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'{{EngvarB|date=September 2013}} {{Other uses}} {{Infobox book | name = The Collector | title_orig = | image = Image:TheCollector.jpg | caption = First edition cover | author = [[John Fowles]] | cover_artist = [[Tom Adams (illustrator)|Tom Adams]] | country = United Kingdom | language = English | genre = [[Horror fiction|Horror]], [[Thriller fiction|Thriller]], Fable | publisher = [[Jonathan Cape]] (UK), <br> [[Little, Brown and Company]] (US) | pub_date = 1963 | media_type = Print (hardcover) | pages = 256 (Dell, 1964, Softcover) | isbn = | oclc = }} '''''The Collector''''' is a 1963 [[debut novel]] by English author [[John Fowles]]. It was adapted as a [[The Collector (1965 film)|feature film]] of the same name in 1965. ==Plot summary== The novel is about a lonely young man, Frederick Clegg, who works as a clerk in a city hall and collects [[Butterfly|butterflies]] in his spare time. The first part of the novel tells the story from his point of view. Clegg is obsessed with Miranda Grey, a middle-class art student at the [[Slade School of Fine Art]]. He admires her from a distance but is unable to make any contact with her because he lacks [[social skill]]s. One day, he wins a large prize in the [[football pools]]. He quits his job and buys an isolated house in the countryside. He feels lonely, however, and wants to be with Miranda. Unable to make any normal contact, Clegg decides to add her to his "collection" of pretty, petrified objects, in the hope that if he keeps her captive long enough, she will grow to love him. After careful preparations, he [[Kidnapping|kidnaps]] Miranda by drugging her with [[chloroform]] and locks her up in the cellar of his house. He is convinced that Miranda will start to love him after some time. However, when she wakes up, she confronts him with his actions. Clegg is embarrassed and promises to let her go after a month. He promises to show her "every respect", pledging not to [[sexual abuse|sexually molest]] her and to shower her with gifts and the comforts of home, on one condition: she can't leave the cellar. The second part of the novel is narrated by Miranda in the form of fragments from a [[diary]] that she keeps during her captivity. Miranda reminisces over her previous life throughout this section of the novel; and many of her diary entries are written either to her sister or to a man named G.P., whom she respected and admired as an artist. Miranda reveals that G.P. ultimately fell in love with her and consequently severed all contact with her. At first, Miranda thinks that Clegg has sexual motives for abducting her; but, as his true character begins to be revealed, she realises that this is not true. She begins to pity her captor, comparing him to [[Caliban]] in [[William Shakespeare|Shakespeare]]'s play ''[[The Tempest (play)|The Tempest]]'' because of his hopeless obsession with her. Clegg tells Miranda that his first name is Ferdinand (eventual winner of Miranda's affections in ''The Tempest''). Miranda tries to escape several times, but Clegg stops her. She also tries to seduce him to convince him to let her go. The only result is that he becomes confused and angry. When Clegg keeps refusing to let her go, she starts to [[fantasy (psychology)|fantasize]] about killing him. After a failed attempt to do so, Miranda passes through a phase of self-loathing. She decides that, to kill Clegg, would lower her to his level. She refrains from any further attempts to do so. Before she can try to escape again, she becomes seriously ill and dies. The third part of the novel is narrated by Clegg. At first, he wants to commit [[suicide]] after he finds Miranda dead; but, after he reads in her diary that she never loved him, he decides that he is not responsible for what happened to her and is better off without her. The book ends with his announcement that he plans to kidnap another girl. == Fowles' discussion of background to ''The Collector'' == In his second book, ''[[The Aristos]]'', a collection of philosophical essays, Fowles wrote that he intended the novel to explore the danger of class and intellectual divisions in a society where prosperity for the majority was becoming more widespread, and power (whether by wealth or position) was gained by those intellectually unsuited to handle it.{{cn|date=June 2014}} He further discusses his inspiration for ''The Collector.'' He said that the Greek philosopher [[Heraclitus]] saw mankind as divided into two groups. The first was a moral and intellectual elite known as ''the aristoi'', or "the good", (not necessarily meaning those of noble birth), and the second was ''hoi polloi'', or "the many", who were viewed as an unthinking, conforming mass. Fowles wanted readers to understand that "the dividing line should run through each individual, not between individuals."<ref name=Aristos>John Fowles, ''The Aristos''. Preface to the 1968 Edition</ref> He wrote, <blockquote>"I tried to establish the virtual innocence of the many. Miranda, the girl he [Clegg] imprisoned, had very little more control than Clegg over what she was: she had well-to-do parents, a good educational opportunity, inherited aptitude and intelligence. That does not mean that she was perfect. Far from it – she was arrogant in her ideas, a prig, a [[classical liberalism|liberal]]-[[humanism|humanist]] snob, like so many university students. Yet if she had not died she might have become something better, the kind of being humanity so desperately need."<ref name=Aristos/></blockquote> Fowles goes on to explain that the purpose of the novel was not to say that a precious elite was threatened by the barbarian hordes. Rather, that people had to face up to an unnecessary brutal conflict based on envy and contempt, and accept that we will never be born equal until The Many can be educated out of a false sense of inferiority and The Few can understand that biological superiority is not a state of existence but rather a state of responsibility. He strongly opposes the view that the idea behind ''The Collector'' is a fascist one.<ref name=Aristos/> == Adaptations == ''The Collector'' has been adapted as film and a dramatic play. , including film and theatre. ''The Collector'' also is referred to in various songs, television episodes, and books. === Film version === {{Main|The Collector (1965 film)}} The novel was adapted as a [[The Collector (1965 film)|feature film]] by the same name in 1965. The screenplay was by Stanley Mann and John Kohn, and it was directed by [[William Wyler]]. (He turned down ''[[The Sound of Music (film)|The Sound of Music]]'' to do it). It starred [[Terence Stamp]] and [[Samantha Eggar]]. === Theatre versions === * A stage version of the novel (written by John Fowles) was performed in London in the late 1960s or early 1970s. [[Marianne Faithfull]] starred as Miranda. It was poorly received by the critics. * It has also been performed at the Camden's People Theatre.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Stage|url=http://www.thestage.co.uk/reviews/review.php/8470/the-collector|accessdate=30 January 2008}}</ref> * Another adaption was written by Mark Healy and first performed at [[Derby Playhouse]] in October 1998. * Mark Healy's adaptation was also performed at the 'Arcola Theatre' in [[Hackney, London]] from 26 August to 20 September 2008. * The play was also performed at the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe by 'Vivid Theatre Company.' * [http://blinktheatre.wix.com/blink Blink. Theatre] will produce the play at [[The Space]] from 3rd-14th March 2015. === Music === * "The Collector", a song inspired by the novel, was written by [[Sonny Curtis]]. It was recorded by [[The Everly Brothers]] in 1966 and included on their album ''Two Yanks in England''. The song was also recorded by 'The No. 1' band in 1967 on Kapp records (K824/K-10643) b/w "Cracks in the Sidewalk" (Kapp K824/K-10644). * The song "The Butterfly Collector" by [[The Jam]] (the B-Side of the 1979 single "Strange Town") was said to be inspired by the book. It was about [[Soo Catwoman]] who, upon the implosion of the [[Sex Pistols]], attempted to become part of [[The Jam]]'s entourage. * The song "Purity" by metal band [[Slipknot (band)|Slipknot]] has lyrics related to the novel. *The song "Prosthetics" by [[Slipknot (band)|Slipknot]] recount a story similar to that in the novel. * The song "The Collector" by Russian band [[Deadushki]] has lyrics related to the novel. * The Smiths song "Half A Person" is thought to be titled after the quote, "Caliban is half a person at the best of times." * The song "International Rock Star" by the Canadian band [[Stars (Canadian band)|Stars]] is loosely related to the plot of the book and features soundbites from the film. * The song "The Man Who Stole A Leopard" by British band [[Duran Duran]] (''All You Need Is Now'' album) was inspired by the movie, according to the keyboardist Nick Rhodes. * The song "Index" by UK artist [[Steven Wilson]] (album [[Grace For Drowning]] Kscope 2011) was inspired by the novel. * The song "Chastity" by pop-rock group [[The Raves]] (album [[Past Perfect Tense]] Hologramophone 1992) has lyrics related to the novel. === Television === The basic plot of ''The Collector'': a lonely maladjusted person kidnapping the object of his or her desire, has become a standard plot device of a number of TV shows, ranging from soap operas to crime series. Some more explicit references to John Fowles' book are: * In the ''[[Criminal Minds]]'' two-part episode, "The Fisher King", a kidnapper uses a copy of ''The Collector'' to send a coded message to the [[Behavioral Analysis Unit]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Criminal Minds: Fisher King|url=http://www.tv.com/criminal-minds/the-fisher-king-2/episode/805102/recap.html|accessdate=30 January 2008}}</ref> * In an episode of ''[[The Simpsons]]'', "[[Treehouse of Horror X]]", [[Comic Book Guy]] uses the supervillain persona "The Collector" and kidnaps [[Lucy Lawless]] from a [[comic book convention]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Treehouse of Horror X|url=http://www.tv.com//treehouse-of-horror-x/episode/1515/summary.html?q=&tag=search_results;episode_title;1|accessdate=30 January 2008}}</ref> === Books and comics === * In the book ''[[The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower|The Dark Tower]]'' by [[Stephen King]], [[Finli O'Tego]], also known as The Weasel, reads ''The Collector''. Later Finli noticed another character, Dinky, reading Fowles' ''[[The Magus (novel)|The Magus]].'' * In the book ''[[Misery (novel)|Misery]]'' by [[Stephen King]], the character [[Paul Sheldon]] compares his situation to that in Fowles' novel. A quote from ''The Collector'' prefaces part three. *In [[Neil Gaiman]]'s comic ''[[The Sandman: The Doll's House|The Doll's House]],'' there is a reference to ''The Collector''. "Collectors" episode is about a convention of [[serial killer]]s who watch the film and discuss it in terms of themselves. == Associations with serial killers == In several cases since the novel was published, serial killers, spree killers, [[kidnappers]], and other criminals have claimed that ''The Collector'' was the basis, the inspiration, or the justification for their crimes.<ref name="crimelibrary.com">[http://www.crimelibrary.com/serial_killers/predators/wilder/9.html "Christopher Wilder, sadistic serial killer of beauty pageant winners" – The Crime Library – The Crime library<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> ===Leonard Lake and Charles Ng=== {{main|Leonard Lake|Charles Ng}} In 1985, [[Leonard Lake]] and [[Charles Ng|Charles Chi-Tat Ng]] abducted 18-year-old Kathy Allen and later 19-year-old Brenda O'Connor. Lake is said to have been obsessed with ''The Collector.'' Lake described his plan for using the women for sex and housekeeping in a "philosophy" videotape. The two are believed to have murdered at least 25 people, including two entire families. Although Lake had committed several crimes in the [[Ukiah, California]] area, his "Operation Miranda" did not begin until after he moved to remote [[Wilseyville, California]]. The videotapes of his murders and a diary written by Lake were found buried near the bunker in Wilseyville. They revealed that Lake had named his plot ''Operation Miranda'' after the character in Fowles' book.<ref>Lasseter, D. (2000). "Die For Me." New York: Kensington Publishing Company</ref> ===Christopher Wilder=== [[Christopher Wilder]], a spree/serial killer of young girls, had ''The Collector'' in his possession when he killed himself in 1984.<ref name="crimelibrary.com"/> ===Robert Berdella=== In 1988, [[Robert Berdella]] held his male victims captive and photographed their torture before killing them. He claimed that the film version of ''The Collector'' had been his inspiration when he was a teenager.<ref>[http://www.crimelibrary.com/serial_killers/predators/bob_berdella/10.html Bob Berdella – The Crime library<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> == References == {{reflist}} ==External links== *[http://www.rogalinski.com.pl/analysis-of-the-collector-by-john-fowles/ Verbal Struggle for Power in "The Collector" by John Fowles] *[http://www.fowlesbooks.com/ The Official John Fowles website] {{Fowles}} {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2013}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Collector, The}} [[Category:1963 novels]] [[Category:British horror novels]] [[Category:British novels adapted into films]] [[Category:English-language books]] [[Category:Jonathan Cape books]] [[Category:Novels by John Fowles]] [[Category:Novels set in Sussex]] [[Category:Psychopathy in fiction]] [[es:El coleccionista]]'