Download Novel: The Secret History by Donna Tartt 3. To what extent do you

Novel: The Secret History by Donna Tartt
3. To what extent do you agree that novels offer us hope that human behaviour has a moral purpose?
Intro. Define q. (this I found quite hard)
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Do novels shows us a good side of human behaviour.. moral purpose being doing something for a good
reason
Although novels allow us to be privy to another reality and give insight into another person’s thoughts this
does not always mean people have good intentions or base their behaviour on their morals – that is what
mistakes are for
Pgh 1: Upbringing
Actions of Richard based on his “morbid longing for the picturesque” he doesn’t have much idea of society’s morals,
or at least doesn’t seem to believe in them because he was kind of neglected as kid. But there is not a set moral code
as with Richard it can depend on upbringing and environmental factors – novels almost set to prove the moral
relativism of the world\. Richard and greek students have lack of morals “my father was mean, our house ugly, and
my mother didnt’ pay much attention to me..”
Pgh 2: Greek Students and the Bacchanals
Immoral. Could be described as misguided intellectual pursuit .. morals, though the greek
Students lack them, are not always applied to actions. Bacchanal is example of how humans want to in fact escape
the pressure of society’s moral code and behave as if they had no moral boundaries as to waht they could do
“the idea of losing control is one that fascinates controlled people such as ourselves more than almost
anything” “reality was transforming itself in some beautiful and dangerous fashion” “it was heart shaking.
Glorious”
Pgh 3: novels more likely to prove there is no moral purpose
Because they are a safe avenue in which to explore the dark side of human nature and behaviour- the evil within.
Tartt certainly does this.. Quote: Henry “I prefer to think of it as a redistribution of matter” . Richard: “Just
for the record, I do not consider myself an evil person”
Novels do not always offer us hope that human behaviour has a moral purpose, in fact more often than not they
dispel this idea altogether. Novels have the unique ability to give us an insight to another person’s thoughts and their
reasons for their behaviours. But this insight rarely suggests there is a moral purpose behind their behaviour.
Morality can often be ignored for the sake of other, more tangible motives. This is true of Donna Tartt’s successful
novel, The Secret History. Tartt offers us little hope regarding human perspectives of morality. Through the loveless
and socially immoral upbringings of Richard and the Greek students, it becomes clear that as “good” morals and the
existence of morals themselves vary so greatly between societies, families, and individuals, it is unlikely for one’s
actions to frequently have an moral motivation. In fact some actions are designed to give people an opportunity to
forget their morals altogether, as in the extreme example of the Greek Students undertaking the Bacchanal.
Furthermore, Tartt exemplifies the tendanct and possibility for novels to explore a dark side of human nature to
dangerous to uncover in real life. This dark side and highly immoral element of human behaviour gives us little hope
that one’s actions often have good intentions.