How Far Do You Agree That the Morals and Actions of the Protagonists in 'Perfume' and 'American Psycho' Come from Their Hatred of Women?

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Despite their very different settings and the huge differences between the two murderers, the writers of ‘Perfume’ and ‘American Psycho’ choose, as characterisation, to focus on the victimisation of women through the actions of their main protagonists. Both authors raise the question as to whether the brutality of the protagonists actions are committed due to the fact they are both mentally challenged, or whether the development of their morals stem from a deeper hatred of women. Whilst it may appear that Grenouille and Bateman have much in common, both being murderers of women, one could argue that their motivation comes from different places. Grenouille’s disturbing actions come, perhaps, from a lack of emotional commitment and indeed more of an objectification of women, while Bateman’s actions seem to come more from a sense of hatred and disregard. 'Perfume' tells a story in which the protagonist’s precarious position between olfactory prowess and lack of body odour motivates a string of despicable murders. One possible interpretation could be that the protagonist’s ‘ontological crisis’ comes about because of his absent mother, therefore, his lack of morals and resulting actions against women are a direct result of this earlier treatment. The amoral actions we see later in Grenouille’s characterisation could be a direct response to the events depicted in the opening chapter. Suskind chooses the structure of the opening chapter deliberately, to open the story in a way that both foreshadows and emphasizes the murderous actions of the protagonist and possibly hint that such actions are a direct result of the protagonists treatment at the very beginning of his life. Indeed the circumstances of Grenouille’s birth might prompt a feminist interpretation to look at what happens when a child is abandoned and raised without a mother. Grenouille is born in the

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