Theme: The ills of modern society

1. Theme:The ills of modern society Black and Blue

2. Black and Blue The Guardian/Observer guide to the ‘1000 novels you must read’ called ‘Black and Blue ’a state of Scotland’ novel.

3. Society Throughout the novel Rankin, through Rebus, reflects, on modern society. The society in which Rebus lives is corrupt Rebus, however, is ethical and honest He is at odds with the society around him: “...people who mattered” (p6) An outsider: night drives He mistrusts people who seem outwardly respectable such as Major Weir

4. The Police Force The police should represent decency and justice CI Ancram – extremely important. Turns a blind eye to corruption Ancram compares Rebus’s view of the world as “black and white” (p281) Whereas Rebus says Ancram and others see the world in “grey silk suits and crisp green cash” This could also go for the rest of society Rebus’s contempt is shown in him talking about “West Coast dirt” (p76) He confronts Grogan on p274: “It was fun to watch the balloon fill with blood…”

5. The oil industry The title of the section – “Dead Crude” summarises the links of the industry to violence The industry has an appearance of prosperity and he links it to hope for the people involved On page 163 he compares Aberdeen to “Eldorado” – the fabled city of gold – and talks of oil’s “magic” But by the end of this setting description he is talking of “corruption” and “slavery”

6. Many of the people he meets are decent such as Ford (p254) However Rankin sees Aberdeen as “a real frontier” (p169) which makes the place like the Wild West – a place where law and order breaks down On page 207 the fight for progress is compared to a “war” The money created creates an appetite which needs to be fed: “plenty of dope, booze” (186)

7. Burke’s This is the place where people from the oil industry spend their money. It is flash and ostentatious But is also linked the murders of Alan Mitchison (p223) Rebus describes it as the meeting place of “the legit and the illicit” (p391) Corrupt policemen and the Toals base their operations here. Rebus empathises with the environmental protestors

8. The exploited His identification with those that fight respectable society is typical On page 51 he talks about his feelings for Angie Riddell P276 – wants to visit scene of her murder Pp321-322: “old guy…Frank…dosser”

9. Media The media hound Rebus, interested in the story rather than real justice, despite the name of the programme (p40) The recording of Angie Riddell’s song is re-released – taking advantage of the publicity from her murder: “making money from ghouls and the curious” (p50) The police are influenced by their perception in the media – p366, “TV seems to be the only thing brass are afraid of”

10. Family Family has traditionally been seen as the building block of society or society in miniature The families in this novel are unstable Rebus’s own family life is a mess – he is divorced and hardly sees his daughter On p327 Rebus thinks of her: “Fathers and daughters, eh?” Brain Holmes – is having difficulty with his wife Their dealings with the darker side of society has a negative effect on their relationships

11. The Toals The Toal family – Uncle Joe Toal. Eve Cudden cheats on her husband with his son and steals from him. She also plans to leave Malky. “She looked like a cat: same morals, same instinct.” (386) Malky shows his feelings towards his father – p369, p492 The children in the novel look to overthrow their parents and take over from them

12. Major Weir – causes his daughter massive pain “Her fists gouged her knees” (429) She feels the need to completely reinvent herself, changing her name and accent “Her face turned childlike...” (430) Rebus says: “You like the idea of torturing him” Noticeably Weir represents authority – “They call him ‘an institution’ in the oil world. Me, I was institutionalised...And then abused.” She asks Rebus, “if everything’s so wonderful, how come everything’s so fucked up?”

13. Both Rebus and Bible John have figures who see themselves as ‘sons’ Ryan Slocum says “I think Una would have liked a son” but he does not seem capable of caring for a child Johnny Bible is called “the spiritual son of Bible John” (p8) Bible John feels nothing but antipathy towards his ‘son’, calling him the ‘Upstart’ But Rankin shows the negative influence of parents – violence breeds violence

14. Rebus calls Brian Holmes “son” He is a role model because he has morals and fights for what is right But ultimately Holmes cannot emulate him as the cost to his personal life is too great

15. Society Rankin shows the decay of society and its indifference to other people “...a baby buggy caught his ankles, a woman told him to mind where he was fucking going. She bustled away, hauling a toddler behind her. Twenty, maybe twenty-one...Across the road , an advertising hoarding...” (55) He makes clear a link to the materialism and greed of a corrupt society Rebus does not fit into this society – p372: “He was an irregular regular, a loner even in company”