On the black hill

The Purpose of this essay is to explore the thesis from "Nomad Invasions" and to relate some statements in the article "Border Country" to the novel titled On the Black Hill by Bruce Chatwin. From the "Nomad Invasions", the main thesis shows that, "we should perhaps allow human nature an appetitive drive for movement in the widest sense. The act of journeying contributes towards a sense of physical and mental well-being, while the monotony of prolonged settlement or regular work weaves patterns in the brain that engender fatigue and a sense of personal inadequacy. Much of what the ethologists have designated 'aggression' is simply an angered response to the frustrations of confinement" (PP 219). This examines some of the characters in the novel On the Black Hill such as Mary, Benjamin and Lewis. Mary and Lewis are living under the influential character of Benjamin. Subconsciously, Mary and Lewis change aspects of their personality when they are in the presence of Benjamin.

Lewis and Weldon Borland

[Portrait of Dizzy Gillespie, John Lewis, Cecil Pa...

The southern part of the Grwyne Fechan valley in t...

Among three of them, Lewis is the most adventurous and expressive person where as Benjamin is more possessive and conservative, especially with regards to Lewis. However, Lewis had his own dream from his youth. He loved to flirt with girls and dreams of one day being married. "He flirted with Rosie Fifield. They exchanged a breathless kiss behind a haystack and held hands for twenty minutes at a choral evening." (Pp 88) This is what Lewis wants. He wants to have his own dream and life. However, Benjamin wants to stay with his mother and brother Lewis. "Benjamin loved his mother and his brother, and he did not like girls. Whenever Lewis left the room, his eyes would linger in the doorway, and his irises cloud to a denser shade of grey: when Lewis came back, his pupils...