THE TALENTED MR. RIPLEY
WHO
Patricia Highsmith’s The Talented Mr. Ripley introduces a sociopath, Tom Ripley, of an unparalleled nature. As a boy, he was raised without parents by a hateful aunt-- Aunt Dottie. When Tom was a boy, Aunt Dottie “had hated him when he had a cold; she used to take her handkerchief and nearly wrench his nose off, wiping it(p 39 ).” She raised him ruthlessly, often subjecting him to verbal abuse: “she had said gaily to her friend, ‘Sissy! He’s a sissy from the ground up. Just like his father(p 37-38)!’” The upbringing that Tom was forced to endure greatly shaped him as a man: on the outside he is a pleasant, friendly, sociable, fine young man but within he is a liar, a conniving demon, and a murderer.
WHAT
The book begins with a scene in which Tom is followed by a man. The man confronts Tom and sends him to talk to someone, Mr. Greenleaf, who explains to Tom that his son, Dickie Greenleaf(also a former acquaintance of Tom’s), is in Italy and refuses to come home to the States to be there for his dying mother. Mr. Greenleaf sends Tom to Italy to attempt to persuade Dickie to return. Tom finds Dickie, but Dickie is distasteful and dismissive of Tom. Tom persists and soon the two are good friends. But Tom is unsatisfied and to solve his problems he commits a murder followed by another spontaneous murder. Tom manages to thwart the authorities, but will he be able remain hidden forever?
WHEN
The book was written in 1955 and is set around the same time.
WHERE
The book is set in New York in the beginning, but primarily in Italy.
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By Patricia Highsmith
Book Review by Griffin Cronk