Short Story 'Killings' By Andre Dubus

Murder can be justifiable, but it can not be used to justify a character. “Killings” is a short story written by Andre Dubus, centers on the character Matt Fowler who is seeking resolution after the murder of his youngest son, Frank. The story evolves around the development of Matt’s character, as well as others such as his wife Ruth, and Frank’s murderer Richard Strout. Fueled by vengeance, Matt commits premeditated murder on Richard Strout in order to bring peace and resolution to the murder of his son. His action leads to the realization that he did more harm than good, that his actions will not be justified. No matter the reason, murder never compliments the morality of a character. Though Matt is looking out for his family’s well being,
Rather than stepping up to do the right thing, she keeps to herself, making it seem like she is as guilty as Matt. Both Matt and Ruth’s characterization together plays a vital role in the story. Even if they are made out to be distant, Matt and Ruth both have the same mindset about Richard’s unfortunate fate. Richard deserves being punished for his crime to the Fowler household; however, his death is not justified. Richard acted out of rage and love, but he did not deserve to die as he wanted to live a normal life after bail. Some may counter that Richard deserves to die under certain circumstances such as cold murder; however, Matt’s premeditated manner of killing Richard as an act of vengeance is never right. It makes it even worse as the story unfolds, revealing that Richard has indeed begin moving on starting a new life. Richard acted out of rage, and Matt acted out of passion, which made things worse as Matt realized his actions brought back memories of Frank’s death. The them of the story is revealed that revenge can many times act as a vicious cycle, and the only way to break it is to forgive and let