The Riders, Tim Winton's latest adult novel, thrusts the reader into an emotional and physical journey through the eyes of its protagonist, Fred Scully. Scully is lead on a wild goose chase through Greece, Italy, Paris and finally Amsterdam, towing his daughter with him as he desperately attempts to find his wife. The reader follows this journey, hanging on Scully's every thought, hoping for him to succeed in his quest. It is through this emotional and physical journey that Winton explores the concepts of fatherhood, the nesting instinct and the importance of family, along with lesser theme of gender roles. By examining Scully, Jennifer and Billie, one is given an insight into relationships in a world where they are complex and are no longer clear cut; in a world where men are lead by the nose around the world and women run away without explanation.
One of the predominate themes in The Riders is that of the relationship between Scully and Billie, and Scully's fatherhood.
Billie Jackson
Mark Scully
Dana ScullyFrom the outset of the book it is obvious that Scully has a strong feeling of paternalism towards Billie, almost to the point of it being a mother child relationship. At the beginning of the novel it is Scully who is the mature one, the one who is looking after Billie, fighting with her over whether or not she was going to school, the typical single father, except for one thing, he was still married. The fact that Jennifer was a career orientated woman, seeking to further herself and her social standing only brought Billie and Scully closer together: "It was somewhere they went often, him and her. Jennifer would be at work and the two of them would wander through the town to the beach, talking about buildings, about what had...