Essay Questions

How and why did Conrad try to kill himself?

The actions in the novel all happen because the main character, Conrad, tried to kill himself almost a year before the events in the novel started. For a long time however, the reason why Conrad wanted to kill himself remain a mystery for the reader who is not revealed details about Conrad’s decision. At the middle of the novel, it is revealed that Conrad tried to kill himself by slitting his own writs and letting himself bleed to death during a holiday he spent with his parents. The reason why Conrad tried to kill himself has to do with his older brother’s death, an event that took place a long time before the actions in the novel began. Conrad blamed himself for his brother’s death and he also felt incompetent because he felt he could never be as good as his brother was. Because of this, he tried to end his own life.

Why is the relationship between Conrad and his mother a tense one?

While Cal is presented as being a loving and caring father, Beth is anything but that and Conrad resents her from being so distant and cold towards him. It seems that no one is willing to take the steps necessary to mend the relationship between the two and even though Cal tries to make the two get along, he is unsuccessful and sometimes he is even criticized by Beth and Conrad for his actions. Conrad theorizes that the reason why his mother is so distant is because she blamed him for Buck’s death. Conrad also thinks that he disappointed her when he tried to kill himself and that his action was for her an unforgivable one. The reason why his actions were unforgivable was because Beth is extremely interested in what others say and think about her and her family. By trying to kill himself, Conrad tarnished the family’s reputation and put Beth in an uncomfortable situation because her friends found out that her private life was not as perfect as they thought it to be. While the reason why Beth remains distant is somehow vague and only implied by the other characters, for Conrad the reason is a clear one. During an argument between the two, Conrad tells her mother that he will never be able to forgive her for ignoring him while he was in a mental hospital. Apparently, for the duration of eight months, Beth did not try to contact her son, nor did she try to visit him. Considering the fact that Conrad was in an unusual situation and that he might have needed his mother’s support, Conrad’s reaction is somehow justified and more clear than Beth’s.

In what conditions did Conrad’s brother die?

While Buck never appears in the novel, he is an important character because his death was the reason why Conrad felt into depression and the reason why the family almost felt apart. While his death is an important event, the conditions in which Buck died are only revealed towards the end of the novel by Conrad, who has a dream about the day when Buck died. From that dream, the reader finds that Buck died in a sailing accident. The reason why Conrad was so affected by the event was because the two boys were together and it is also implied that Buck tried to save Conrad and that his efforts are what killed him. Because of this, Conrad blames himself for his brother’s death and considers himself responsible for the events that took place in the past.