Alison's Claim of Bruce as a Martyr
Throughout Bechdel's Fun Home, Bruce Bechdel, Alison's father, is frequently brought up by his daughter. A couple of times, Alison refers to bruce in a way that pictures him as a sort of Martyr. She's framed Bruce's death as a sort of self-sacrifice, and not just an accident. Though, we have not gained a total confirmation of Alison's claims or hypothesis being true, and never will because Bruce Bechdel is dead. Despite this, we can see multiple reasons in the book for why Alison would think her father's death wasn't just suicide or an accident, but a sort of sacrifice for a cause. But why would he "sacrifice" himself? What was his motive? It could be argued that his suicide was planned. That he took his own life to, in a way, freeze his image as a "great father and husband" and not have the risk of it being stained by the hidden aspects of his life once these were discovered.
We see this happen for the first time in the beginning of Chapter one. During this part of the book, Alison is describing her father's obsession with restyling and remodeling in relation to the Bechdel home. Here, mentions that, regarding Bruce "Historical Restoration wasn't his job. It was his passion. And I mean passion in every sense of the word. Libidinal. Manic. Martyred." (Bechdel 7) During this scene we can tell that, despite her father's death not being mentioned yet, Alison has literally set an image of martyrdom that she associates with her father's life and death. It's also worth mentioning that Alison portrays bruce as a christlike figure, who carries a sort of pillar as he walks, like Jesus Christ carried his cross during his passion, which is something that Alison also links to this description.
This happens again at the beginning of Chapter two. Alison continues her comment regarding Bruce's death, and mentions some of her reasons why she thinks Bruce took his life. She says "No one knew it wasn't an accident. His death was quite possibly his consummate artifice, his masterstroke. There's no proof, but there are some suggestive circumstances." - " The copy of Camus' A Happy Death that he'd been reading and leaving around the house in what might be construed as a deliberate manner. Camus' first novel, it's about a consumptive hero who does not die, a particularly happy death." (Bechdel 27-28) Here, we see a reason for why Alison may believe Bruce did kill himself, as he left a book about a hero who suffers a sad death. It doesn't serve as much of a clue for why he killed himself, but it does serve as proof, at least in the eyes of Alison, that her father committed suicide.
Though there are more times in the book where Alison frames her father's death as a martyred suicide, I believe these two scenes most clearly show her belief of her father as a martyr, and why she thinks that of him. I don't believe Alison directly makes this claim, but Bruce's death could have been a sacrifice to save his own image from being ruined.
Hi Samuel,
ReplyDeleteI think the idea of Bruce as a martyr is interesting, but something doesn't sit quite right with me about the the word martyr. Perhaps its because of what I think of a martyr to be. Bruce's death certainly is a sacrifice to preserve his image on a pedestal, but something to me feels ... off. To me it feels as though Bruce's death is missing an aspect of martyrdom, his death seems to be missing this piece of selflessness. Although that is more of a thing that I think is missing for what I personally feel a martyr to be. I don't know, perhaps I'm missing something.
Hey David!
DeleteWhen I was writing this blog, I originally wrote it with my definition of martyr in mind. That being one who dies for a specific cause (Also backed by Marian Webster). I didn't take into account any specific absence or presence of selflessness. With this, I always thought as this idea of Bruce's martyrdom as him dying for the cause of saving his image. Just like people are martyred for other causes. Sorry if that wasn't clear in my post.
Though, I do see why you could argue he's not a martyr either!
Thanks!
Hello Samuel,
ReplyDeleteI find the idea of Bruce commiting suicide as a way to preserve his image very interesting. After all, his death occured around the time Alison was first becoming aware of his secret life. It is possible that, upon realizing that his image was in the process of falling apart, he attempted to cut his fall from grace short. Of course, we know that Bruce's death did not prevent Alison from continuing to investigate his secrets and that her perception of her father was still altered irrevocably in the end. As readers, we get the sense that this would've happened eventually regardless of whether Bruce was alive or not. The only question is: did Bruce's death actually serve to cushion the blow to his reputation at all?
I think it is absolutely possible that Bruce took his own life to perfect his image as husband and father. But I think it is also possible that this is a narrative that Alison projects onto him following his death. Bruce's life and his relationship to his family contained many contradictions, but the story of him dying as a tragic hero resolves these contradictions and makes the rest of the story make sense. This would make it all much easier for Alison to process, so it is understandable why she would see this in her father's death.
ReplyDeleteHi, Samuel. I have never thought of Bruce as a martyr, but with the evidence you've given I think it's possible. You wrote "hero who suffers a sad death" might be a reason why Alison could have believe this. I find it interesting that 'hero' is used. I wonder if Bruce finally understood that he was being really controlling of everything and everyone and by 'sacrificing' himself; he believes he's a hero and now everyone around him can live a more peaceful life. Nice work!
ReplyDeleteInteresting take, loved the blog. It is fair and supported to claim that Alison believed her father's passing to be suicide, even more-so to claim it as an act of martyrdom. Additionally, I think this tells us a lot about Alison's inability to contend with a multi-faceted view of her father, putting together the good and bad. I think it speaks to her using literature and literary structures to dissect and contend with the sheer ambivalence of death and the very gruesomely complex figure that Bruce became in her eyes. His suicide, to her, may have been a salvation of the father she loved.
ReplyDeleteThe connection you made between his "martyred" passion for restoration and the Christ-like imagery in Chapter One really highlights how Alison uses literary structures to make sense of her father's "consummate artifice". It makes you wonder if, as Michael suggested in the comments, the "sacrifice" actually worked, or if Alison's own investigation eventually stripped that "martyrdom" away.
ReplyDeleteHey Samuel, I think you make a very good take on comparing Bruce to that of a martyr, choosing to kill himself in order to present himself as a person who left behind a perfect life with nothing that will stain his legacy, choosing to do this around the time that his wife would find out about the affairs he had with man, choosing to not have anymore things revealed about him that could place in a far darker light. Good Job!
ReplyDeleteHi Samuel! I agree that Bruce’s death was likely planned as a way to preserve his perfect husband/father image. The fact that he was reading Camus’s book, A Happy Death, suggests that his death could have been an artifice. I hadn’t realized that the panel featuring Bruce carrying the pillar parallels Jesus carrying the cross until you mentioned it. That comparison really helped me understand Alison’s martyr description. Great post!
ReplyDeleteIt is also possible for someone to be "martyred"--for their death to be seen AS significant, reflective of some kind of societal victimization, or some version of self-sacrifice, even if there's scant evidence that the martyr themselves would have seen it this way. From what we can tell in the final months of Bruce's life--where we get mere *glimpses* through Alison's limited encounters with him--he states that he is "no hero," and he seems really hesitant to align himself with any kind of gay-rights "cause," or to see himself as a victim of homophobia. But that doesn't mean that he is NOT a victim of homophobia. If he dies because he cannot see a way for himself to LIVE openly and honestly, to the point where life becomes an unbearable fraud, then his death can embody this meaning despite his intentions. All of this is complicated further when Alison all but admits that she prefers to view him as a victim of homophobia, or she wants to "claim" him for the cause in some way. Given the uncertain circumstances around his death, we can't "prove" otherwise--the end of his life can be subject to this interpretation without "verifying" it through Bruce himself, if that makes sense.
ReplyDeleteHey Samuel! Great post! I think it is interesting to view Alison's understanding of her father's death as if he was almost a sacrifice in her journey to coming of age. Although, it is of course far more complex than this, she often portrays him as, in some kind of twisted way, passing the torch to her just before his death. He had to find some kind of escape from his struggle with his sexuality in order for Alison to find solace.
ReplyDeleteHI Samuel, nice job showing how Allison sees Bruce as a martyr. Allsion describes Bruce's obsession with restyling and remodeling in relation to the Bechdel home as martyred. Allison portrays Bruce as a christlike figure and Jesus Christ could be seen as a martyr. Bruce was also reading Camus' A Happy Death where the hero could be seen as a martyr.
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