The most challenging feature of modern literature is that the main idea of a literary work is often unobvious from the first sight. The sense does not lie on the surface of the story, visible for everyone; just the opposite, it makes the reader plunge in the depth of the narration to perceive it. As a result, the impatient readers are often left disappointed; however, those who spare no pains for exploring the nature of things are swept over by the astonishing results of their searching. ‘The Shout’ by Robert Graves is one of those stories; when read for the first time, it reveals hardly anything about the main theme. The reader finds out about Charles Crossley, who appears in Richard and Rachel’s life, nearly destroying their marriage with his occult powers, then is locked in asylum and finally gets killed by a thunder. Mystifications and constant shifts from dreams to reality make the storyline even more unclear. Further exploration resembles solving a rebus: more and more hints appear and form the main idea: the nature of evil in the widest sense of the word, personified by Charles Crossley – the most peculiar figure of ‘The Shout’.
The very first thing that seems curious about Charles Crossley is his surname: the author has given the surname which reminds of cross – the symbol of Christianity – to the character that is supposed to be the embodiment of evil in the story. Moreover, the place and the day of Richard and Crossley’s first meeting are unusual: Richard comes across the embodiment of evil on Sunday, near to the church.…
