Saachi Bhatia 

During a class discussion at Hampden College, Professor Julian Morrow puts forward the idea that “Beauty is Terror,” and  proceeds to give the class his interpretation of that notion (Tartt, 39).  Richard, after being engrossed in the sublime of Hampden, is inspired to give his own analysis of the same idea in his journal. Richard Papen writes in his journal to convey how he feels after class by using metaphors, personification, and vivid imagery to elaborate on the idea that “Beauty is Terror,” reminding the reader that Richard is unreliable and has a tendency to “long for the picturesque”. 

It’s established in chapter one that Richard Papen “longs for the picturesque at all costs ” and that it’s his fatal flaw (Tartt, 7). He takes a thoughtful approach to learning and tends to romanticize it, a concept common to dark academia that’s referenced throughout the book. As Richard writes in his journal, he’s representative of his fatal flaw once again. He takes the time to reflect on class and write in his journal in a dramatic way.  It gives the reader a sense of how Richard writes. He romanticizes everything including writing, alluding back to Richard’s fatal flaw. He starts his statement in a somewhat rhythmic style, as if he is writing poetry. The reader starts visualizing the scene with the line “Trees are schizophrenic now and beginning to lose control” and the imagery Richard writes with (Tartt, 42). But as the line continues with “Someone – was it van Gough?” it seems very abrupt (Tartt, 42). Richard stops to reference Van Gough, which relates back to the pinnacle of dark academia to romanticize art and artists. The journal entry feels like the reader is transported into Richard’s mind to think about the concept “Beauty is terror.”

To further elaborate on the opinion that beauty is terror,  Richard quotes Van Gough saying that “orange is the color of insanity” (Tartt, 42). In art, we tend to associate the color orange as being bright, vibrant, and happy – the color of the sun, yet Van Gough and Richard call it the color of insanity. Something we see as beautiful is also seen as madness. Its terror is masked by beauty. This is similar to the writing throughout The Secret History. The writing is gorgeous and thought provoking. It makes you forget that, as stated in the first chapter, it’s a story that leads up to the killing of Bunny Corcoran.. Richard’s writing almost makes you lose sight of the fact that The Secret History is about murder, further proving Richard’s interpretation of the notion that beauty is terror.The description of trees in the first line of the passage is notable. Richard personifies trees as “Schizophrenic now and beginning to lose control, enraged with the shock of their fiery new colors” (Tartt, 42). This might suggest that as the seasons are cycling and the leaves are changing color, they’re confused.  Referring to the trees as schizophrenic suggests that there is a sudden split in the trees’ personalities. They no longer have the same perception of themselves that they did before, and they’re “enraged.” Beauty can even make the trees look enraged and filled with fury. This relates back to another moment in the book in which Camilla cuts her foot on a piece of glass and starts bleeding (Tartt, 108). In this moment, Richard remarks on this event not with disgust as one might normally do. He starts describing the colors and how beautiful, almost angelic, Camilla looks. The distress and insanity of the situation is beautiful to him. Since Richard has no choice but to glamorize the things in his life, beauty and terror are interchangeable to him.

The description of the leaves as “firey” and “a fire that refines us” is also significant (Tartt, 42). The changing leaves is something we typically associate as beautiful, not something as terrible as fire, something that can cause so much destruction. The changing of the seasons reflects a transition that is both chaotic yet evokes beauty, further proving Richard’s idea that beauty is terror. 

Richard concludes his journal entry by continuing to dramatically paint a picture in the reader’s head using imagery. He’s starting to almost invoke fear in the reader saying “We want to be devoured by it, to hide ourselves in that fire which refines us” (Tartt, 42).  This sentiment leads the reader to believe that beauty can be brainwashing since “we want to be devoured by it.” Beauty doesn’t need to coerce us into “the fire that refines us.” We will willingly go. In addition, the use of the word “devoured” is notable (Tartt, 42). It gives us the sense that beauty is somewhat like a monster. In the novel, Richard is desperate to be accepted by the group that he finds to be beautiful. Richard frequently comments on how attractive the group is and looks to Henry with admiration. He feels an overwhelming sense of loneliness when they are not around. Richard wants to be devoured by the group. Even when he finds out that the group has murdered an innocent man, he feels no need to turn them in because he wants to be consumed by the group so badly, even though he knows that they’re not good people.It’s hard to understand the enigma that is Richard Papen, but his journal entry gives the reader a taste of what his mind is like and how he thinks by his interpretation on the juxtaposition of beauty and terror. While the novel is entirely told from Richard’s perspective, we were told at the beginning of the novel that he tends to lie. Richard Papen is an unreliable narrator so it’s hard to tell what events actually occurred or not. Yet here, we see him being his authentic self in his element of writing poetry.  He’s self reflecting in a way because he’s a victim of beautifying terror and terrorizing beauty. Since Richard is self aware and knows that he romanticizes things, it gives the reader a chance to reflect. It plagues the question: does Richard know he’s romanticizing his group of friends or not? Could he have avoided his situation by coming to the conclusion that the group isn’t as great as he thought they were? This passage helps contextualize the rest of the novel, because it gives an example of how Richard has a tendency to glorify events. While The Secret History takes place in the isolated world of analyzing poetry, breathtaking landscapes, and finely dressed peers, it’s a story about objectively bad people who are willing to justify murder, leading to a drastic turn of events and downfall of the main group.

Phillip Phanhthourath

Donna Tartt’s The Secret History explores the themes of ambition and obsession
through the character of Richard, who becomes fixated on joining the elite group of Julian
Morrow’s Greek students. The novel’s language and structure contribute to a morbid tone that
reflects on the motivations and personalities of the characters and adds to the grim
atmosphere of the book. By examining a specific passage in the novel, we can gain a deeper
understanding of Richard’s obsession and its disastrous consequences.
In the passage where Richard first becomes interested in Julian’s Greek students, Tartt
uses precise structure to convey the characters’ personalities and motivations. Bunny’s
suggestion that Richard should “Go see him again, why don’t you” reveals his own desire to be
part of the group and foreshadows Richard’s eventual obsession (Tartt 22). The hasty chatter
between the characters visually interpreted by the readers highlights Richard’s eagerness to
join the elite group, while also emphasizing the importance of social status in the novel.
Tartt also uses vivid imagery and descriptions to give the reader a greater insight into
the personalities of Julian and his students. The diction used to describe them, such as
“imposing”, “coolness”, “cruel”, “mannered”, “strange”, and “cold,” adds to a certain negative
tone that reflects on the characters and their relationship with each other and Julian (Tartt 32).

These adjectives not only establish the intimidating mood that readers feel when encountering
Julian and his students but also highlight Richard’s fascination with the ancient mindset, which
becomes a significant part of his character development.
Furthermore, this passage contributes to Richard’s downfall by foreshadowing the
disastrous consequences of his obsession. The sense of power and confidence conveyed by
Julian and his students suggests that they are manipulative, which becomes evident when
Richard is told to drop all his other courses and commit to Julian’s class (Tartt 75). By joining the
group, Richard sacrifices his entire college experience, his relationships with his other friends,
and ultimately his morality, as seen in the murder of Bunny. Thus, this passage offers new
avenues for reading the text by highlighting the complex interplay between obsession, social
status, and morality in the novel.
In conclusion, Tartt’s use of language and structure in The Secret History highlights the
themes of ambition and obsession that drive Richard’s character and contribute to the novel’s
overall tone. By examining a specific passage, we can gain a deeper understanding of Richard’s
obsession and its disastrous consequences, and how this interpretation opens new avenues for
reading the text.

Evan Sittauer

Change isn’t something that happens in one night, it is only when you are at your lowest point where change will have its greatest impact. Change plays a crucial part of Richard’s story in The Secret History. Change is the main theme of Richards’ progression as a character, starting with his first moments at Hampden and ending with his first visit to the country. Richard has since gone through multiple different turning points where his views on his classmates and his time at Hampden College have changed for the better. Richard has begun lowering his heavily guarded internal walls and started connecting on a deeper level with his classmates. 

Richard’s experience at Hampden College had been one filled with envy and loneliness. The author points out all of Richard’s flaws whether it be money, personality, relationships, or education. However, things began to change as time went on for Richard as he put himself out there. “Prior to this first weekend in the country, my recollections of that fall are distant and blurry” (Tartt 97). This quote shows a clear turning point in Richard’s views of his college life. He uses words such as “distant” and “blurry” to highlight the insignificance of his prior memories as opposed to his time in the country.  Meaning his time in the country was a truly happy and unforgettable moment for him. Richard has begun to see his once “alien-like” classmates in a new light, one that he truly believes he can connect and build friendships with. This weekend in the country was the start of Richard’s efforts to push away his depression and loneliness that once ate away at his soul, opening the path for him to begin growing as an individual.

Referring to his now dark and dreary memories of his past at Hampden College, Richard speaks to the fact that “from here on out, they come into a sharp, delightful focus” (Tartt 97). The word choice of “sharp” and “delightful” contrast beautifully to the once “distant” and “blurry” memories that corrupted Richard’s aura. This word choice helps show progression in how Richard views the events in his life and his time with his classmates. Both at home and since arriving at Hampden College, Richard has locked himself and his feelings away. This all changed drastically once Richard began putting himself out there more and reaching out towards his classmates. Richard initially emphasized the fact that he is the opposite of his classmates financially, academically, and emotionally. This feeling of difference amplified Richard’s depression and his inability to feel as if he deserves to live a happy life. He refers to his time with his classmates as “the happiest time of his life” (Tartt 103). This passage differs from others in the book for Richard’s theme of change because not once had he before referred to a moment as the happiest time of his life. Before this moment, this sense of happiness was something he never expected to gain. These 5 words have significant meaning towards Richard’s character and signify the growth of Richard’s journey of change.

Richard speaks on how his classmates had transformed from these “stilted mannequins” (Tartt 97) into regular people. Ever since his first arrival on campus and his introduction to these classmates, Richard had always felt out of place when in the presence of them and their personalities. The author’s use of the metaphor of relating the classmates to mannequins helps give us insight into how Richard felt about his classmates and their unnatural characteristics. This can be further supported by the word stilted which meant they were unnatural. Richard’s perception of his classmates was night and day compared to before. These words give the reader a spark of excitement for what could come in the future whether it be good or bad for Richard. He now has the opportunity to learn more about his classmates and their lives, families, and secrets. Richard’s part in the inevitable death of Bunny builds off this turning point in the story, meaning Richard’s journey of change is a double edged sword in disguise.

The central theme of Richard’s journey of change in this passage ultimately contributes to Richard’s demise. Him becoming closer to his classmates and beginning to really open up to them paves the path to his participation in Bunnies murder as well as his inevitable leave from Hampden College. This interpretation opens a multitude of avenues for reading the text because you are able to see the start of Richard’s descent into crime and overall spiral downwards as a person, and you can see the different paths that Richard could have gone down and hypothesize what he could have done differently.

Multimodal Component: