Second Review: Two Bret Easton Ellis Novels

Less than Zero

The Rules of Attraction

Bret Easton Ellis

After I read American Psycho a few months ago I was definitely interested in reading more of Bret Easton Ellis' books. These two novels are Ellis' first novels, and considering he wrote them while still an undergraduate in college, I must say that they are quite impressive. I know I certainly didn't write in books as an undergrad, and even as a post-graduate student I am struggling to do so. However, if these books provide any insight into his work ethic as a student, it is fairly easy to see where he found the time to write. Both of these books are about students, and in both books, none of his characters find school important. They don't go to class, electing instead to attend parties, find drugs, and engage in "promiscuous activity."

I chose to review these two books together because of the similarity in themes, characters, and I think they work well together as a pair. They complement one another in a way that is probably intentional (although this opinion is made in retrospect, as these books were written in the mid to late 80s). In addition, all (or almost all) of Ellis' novels have characters from his other books. For instance, the main character in The Rules of Attraction is Sean Bateman, who is Patrick Bateman's younger brother (American Psycho). Clay, who is the main character of Less than Zero also has a cameo in The Rules of Attraction. Also, two characters from The Rules of Attraction appear prominently in Ellis' Glamorama.

Briefly, Less than Zero is about a young college student who returns home to L.A. on Christmas break. Once he returns, he quickly finds himself immersed in the disaffected youth culture he sought to escape by going to a liberal arts school in the East. He reconnects with his current girlfriend Blair (with whom he is technically in a relationship, although he has not called her for four months), though the designated relationship means nothing in terms of actions. He cheats on her, she cheats on him, nobody really cares. He also spends a good portion of the novel trying to find his friend Julian, who seems involved in shady activity. Clay shows as much concern as possible, which in this novel means he mentions it in passing before attending a party hoping his friend will be there.

The Rules of Attraction introduces us to a few more characters, but they attend Camden with Clay (Clay is only mentioned once in this novel, however). The story is rather difficult to define, as it pretty accurately depicts life for three hard-partying students who cannot pick a major and who do not attend class. The three main characters are Lauren Hynde, Sean Bateman, and Paul Denton. Essentially, these three enter a love triangle that complicates life for each other in different ways, both in terms of defining their individual sexualities (Sean and Paul have a tumultuous affair) and in terms of defining their emotions within those relationships.

Before I begin with the review, I must say that after reading American Psycho I was intrigued about other novels Ellis has published. After I finish Glamorama this week I will have read all of his books except one, which I will probably read in the near future as well. I am definitely a fan of his work. But, I also noticed that his books have gotten better. These books are great considering when he wrote them, but they do not quite match up next to American Psycho or Glamorama (at least what I've read of it so far). These books do provide a good introduction to the satirical tone for which he is famous (or infamous, depending on your point of view), but his focus on narrative has definitely sharpened throughout his career.

Not one to shy away from difficult topics, Ellis throws quite a bit at the reader throughout both of these novels. The characters seem flat, as they have no emotion and just act. While Rules gives a little more insight into the thought processes of the characters, their attitudes still have a disenchanted tone. What we normally value in our lives (relationships, friendships, love, success) these characters simply keep separate from themselves and examine half-heartedly, as if they are minor pieces that have the potential to make them whole. However, they lack the motivation to put these pieces together and savor experiences. They just exist, do what feels good, and move on with their lives. They reduce relationships to sex, friendships to a person's usefulness, love to stoicism, and success to mere survival. Whenever something happens that throws this routine off, the characters remove one or all of these components from their lives until it is safe to include them again without emotion.

There are some absolutely terrible scenes in these books as well (which I will not go into too deeply), but Ellis presents them so dispassionately that I often felt desensitized. The narrators in both books simply present these scenes as facts, but do not display any emotion or opinion about what they see or hear. In Less than Zero, Clay walks in and observes a crime. He simply leaves the room and goes somewhere else until it stops. Afterwards, he continues on with his day or night, which in this novel is interchangeable.

Typically, flat characters are a no-no in the literary world, but in these books it is absolutely intentional. Everything about the characters is blase, from the dialogue to the narrators' descriptions of events and other characters. I do feel it necessary to point out, however, that while it makes both novels intriguing stylistically, it does not always translate to "a good read." At times the narrative can be monotonous, and in fact the narrative thread was not obvious to me until I was almost done with both books.

Overall, I found Rules to be slightly stronger, simply because Ellis presents several points of view throughout the novel. It is especially interesting when he presents multiple points of view of the same event, which is usually a rendezvous between the main characters. At times it is funny, but more often it is simply pathetic.

If you like your literature to deliver a knockout punch, with clear endings, justice, and definitive outcomes, Ellis is not the author for you. There are no pretty packages or bows here, or in any of his novels. This can be an unsatisfying experience, but I've found that postmodern endings stay with me a little longer. I personally like wondering how a story really ends, but I recognize that when I finish a novel I often feel frustrated. While I liked these books in general, I found that I did not care for the characters enough to think too much about what happened to them after the novel. It is in this respect that a contradiction in Ellis' writing lies; the prose is so disaffected that it desensitizes the reader as well.

In general, Ellis does not create savory characters. I believe the two dimensional aspect of these novels is intentional, but it is often at the expense of reader involvement. I did not really want to see any more of them when I was through, whereas in his more recent works he develops his characters in a way that is interesting. If you are looking for an introduction to Ellis, I would suggest either of these novels before you tackle any of his later work. They are short (though not easy) books, and you will also be able to develop your opinions of Ellis fairly definitively. While I think he is great, I suspect that many readers have a "love him or hate him" relationship with his work without many opinions in between.

Less than Zero 3/5

The Rules of Attraction 3.5/5