Bounce's Car: A Symbol of Freedom Lost and Gained Christa L. Hirsch

In William Golding's "The Pyramid", the idea of freedom, both lost and gained, is encapsulated in the symbol of Bounce's car. Oliver is part of the events involving the car but is only a spectator, not fully understanding the manipulation that occurs. The car is a tool used to gain control, both sexually and emotionally, and is also a symbol of the freedom lost and gained by society as a whole. The piece of technology ultimately overtakes the town as Oliver's love of music is overtaken by his father's urgings to pursue chemistry. Ultimately, the car is only a decoration, a memorial to the freedom that it took and gave as it sits in a garage after Bounce dies.

The book opens as Evie rudely interrupts Oliver's dreaming of Imogen by asking him to help get Bounce's car out of a pond where Robert Ewan had crashed it while he and Evie were having sex. From the beginning of the novel, the vehicle is presented as a dirty get-away car, used for lewd, lustful acts carried out in the dark of night. The driver, Robert Ewan, is a spoiled, pretentious man who refers to Evie as "young Babbacombe" and is rude to Oliver. A doctor's son, he is quite high in the Stillbourne social hierarchy and...