Contrasting qualities of Pal Smurch and the Harlequin

Thurber/Ellison

In this world in which we presently live, most people worry about to two things: 1) What other people think of them. They do not want to do anything that will "rock the boat" and make them stand out from the "in crowd" and 2) Being on time, since not being on time means "rocking the boat."

These two stories, "The Greatest Man in the World" and "Repent, Harlequin" are about what is and is not accepted and expected in modern-day society. In the "The Greatest Man in the World," Smurch broke cardinal rule number-one above: He did something that rocked the boat. That is, he did not follow proper behavior and protocol for being a hero. No one denied that he was a hero. That went without saying: After all, he flew around the world in his junk plane. However, to others he made a big mistake. He did not "act the part of a hero." In fact, he did anything but act the part.

He cut down the other nationalities, the "two frogs" in France who lost the race. He boasted and bragged about "doing it," instead of quietly and modestly accepting his acclaim. He even had the audacity to lambaste the likes of another hero, Charles Lindbergh, who made a point of always following the protocol of a hero. Lastly, Smurch even asked for money! In brief, he represented all the traits that are desired in American culture: individualism, innovation, and self-confidence. However, he had them to the extreme and revealed too clearly what the other side of the American hero is all about: egotism, greed and bias.

This is what the people in the room with Smurch could not accept: The fact that he was willing to "rock the boat" and tell the truth as he saw it: The best part of being a hero was not shaking the hand of the president or being invited to an important dinner. Instead, the best part was the reward at the end of the rainbow.

From the start of "Repent Harlequin" the readers know that it, too, will be another story about "rocking the boat" and one of the characters will not follow the prim and proper societal guidelines. The quote from David Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience" says it all: "A very few... serve the state with their consciences also... And they are commonly treated as enemies by it."

The story takes place in the future, when a man has come to the attention of the Ones Who Keep the Machine Functioning Smoothly, because he has become too well-known of a personality. Known as the Harlequin, because of the clownish costume that he wears and the jokes that he plays, he is ignored by the masses who hurry and scurry around in circles as well as the bureaucrats, but loved by the people who need heroes in this regimented and unhappy time.

Similar to the book, 1984, "Repent Harlequin" is about individual freedom vs. social control. Everett C. Marm rebells against the office of the Master Timekeeper, also known as the Ticktockman, who possesses the ability to subtract hours, days, and years from anyone's life. Marm is another renegade who "rocks the boat" by letting society know that "time is not of the essence." Regardless of how neurotic everyone has become about being on time, some things are much more important in life, such as eating sweet jelly beans, laughing and having a good time.

Why let them order you about? Why let them tell you to hurry and scurry like ants or maggots? Take your time! Saunter a while! Enjoy the sunshine, enjoy the breeze, let life carry you at your own pace! Don't be slaves of time, it's a helluva way to die, slowly, by degrees... down with the Ticktockman!"

There are two primary ways in which people respond to society -- some follow the rules without question and others do what they feel is right, despite the consequences. In "Harlequin Repent," just as in "The Greatest Man," most people have transformed into followers of the status quo.

In both stories, both main characters get the last laugh. Smurch was up in heaven (or down in hell) laughing at all the celebrations held for him after the powers that be tried to get rid of him once and for all. He had become one of the most important people ever! Meanwhile, Marm gets the bigger laugh by taking over the role of the Master Timekeeper and being late while mumbling "mrmee, mrmee, mrmee."