Violence as Toxic Masculinity in The Rabbit Hutch
Tess Gunty's novel, The Rabbit Hutch, focuses primarily on a group of young people living the titular run-down apartment building in a fictional Indiana town of Vaca Vale. This group is comprised of one girl, Blandine, and three boys, Jack, Malik, and Todd. As the novel progresses, the boys become attracted to the idea of violently sacrificing animals in a ritualistic manner, inspired by the approval one instance gets from Blandine. Gunty uses the violent actions of the boys to demonstrate how toxic masculinity can be reinforced through trying to uphold superiority towards other men and how it can be socially pressured upon other men to propagate.
The animal sacrifices in the apartment begin first with Jack. He's challenged by Malik when he asks "Would you kill for her?" (Gunty 64). Challenged by this, he begins with a fish, that he takes out of a puddle of water. He describes it as "The fish sort of flailed once or twice, but then died for real" (86). He takes this sacrifice back to the apartment and presents it to Blandine, who smiles and laughs at the dead fish. This causes Jack to be "grinning like an idiot" while Malik stands there, "face murderous" (93). Jack has committed a violent act, taking the life of an innocent animal. For this, he seems to be rewarded, receiving female attention and provoking obvious anger and jealousy in the men around him. He has shown himself to rise to the challenge, to be better than Malik who failed to live up to the challenge that he offered. And thus, this violent behavior becomes something envious to the other men. In this manner, the toxic masculine trait of violence towards the innocent is upheld.
As the sacrifices continue, it can be observed how this violent behavior is transmitted socially between men in the same environment. After the fish, on a later date, the boys are hanging around each other at their apartment. Suddenly, they hear a "scuttle behind the stove" (153). A mouse has entered the vicinity. At once, the boys jump up, with Malik telling Todd to "....kill the mouse!" (155). Todd in response, says "I don't wanna" (155). Despite this, Malik keeps insisting, leading to Todd killing the mouse. After this he seems traumatized, with his face "white and wet" (156). Malik has the exact opposite reaction, being elated and saying "Proud of you, son" and "You did it for Blandine" (156). Killing this innocent animal was a violent act, borne of a selfish desire to get female attention as Malik said. However, this is an act Todd did not want to commit. It was only after being pressured by Malik that he does it, and even then he doesn't feel like his actions are right. Yet, Malik praises him for it, putting positive reinforcement behind the act of killing. Social pressure has caused Todd to fall into toxic masculinity's propensity towards violence, and given the praise he receives, will likely cause him to do it again, continuing the cycle.
This blog post offers a unique thought of how The Rabbit Hutch critiques toxic masculinity through its depiction of violence. By focusing on the boy’s escalating acts of animal sacrifice, the post highlights how Gunty illustrates the social dynamics that pressure men into violent behaviors to assert dominance.
ReplyDeleteIn addition to what the blog post highlighted, it is important to explore the way Blandine's reaction to the violence adds another layer of complexity to the toxic masculinity. While the boys engage in these violent acts partly to win her approval, Blandine herself is not entirely a passive figure in this dynamic. In fact, her own past experiences with trauma and exploitation shape how she responds to the boys, making it seem that the boys seek validation from both men and women.
This dynamic is shown when Blandine reflects on her own vulnerability and the societal expectations placed on her. Gunty writes, “Blandine knows exactly what’s expected of her, the kinds of desires that she is supposed to satisfy” (p. 124). This line suggests that Blandine is acutely aware of the roles imposed on both her and the boys by a culture that equates masculinity with dominance and aggression. Her laughter in response to Jack's sacrifice of the fish can be seen as an expression of her own disillusionment with these gendered performances, rather than genuine approval.
Gunty uses Blandine’s character to expose the deeper complexities behind the boys' toxic masculinity, revealing that their violent actions are symptomatic of a broader cultural sickness that affects both men and women.
This post does a great job of highlighting the effect toxic masculinity has on characters in The Rabbit Hutch, and how this idea often leads to acts of violence performed to assert dominance. Toxic masculinity is also shown through power structures in different relationships in the novel. One example of this is through Tiffany/Blandine’s relationship with her teacher, James Yager. The teacher-student relationship already puts James in a position of power, and Tiffany, as a seventeen-year-old orphan, in a position of vulnerability. Tiffany tells James, “You make me unlonely… You make me feel real” (Gunty 126). This comment portrays how James takes advantage of Tiffany by showing her the attention she has never received before. After ignoring Tiffany for days, James tells her that she “should expect more from people,” placing the blame for their relationship on Tiffany instead of himself (139). In a letter she writes to James, Blandine argues that their relationship “was always going to mean indefinitely more to me than it meant to you… You always already mattered. I did not” (146). By naming this chapter “Variables,” Gunty portrays how this power dynamic in relationships happens frequently, and young women, characterized as “X”, are often taken advantage of by men, “Y,” who only care about themselves and feeling wanted (100). Toxic masculinity is present throughout this novel not just through the portrayal of violence, but also through the power structures in relationships where men take advantage of young, vulnerable women for their own self gain.
ReplyDeleteThis blog post effectively explains Todd, Jack, and Malik's strange animal-sacrificing habits. They are certainly driven by pressure from one another and a desire to impress Blandine. It's also important to consider the broader implications of toxic masculinity in society. While it often plays out on a smaller scale, many men turn to more aggressive behaviors as a way to cope with their trauma, fears, and anxieties. Because men tend to suppress their emotions, they sometimes express these feelings through aggression.
ReplyDeleteThroughout the novel, it’s clear that Todd, Jack, and Malik all had difficult childhoods—they grew up in the foster system and, with the possible exception of Malik, likely don’t have the brightest, most successful futures ahead. Jack, in particular, describes his urges to "hurt somebody, just to see if either of us is real" (Gunty 75).
Vacca Vale, in general, is depicted as a town marked by despair and neglect, and many characters Tess Gunty explores show signs of extreme alienation and isolation. By examining these themes alongside the boys' violence, it can be argued that they use aggression as a way to assert dominance over their environment and to cope with feelings of powerlessness. The boys at the beginning of the novel also acknowledge that Blandine doesn't like any of them back, and "wouldn't let [them] love her," so the acts of violence may be a way for them, beyond just impressing Blandine, to assert power over the situation (52).