The Chocolate War – Disturbingly Truthful Fiction

I have recently finished reading the novel The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier, and I wholeheartedly extol its virtues while reluctantly acknowledging its honesty. My reluctance stems from no fault of the author’s. Indeed, it’s the believability of the story that forces me to acknowledge its truthfulness, the closeness with which it approaches reality. And that’s why I only begrudging acknowledge its honesty. I don’t want it to be true.

As an English teacher, I am tempted to look up lesson plans and essays to confirm and validate my take on this story before I put it out there on the Internet. But, as a lover of books and as someone who wants to believe in my own ability to critically reflect upon what I read, I have resisted that temptation. So, these are my reactions to The Chocolate War, dismayed as they may be.

The story is set in a Catholic high school for boys. Other than the protagonist, every character is either cruel, weak, or both. That’s not to say that that’s all they are. They are all individuals, carefully and believably characterized. Each has an attribute, strength, fear, belief, view of self, and view of others with which the reader is likely able to at least empathize, if not sympathize. Even the villains are pitiable.

And that’s what makes it so honest. The protagonist acts heroically but is not quite a hero, at least not in the traditional literary sense, tragic or otherwise. No one is saved by his actions, not even himself. His downfall is not death and is not caused by his own flaws. Yes, his actions play a part in his downfall, but they are not motivated by personal flaws. In fact, they are motivated by naïve heroic beliefs. (Thus, I guess, his flaw may be his heroic nature.) And the change wrought by his downfall is a lessening, not a growth, of his virtues.

In addition, while his actions play a part in his downfall, the downfall is inevitable. Nothing he could have done differently would have changed the outcome. But this is not a Man versus Fate conflict. It’s Man versus Society. And that’s why I find the story so sadly disturbing and honest. Society is made up many flawed, weak, and cruel individuals. They cannot, as individuals, overcome their fears and foibles enough to stand up to evil, including within themselves. As a result, they cannot unite as a society to resist evil. Instead, their fears and foibles become the uniting force to willingly succumb to evil. Therefore, it is inevitable that Man will lose in the conflict with Society.

TEACHERS, USE ONE OF OUR ENGLISH LESSON PLANS AS A TEMPLATE TO STUDY THIS BOOK WITH YOUR STUDENTS.

Tags: "ENGLISH Lesson Plans", Nonfiction