I Am The Cheese

– Theme Essay, Research Paper

Heroes are not always credited for their honesty and righteousness. This is the view towards society that Robert Cormier exhibits in the novel ??I am the Cheese??, where the individual is punished for standing up to himself. In this society, the non-valiant are rewarded for their ignorance and compliance, narrated through the characters of Grey and Whipper. Moreover, Robert Cormier portrays this society to be void of truth and justice. This is seen through exploring the innocence behind Adam??s parents?? suffering and death. Nevertheless, the author holds reserve for truth and justice when Adam tries to complete the puzzle of his past.

The character David Farmer, father of the novel??s protagonist, plays the victim of the society in ??I am the cheese.?? Through testifying to the truth, he and his family have had their freedom lacerated, and ultimately, have suffered the penalty of death. David Farmer began the case with the belief that ??he would be protected, his identity kept secret.?? Although aware of the perilous circumstances and the hazards, his determination to act patriotically prevailed. His powerful motive for his precarious action was that ??he was an old-fashioned citizen who believed in doing the right thing for his country, to provide as much information as possible.?? David Farmer was under no obligation to disclose his researched information, and yet chose to take the risk. Clearly, this is an example of an individual standing up to himself, acting accordingly to his own beliefs and values. Nevertheless, David Farmer and his family were punished lethally. Even the interim between the testimony and his death was a metaphor for a cage, an insecure prison bound for the Never Knows, and yet was always destined for death. The example of the bomb that was planted to detonate the entire family and the ??undercover policeman?? whose supposed job was to protect heralded an unending chain of misery.

These events introduced Grey, who identified himself to be involved with the US Department of Re-Identification. Grey, who shot the assassin, was the trusting saviour of David Farmer. Grey warned the Farmer family about the car bomb. He distributed new identities for the entire family, produced new birth certificates and arranged a move to Massachusetts. He was the eternal alert watchdog who packed the family away when chances took their position for a Farmer whereabouts leak. Grey had the power to dismiss 3 lives at his will. Adam??s father described these helpless circumstances as ??We were like puppets, you, your mother, and I?Kas if we had no control over our lives?Kothers pulled the strings and we jumped.?? Obeying whatever was ordered, the family entrusted Grey. Yet, it was the same Grey who incarcerated the family??s freedom, who fleeced all their dreams, who disciplined their lives into his own grasp. It was the same Grey who arranged the execution of the brutal murder, who rewarded loyalty with death. David Farmer??s purpose to testifying to truth was to seek justice and assist the government, but he and his wife were punished through death. Thus in this manner, the view that the individual is punished for standing up to himself has been conveyed through ??I am the cheese.??

On the other hand, a more optimistic view is offered for less distinguished characters in the society, such as Grey and Whipper. Dwelling in the realm of the ordinary, these characters stand up to themselves in their own defined demeanours, though none of which are majestic as David Farmer??s patriotism. Brint, who can be inferred to be Grey through the identification 2222, endured no punishment for his heartless plunder of Adam??s memory. Instead of assisting him to regain his memory, he probes for further information that may have passed to Adam concerning his father??s case. The extent to Brint??s disguise as a psychiatrist or doctor suggests his determination to scrutinise all possible stakeholders of the information. Ultimately, Brint is not punished in any way for his crime.

Similarly, Whipper and his gang, known as the ??toughs?? in the novel, threatened to displace Adam from his bike journey. Playing their own mischievous games, they hold no respect to the society??s moral values. This attitude can be depicted in the menacing invitation to Adam to contest a fight out of no particular motive, as well as the displacement of Adam into a ditch on the roads. As opposed to David Farmer, Whipper and his gang merely camouflage with the rest of the society and are not punished for their wrong doings. Therefore, the society is not portrayed pessimistically for those who mingle as commoners of a society, even when they stand up to themselves.

Truth and justice have no place in the world of ??I am the cheese??, particularly in the lives of Adam??s family. The disguise of Grey, which led to the deaths of Adam??s parents, is a vivid example of deception, dictation and punishment. Grey initially identified himself to be involved in the ??US Department of Re-Identification. It was supposed to protect people. To provide people with new identities. So they could hide?Kfrom those they testified against.?? Through acting continually in the image of a protector by imposing new identities, occupation, residence and lifestyle, he was able to dictate and manipulate the family??s lives. The truth of who he really was and his real aim was ne