I just finished The Collector by John Fowles. Published back in the 60's, it's a psychological horror about a man, Fred Clegg, who kidnaps and imprisons a young woman, Miranda, in his cellar. The story is told in four parts. Part One- Fred's POV and Part Two- Miranda's POV (told in an epistolary style via journal entries) is most of the book, with Part Three being the conclusion and Part Four being kind of an epilogue.
Part One is my favorite. I love reading books from the villain's POV and Fowles does a great job of writing a truly chilling character. Clegg knows there will be negative consequences for his actions but does not feel that he's morally wrong in taking Miranda. He loves her, respects her, and is kind to her, so where is the harm? I really admire how Fowles was able to write Clegg to be morally unconflicted within himself without making him out to be some cartoonish evil sociopath. While he feels a deep sense of loneliness, he's not written to be some angry incel. Clegg feels about taking Miranda the same way people feel about rescuing a feral cat from the street and taking them in (she's just scared and angry right now but she'll come around with some love and patience).
(There will be no plot spoilers for Part Two but I did put most of it spoiler tags because it does explore the character's history and mindset.)
The second part is… different. Whereas Part One is a true psychological horror, a very uncomfortable and claustrophobic read, Part Two becomes a bit of an exploration on several topics.
At first I wasn't a fan. As a woman, my first reaction was that if I were Miranda, this isn't what I would be focusing on during my capture. But, there was a lot of recognition in what she was writing because, I can admit that when I was her age, I shared a lot of her ideals. I too thought I was so smart, smarter than most people my age, and I so understood the world, even though I grew up very sheltered. It was cringe to read but it really highlighted her naivety, which I think was the point. The more she goes on about GP the more riveted I became, and that dread I felt for her in Part One came back because it was obvious that GP was a collector himself (as in a notch on the bed, not a girl in the cellar) and he too just wanted her for his collection. Everything she said about him was such a huge red flag I just wanted her to run far away from him.
Part Two questions freedom and it's interesting to read that, despite her situation, Miranda thinks she has more freedom than Clegg. She sees her imprisonment as temporary and pities Clegg for being one of the "New People", trapped in his banality and too stupid to enjoy true intellectual, artistic freedom- like he's a prisoner of his own artistic and intellectual inferiority and will never be free to enjoy life the way she does.
There are several other themes discussed in Part Two. At first I wanted Fowles to stick to a psychological horror format but I appreciate him opening it up. While I enjoyed Part One and Three the most (I like unreliable narrators and stories where I get to be inside the bad guy's head), Part Two gave me things to think about and it's what I'll remember the most from this novel.
Like I said, I just finished it and would love other people's opinions and insights. I find the juxtaposition of Clegg and GP very interesting and it's something I'll be thinking about tonight as I further process this novel.
by Anxious-Fun8829