The Bland Face of Evil in the Novels of Robert Cormier

Abstract

ion. J. P. Stern has defined one form of literary realism as having the qualities of weightiness and resistance to ideals (28). he says that realistic novels of this kind are suspicious of generalizations and abstractions, though they may describe a search for faith or a need for morality. They attempt to describe what is, not what should be. In Cormier's brand of realism, which is of the type described by Stern, the idealist are also the destroyers. Brother Leon uses the chocolate sale as a sort of symbol of his position as head of Trinity. He is willing to go to any lengths, to allow any kind of brutality and cruelty, in order to make the sale a success. He seems to link his own identity with that of the school, and to view any resistance to participation in the chocolate sale as a personal affront. Archie's ego is equally tied to the power of the Vigils. Near the end of / Am The Cheese, Adam begins to sense that Brint, his relentless questioner, is not really interested in helping him: Now you're sounding like an investigator again—as if you're looking for specific information that has nothing to do with me as a person (132). The