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IB English A1 Standard Level: World Literature Assignment: Word Count: 1498
IB English A1 Standard Level: World Literature Assignment: Word Count: 1498
Essay: p2-7
Works Cited: p8
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Candidate number: 003047-009
The role of supporting characters in constructing the reader’s perception: a view of
Grenouille in Süskind’s Perfume and Jorge of Burgos in Eco’s The Name of the Rose
In Eco’s The Name of the Rose and Süskind’s Perfume, the supporting characters play a
critical role in shaping the manner in which the reader perceives the major characters,
Grenouille and Jorge of Burgos. In both novels, the supporting characters are so much more
than simple binary opposites and so much more than reflective mirrors that allow simplistic
comparisons. Rather the supporting characters are crafted to add substantial depth and
complexity to our appreciation of both Grenouille and Jorge. This essay will explore the use
of two main aspects in relation to the supporting characters: firstly, the construction of the
In Perfume, the role of supporting characters influences the reader to consider the protagonist
Grenouille in two differing fashions: one, sympathetic, and the other (perhaps unjustly)
his character as a cumulative amalgamation and reflection of the negative characteristics and
aspects of others. This is then used to vindicate, to an extent, the murder of the virgins as
Grenouille simply reflects the attitudes and ideals he appropriated from them. Note the
complete indifference shown for his welfare by his mother, who openly admitted after
delivering him that “she definitely would have let the thing perish” 1. The mother’s
Grenouille as a person. This parallels his own subsequent indifference towards individual life
1
Patrick Süskind, Perfume : The Story of a Murderer, trans. John E. Woods (New York: Vintage Books, 2001),
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Candidate number: 003047-009
Moreover, Grenouille’s life held no value whatsoever to others in society, except in the
functional value that it provided. This is clearly exemplified when Grimal only ameliorated
became immune to the disease. It is his heightened utility and functionality that is rewarded,
… the value of his work and thus the value of his life increased...Grimal no longer
The parallelism in the syntax involving the repetition of “value of his…” creates a balance
that clearly emphasizes the equivalence that Grenouille’s “work” is associated with his “life”.
It is now perhaps predictable and vindicable that the manner in which he perceives the virgins
is cumulatively equivalent to and reflective of how he himself has been perceived by society:
She no longer existed for him as a body, but only as a disembodied scent.3
We can see how Grenouille both dehumanizes the virgin and expresses her functionally here,
paralleling his own treatment. Thus Süskind succeeds in utilizing supporting characters to
character. But in order to balance out this sympathetic portrayal, Süskind employs the motif
Grenouille. This helps to divert the reader’s attention back to the “abominable” 4 nature of
Grenouille’s crimes and encourages a more careful consideration of the nature of his crimes.
2
ibid., 32
3
ibid., 220
4
ibid., 3
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Candidate number: 003047-009
It is obvious that Grenouille is responsible for the death of the virgins. But through the motif
The tick had scented blood. It had been dormant for years, encapsulated, and had
waited. Now it let itself drop, for better or for worse, entirely without hope…5
The parasitic imagery evoked here is distinctly negative, and establishes the metaphorical
idea that, like a tick, Grenouille sucks his “hosts” dry, while himself leaving full of their
“blood”. When this metaphor is imposed on Grenouille, it appears appropriate, for indeed
Grenouille benefits in some way from his interactions with the supporting characters, and
indeed, after he has derived his benefit, they suffer an unnatural death, having been
Süskind also strengthens this effect through the way he structures the plot. When Grenouille
ends his association with the supporting characters Madame Gaillard, Grimal and Baldini,
Süskind explicitly then proceeds to detail the nature of their unnatural deaths to insinuate a
relationship with Grenouille. In the case of Grimal and Baldini, their unnatural deaths occur
chronologically and so their detailing is justified in this sense. However, with Madame
Gaillard, Süskind forces the sequential link by interrupting the plot to relate her future death:
…we shall take a few sentences to describe the end of her days.7
Consequently, the reader is persuaded to view Grenouille more negatively than perhaps he
deserves.
5
ibid., 69
6
For example, Madame Gaillard ends up in the Hotel-Dieu despite her best plans (ibid., 29), Baldini and his
shop fall into the Seine (ibid., 111), and Grimal, drunk, drowns in a river (ibid., 87) .
7
ibid., 29
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Candidate number: 003047-009
The roles of the supporting characters in Eco’s The Name of the Rose likewise also influence
the reader to consider Jorge of Burgos in differing fashions. Just as Grenouille is portrayed in
both a sympathetic and (perhaps unjustly) negative fashion, so the antagonist, Jorge, is
similarly portrayed.
a cumulative amalgamation and reflection of the general beliefs and attitudes of the
supporting characters. Jorge’s evilness stems from his fanaticism in upholding his notion of
knowledge. He regards knowledge as a “divine thing” 8, which is both “complete and has been
defined since the beginning”9. Accordingly, Jorge resolutely endeavors to protect Christian
theology from threats that could potentially undermine its long-standing foundations. This
laughter10. He feared it would elevate laughter to become “the new art...for cancelling fear” 11,
These convictions, together with his zeal, find clear precedent when considered in the context
of the abbey and its inhabitants. Indeed it is the abbot’s values which lend credence to Jorge’s
value system. The established institution of the library and the long-standing regulations that
surround it can be seen as representing crystallized societal attitudes and beliefs about
knowledge. These are clearly exemplified by understanding the basis for the restrictions
8
Umberto Eco, The Name of the Rose, trans. William Weaver (London: Vintage, 1998), 399
9
ibid., 399
10
ibid., 466: This was more precisely Aristotle’s “second book of the Poetics”
11
ibid., 475
12
ibid., 473
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These restrictions enveloping the library ensured that “only the librarian has...the right to
move through the labyrinth of books”13, and only he could gain unhindered access to all its
not all truths are for all ears, not all falsehoods can be recognised as such by a pious
soul..14
The abbot’s reasons very much parallel those that Jorge gave as justification for his actions.
The belief that there are “falsehoods” implies his adherence to an absolute nature of truth, a
stance consistent with Jorge’s. By conforming to this notion that these untruths can be
dangerous for even “pious souls” and then endeavoring to prevent their examination, the
abbot adheres to a system of beliefs that seems to parallel Jorge’s. Fanaticism, lust and
revenge are also embodied through the supporting characters Benno, Bernard Gui and the
former “Roman pontiff”15, who help create the world Jorge inhabits. The fallibility and
susceptibility of those who should set exemplary standards is a complex truth that allows
Jorge to function.
To balance out this sympathetic portrayal, the motif of the death of the supporting characters,
as in Perfume, facilitates a (perhaps unjustly) negative view of Jorge. This too is achieved
through the use of structure, and also through the initial positive development of the
William is established from the outset as having remarkable deductive skills. This was
highlighted by his adroitness in deducing both the whereabouts and identity of the missing
13
ibid., 37
14
ibid., 37
15
ibid., 23-24. For example, Benno has a “lust for knowledge”, Bernard Gui has a “distorted lust for justice that
becomes identified with...power”, and the former Roman Pontiff has a “lust for power.”
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Candidate number: 003047-009
horse Brunellus from relatively inconsequential clues 16. For the reader, this helps to
immediately elevate their perception of him as a detective. However later, William imposes
an erroneous pattern on the murder of the supporting characters. He assumes that “a divine
plan”17 directed the deaths of the supporting characters, which led him to conceive “the false
pattern”18 of the Apocalypse “to interpret the moves of the guilty man.”19
The effect of William’s early favorable establishment means the reader comes to trust more
readily the judgment of the detective, given the precedent of Brunellus. Indeed the notion that
a single “diabolical or sick mind”20 is responsible for the recurring deaths of the supporting
characters is encouraged. Thus when the climax is reached, the reader anticipates the
revelation of his identity. Even when the fallacy of William’s reasoning is exposed, the
Overall, the supporting characters in both novels serve an important role in allowing us to
consider different ways that a particular character can be analyzed. Both Eco and Süskind
crafted these differing perspectives in such a way that the reader perceives Jorge and
Grenouille in both a sympathetic and a (perhaps unjustly) negative light. Ultimately, through
influencing the reader to perceive Grenouille and Jorge in differing fashions, the reader is
encouraged to balance the possible interpretations of a character and come to their own
16
ibid., 23: “We haven’t seen him at all, have we, Adso?” William said, turning toward me with an amused
look. “But if you are hunting for Brunellus, the horse can only be where I have said.”
17
ibid., 470
18
ibid., 470
19
ibid., 470
20
ibid., 255
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Candidate number: 003047-009
Works cited:
Eco, U. The Name of the Rose. Translated by William Weaver. London:
Vintage, 1998