In Tom Harris’ novel The Silence of the Lambs, as well as in the movie adaptation, hubris is one of the most important motifs. The term hubris is a Greek word referring to the importance of pride, arrogance, and anger in one’s personality.
First, in this work, hubris is considered as a monster and as well as an ancestral curse. Since it blinds the mind of people who have hubris in their blood, it complicates and impairs the well-being of the society.
For instance, Jame Gumb is a great example to demonstrate how hubris leads to blindness. When Clarice enters in his house at the end of the story to catch him, he thinks that the only way to have control over her is to turn off the lights. Since he has night-vision goggles, he thinks that he would certainly be able to escape from Clarice without any consequences. Obviously, as ironic as it sounds, Jame is totally blinded by his hubris. Indeed, Clarice still has control over him and over the situation; that is, she is the only one who sees clearly.
This example accurately shows how hubris can affect someone’s view of a situation compared to what it really is.
Another example of a character that has to face his hubris is Hannibal, the main character. Throughout the entire novel and movie, Hannibal is trying to overcome his own hubris, as well as his desire to transcend the classification of scientists. All of this to say that hubris is clearly a gothic motif in Harris’ writings and that it is mostly defined by blurring certain characters’ vision, making them act without a proper consideration of the consequences beforehand.
Rosalie
R&D Gothic Discoveries 