THEMES
MORAL AMBIGUITY:
One theme of the book is that within man, there is both good and evil. It has often been called into question whether human nature is naturally “good” or “evil,” as if the two were mutually exclusive aspects of morality. Strangers on a Train, however, explores the idea that human nature is inherently both “good” and “evil”, and they are in accordance with one another in each person. Even though a person may seem good, external forces can make a person turn evil. It is impossible for a human to try and solely preserve the good side of themselves. In Strangers on a Train, even though Guy and Bruno are very similar, they reach their goals through opposite means, one good and one bad. Guy represents the good while Bruno represents evil. Guy is originally a very moral person, but he ultimately succumbs to the forces of evil, and admits to having the desire to kill Miriam in the beginning of the train ride. Even though Bruno seems evil, he has good intentions in killing Miriam because he thinks of Guy as a good friend and does not want him to suffer. Therefore, even though these two characters seem to appear evil or good, throughout the book, they experience both the good and evil aspects of human nature. This supports the overall theme that humans cannot be either good or evil, but will succumb to either one and naturally have both evil and good within them.
PEOPLE'S INSATIABLE DESIRES:
Throughout the novel, the theme of people wanting things that they cannot have is prevalent. In the beginning of the novel, Miriam is introduced as a woman that is after a married man, clearly knowing that she can not have him as long as he is married. Later in the novel, it is revealed that he never had the intention of leaving his wife for her. Miriam, along with wanting to be with a married man, also wants to bask in the wealth of her husband, even though they are separated. In the end, Miriam does not obtain either of her desires and ends up dead. Another example of this theme is through Bruno who is filled with insatiable desires. When Guy kills Bruno’s father, Bruno is not as satisfied as he expected he would be, despite now having his mother all to himself. Bruno is happy that his father is dead, but is not completely satisfied because he did not kill his father himself. Bruno had to choose between the perfect murder and his ultimate satisfaction of murdering his father personally, ultimately choosing the former. Also Bruno has clear feelings towards his mother, as exhibited by his Oedipal Complex, his mother never seems to notice. She is constantly with another man, and Bruno hates every one of them because he wants his mother to love him back the same way he loves her. Bruno never achieves this, which further relates to the theme of people wanting things that they can never have.
INNER TURMOIL CAUSED BY TRUTH VS GUILT
Over the course of the novel, Guy considers telling Anne about his criminal history and has to decide whether to leave Anne or pretend as though his murderous actions never happened. If Guy chooses to leave Anne, he would feel even guiltier and he might not be able to bear living without the love of his life. However, it is difficult for Guy to keep Anne in the darkness and constantly cover up his murderous past if he continues to live with Anne. This continual struggle explains Guy’s inner turmoil and his conflicted character. Guy’s guilt overwhelms him to the point that he would rather choose to have society punish him for his sins because his conscience haunts him more than society’s judgment would affect him. Guy also struggles with the idea on society’s law. He wonders if it is immoral for humans to kill, then it should also be immoral for the law to kill others who have done evil deeds. Overall, this fight between telling the truth and living with guilt results in chaos within one’s mind and an inability to function normally in accordance with society’s rules.
DESTINY CANNOT BE ALTERED
This theme is immenent throughout the novel because Guy never expected himself to murder someone. Even the idea of murder seemed immoral and repulsive to Guy. However, through Bruno’s constant reminder by sending letters to people in Guy’s life that said Guy is a murderer, and through Bruno’s threat of framing Guy for Miriam’s death, Guy finally succumbs to murdering Bruno’s father. No matter how much Guy tried to run away from Bruno’s existence, Bruno kept appearing in front of Guy’s work, and at events Guy hosted such as his own wedding. This theme of how destiny cannot be altered is also seen after Bruno falls off the boat. No matter how hard Guy tried to save him, Bruno ended up far from Guy’s reach, and ends up dying. Bruno’s destiny is him dying as a result of the endless sins in his life. Guy’s destiny is seen when he wants to lessen the burden of his murder by confessing to Owen, but Owen actually made it so Guy was indirectly confessing to the police. This results in Guy going to jail, and not being able to experience the jubilant future he imagined with his wife Anne and the baby they were about to have.