A Theme of Fear in Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey

Jasper Jones, by Craig Silvey, is an Australian novel published in 2009 about the life of Charlie Bucktin, a bookish 14-year-old, and how it changes after Jasper Jones, a half-white aboriginal, shows him the dead body of Laura Wishart. Jasper Jones is a novel regarding injustice, racism and social exclusion that exists in the Australian society of 1965. Fear is wildly explored throughout Jasper Jones and forms the foundation of ignorance and racism. Jack Lionel, Jasper Jones and the Lu’s are a victim of this because of the town’s ignorance and prejudicial behaviour.

Jack Lionel is a casualty of the town’s ignorance which Charlie and Jasper are influenced into believing. It started when Jasper’s mother, Rosie, was killed in a car crash and Jack was blamed for the accident, resulting in the rumours of him being “mad.” The lack of information on Jack throughout the novel until the end raises questions in the readers of who he really is and builds a sense of fear to “mad” Jack’s name. Both Charlie and Jasper give in to the rumours and speculations surrounding Jack, Jasper even drawing his own conclusions of him being the one to kill Laura. When they finally learn the truth, they realise that the townspeople “just feared the myth.” These rumours have gone to the point where the Corrigan society has become terribly afraid of him. Over the course of the story, the readers learn that Jack shouldn’t be feared at all, as why would a “murderer” allow children steal from him? This discovery reveals the valuable lesson that fear is often the by-product of ignorance and outright foolishness. The readers, along with Charlie and Jasper, begin to understand that everything the town believed about Jack was simply fear and ignorance clouding their judgement. This is a very prominent issue as they feared a man who had done no wrong by the conjuring of their own mind.

Silvey uses racism and prejudice as the basis for the underlying fear which he explores through the character of Jasper. Jasper represents the small town prejudice which earns him the reputation as “a Thief, a Liar, a Thug, a Truant.” The capitalisation of these labels demonstrate the dominance of the assumptions in the community, supporting Jasper’s vulnerability to being scapegoated and the accumulation of these derogatory descriptions emphasise the known negative connotations of being an Australian Aboriginal in the 1960s. He receives the blame for all crimes regardless of his guilt or culpability, foreshadowing the upcoming incident that occurs in chapter 5. It is clear to Charlie that Jasper’s mixed-race has a lot to do with his reputation, which is why he agrees not to go to the police. Jasper fears being charged for the death of Laura, telling Charlie that if they go to the police, they will pin the murder on him. They will see that it’s Jasper’s sanctuary, see Laura’s beaten up body, see his rope and lock him up without a second thought, not caring if he’s innocent as he’s “just half an animal with half a vote” (pg. 30). This use of anthropomorphism shows that Jasper is not even counted in the population census with other citizens. His fear of being blamed is proven in chapter 5 when the police bring him in for interrogation. They unfairly lock him in a cell and brutally beat him for answers about Laura. This reveals the irony in the fact that an institution created to serve justice is capable of being so unjust and are multifaceted, using cruelty to achieve their goals. It’s also ironic that Pete Wishart participated in Jasper’s mistreatment, accusing him of his daughter’s disappearance when it was his actions that resulted in her death. This confrontation shows the extent of their racism because of their ignorance underlying the daily life of the town – a prejudiced affair that bubbles over into violence. This positions the readers to understand that race has a lot to do with people’s fear of those who are different, which makes them act out negatively.

Corrigan is a profoundly fearful community who are obsessed with keeping up appearances. All kinds of discrimination and race-based harassments were tolerated. The era contributed significantly to the racial discrimination towards the Lu’s and reflected the stereotypes and attitudes that were prevalent during the Vietnam War. This is explored when Mrs Lu was attacked by Sue Findlay because of the recent news of her son being balloted through to Vietnam so soon after her husband had died in the Vietnam War. No one stepped forward to help, which can be seen because many of the townspeople are racist and agree with Sue. However, their lack of response suggests that no one being brave enough to defend the Lu’s out of fear of being shunned themselves. The incident solidifies Charlie’s disbelief of the injustice displayed in his home town and when his father had nothing to say in response, it feeds Charlie’s growing disillusionment of his parents. Charlie is angry that no one did anything to defend the Lu’s, yet, he behaved the same way he accused the townspeople of acting. When Jeffrey gets bullied and mocked because of his race as a Vietnamese, Charlie stays silent and blames the people around him for their inaction. This is because the adults hold the same trepidation as Charlie when speaking up; if they say something to defend the minority, then they too will be defined as outcasts. Silvey leads the readers to side with and understand the plight of the minority by the exploration of fear manipulating the behaviours of the majority.

Fear is an active presence in Jasper Jones as evident in the reactions towards Jack Lionel, Jasper Jones and the Lu’s. Fear creates irrational behaviour because of their ignorance and racism, corrupting those around them. Racism and ignorance is caused because of the fear of others who are different which is still very prominent in today’s society.