Protagonist Antagonist Short Story Called \"Killings\" Andre

¶ … protagonist antagonist short story called "Killings" Andre Dubus

It is difficult to defend the position that the protagonist and antagonist of Adre Dubus' short story "Killings," Matt and Strout, are alike in any sort of way. Virtually the only similarity they have is their mutual admiration and appreciation for the way that Strout's ex-wife, Mary Ann, looks. Nonetheless, both of these men are fathers and they are both murderers. Still, a prolonged analysis of Dubus' tale reveals the fact that there are significantly greater differences between these two than there are similarities.

One of the more pronounced differences between the two is the way that they go about carrying out their respective murders. Strout is much more reckless in doing so. He kills Matt's son Frank in broad daylight, in front of a plethora of witnesses (including his children and his ex-wife), almost as though he has no disdain for the law or its consequences. Whatever planning there was on his part is minimal. Matt, however, intricately plans Strout's murder. He and his accomplice Willis spent a lengthy amount of time going over the details, some of which include the fact that, "they had planned that too, had decided it was best for just the one car to go to" Strauss's house even though they took separate cars. This passage indicates that no detail was too small for Matt to plan. Strauss, however, did minimal planning.

Another very fundamental difference between these two men which is evinced in their killings is that they are both taken by passion. To commit the sort of killing that Strauss did, one must feel extremely strong emotions -- extreme hate, antipathy, and a base wrongness about the other person to kill in such a way that they are heedless of the consequences. In this respect, Strauss is effectively governed by his passions. Frank, however, is able to master his passions and kill in a discriminate way so that he does not have to forfeit his own life. Frank feels all of the same emotions that Strauss did when Frank thinks about the murderer and his own dead child. For instance, he contemplates the fact that, "every day he shot Richard Strout in the face." Yet Matt does not kill Strauss until the time is right because he is able to master his passion, whereas Strout is controlled by his own passion.

Finally, one of the critical distinctions between Strout and Matt is that after committing their respective murders, Matt is greatly affected by his deed whereas Strout largely is not. After Strout killed Frank, he simply "went home to wait for the police." He is eventually able to post bail and continues to live and work in relatively the same place, and does not seem to have any difficulty going on about his life. Matt, however, is perhaps even more distraught after murdering Strout than he was prior to doing so. Perhaps it is due to all of the planning he put into this crime, but when he gets home he feels so despondent that he cannot have sex with his wife nor fully open up to her about the way he feels. The subsequent passage demonstrates Matt's despondency after the killing.