see further deterioration in his physical appearance. Following Duror's trip to the doctor's, he begins to walk along the pier. He is homicidal and suicidal: "he felt in the mood for murder, rape, or suicide." The idea that Duror is capable of even considering such dreadful actions shows the deterioration in his own sanity. It becomes more evident even to himself, that he is not the same man. How sinister and disturbed he is, shocks the readers. Duror begins to imagine himself drowning, "Then taking himself my surprise, he began to laugh, louder and louder, more and more harshly." The idea that he has a violent personality and laughs at the idea of committing suicide is a disturbing thought in its self. He knows suicide would be the answer to his suffering but he cannot bring himself to do it as he "halted" this would suggest he is in fact unable to end his own suffering. The reader cannot help but sympathise with Duror and his misfortunes in life; the realisation that death would be preferable to living allows us to understand why he is so bitter. The evil that consumes Duror is evident as the novel continues and the writer explores the dark side of humanity through the eerie character of Duror.

By the end of the novel, Duror has surrendered to evil and has become completely insane. He commits murder which is followed by his own suicide. This complete destruction of his soul is mirrored by the complete destruction of his physical appearance. "Duror's face was so compulsively fascinating that pain, indignity, and even fear, were momentarily forgotten. He could not have described that expression; but when a minute later, Duror was stalking away towards the Point, it was, as if, the rotting tree itself had moved." Duror has been completely engrossed by this evil; he no longer shows or feels emotions other than his bitter hatred for the brothers. Like the tree which is rotting, Graham notices that Duror also has similar qualities. He no longer appears human. When he murders Calum, evil appears triumphant over good but Duror cannot live with the realisation that he now has to suffer alone and has no focus to take his hatred out on. Killing Calum does not solve anything; he is completely corrupted. Evil therefore destroys itself: Duror commits suicide: "Duor, with his face shattered and bloody, lay dead" His physical appearance is completely destroyed conveying the manifestation of Duror's evil as physical. Once only ugly inside, he has now destroyed the handsome mask that hid his inner ugliness. In the death of these characters, the author delivers a message that Duror is the representation of the dark side of humanity.

"The Cone Gatherers" by Robin Jenkins effectively explores the dark side of humanity in a way which is set to capture the readers attention. Introduced and developed by the characterisation of Duror, the finial chapters and events drive home the writers message that Duror represents all that is evil in the world and evil can live in all of us.