Hell - a concept which is a topic of heated debate among religious figures, mythologies, and philosophers alike is prevalent in Flann O’Brien’s The Third Policeman. Hell, in Christianity, is a place located within the Earth. It is the place of perpetual torment for sinners. In going to Hell, the sinner retains all knowledge of life, and that knowledge is used in torment for all of eternity. This is similar to the world the narrator of O’Brien’s work enters after having committed a murder. In his Hell, the character is tormented with unfinished business, being that he was never able to publish his life’s work, the De Selby index, and the knowledge that the money to do so was always just out of reach.
In order for a person to be committed to Hell, they must commit a crime against God, or in other words, commit a sin. A sin which has not been repented for will result in the sinner being sent to Hell. “The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil”(Matt.13.41). Committing a sin means to break one of the ten commandments. Generally speaking, a sinner is a repeat offender. This is a result of not being close to God, and not understanding the error of his or her ways. The narrator in O’Brien’s work is one such repeat offender.
The fifth commandment is thou shall not kill. The narrator in O’Brien’s novel breaks this commandment when he assists in the planning and murder of Mathers. The narrator comments, suggesting the murder in the following: “I [...] smashed the blade of it with all my strength against the protruding chin. I felt and almost heard the fabric of his skull crumple up crisply like an empty eggshell. I do not know how often I struck him, but I did not stop until I was tired” (O’Brien, 16). If murder had been the only crime the narrator had committed, and he’d repented, he might not have been sent to Hell. However, this was not the case.
The narrator’s initial intention had not been to kill Mathers, but rather, to steal from him his cash box which was known to contain a large sum of money. The narrator needed it to publish his life’s work, the De Selby Index, and “[...] he meant to kill him as well in order to avoid the possibility of being identified as the robber afterwards” (O’Brien, 15). Divney succeeded in getting “[...] the black cash-box in his hand” and though it wasn’t the narrator whom actually removed the box from Mathers’ person, he conspired to steal the money from the old man alongside Divney. Therefore, he is also guilty of breaking the seventh commandment, thou shall not steal. As such, he is committed to a hellish place as punishment for his sins in life.
The Bible, one of the only sources of information on the topic of Hell, suggests that, in Hell “[...] there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth" (Matt. 8.12). Though there is little weeping in The Third Policeman, teeth are discussed in length upon the arrival of the narrator in “Hell”. Gnashing, or grinding of teeth is also present in the dialog of the novel. Being that the above quote is regarded as one of the most famous commentaries on Hell, and that as soon as the character arrives in “Hell” in O’Brien’s work he is immediately bombarded with discussions of teeth, it is obvious that this is not coincidental. Rather, the discussions are alluding to the book of Matthew and the discussion of Hell therein.
Upon arrival at the barracks, the narrator was met by a policeman “[...] as he gazed into a mirror” (O’Brien, 54). “ ‘It’s my teeth. [...] Nearly every sickness is from the teeth,’ “ (O’Brien, 54) the policeman said. Teeth are not a topic one would consider commonplace in conversation, especially upon meeting somebody for the first time. Until this moment, Pluck and the narrator had not been acquainted, and as such one might expect an introduction before conversation of teeth or the like. This is, no doubt, an allusion to the book of Matthew.
However, this instance is not the only allusion to the biblical passage aforementioned. In the following, the author again alludes to the New Testament:
In the above, O’Brien directly alludes to the gnashing or grinding of teeth present within the book of Matthew. Gilhaney directly suggests a grinding of teeth common in the “Hell” of O’Brien’s The Third Policeman. As such, the author’s intent of creating a sort of “Hell” within his novel becomes apparent to the audience.
Followers of the Catholic church believe that the knowledge attained in life is carried on to the afterlife. This knowledge is used against an individual as a form of torment, either physical or mental. This belief comes from the following passage:
In the above, the rich man is sent to Hell remembering his family and the beggar Lazarus. He is tormented knowing that he has committed a sin and that his brothers will soon face a similar fate.
The narrator in The Third Policeman also enters Hell having retained the knowledge he acquired in life. This is evident because as he sets out into Hell, his first thought was that he “[...] recalled John Divney and [...] life with him” (O’Brien, 39). Furthermore, he recalls how he and Divney “[...] came to wait under the dripping trees” the night of Mathers murder (Ibid). The fact that he retains the knowledge he had of life suggests that the narrator has entered a form of Hell. However, this does not necessarily constitute Hell.
Hell is the place of perpetual torment for sinners. Sinners are cast into Hell where they are forever tormented with the knowledge they retained from life. In the case of the narrator, it was mainly two pieces of knowledge he was initially tormented with - that of the whereabouts of the cash box, and the need to publish and complete the De Selby Index. As he walks about Hell, the narrator wonders about “[...] the hiding-place of the black box” (Ibid). Throughout the novel, he attempts to trick the policemen into leading him to the box suggesting that he’d lost his American gold watch (O’Brien, 60). Throughout the entirety of the novel, the narrator is on a quest to find the cash-box. However, he never succeeds in actually doing so.
While on the quest to find the stolen money, the narrator is constantly reminded of De Selby, the philosopher on which he’d compiled an Index. These reminders are present in the text in the form of footnotes outlining how De Selby would have felt about many of the situations the narrator is faced with. The Index was likely the narrator’s greatest accomplishment and to complete it, all that was required was to have the work published. However, money was required to ensure that such a thing would happen. Essentially, it was a never ending cycle where the money was required to publish his works, and the money had to be found. However, neither occurs.
When the reader assumes that the book is finally coming to an end, we are made aware that the narrator has been dead all along.
However, Hell suggests that one suffers torment perpetually, or for eternity. At the beginning of the book, when the narrator is initially cast into hell, he encounters the police barracks.
It is evident that it was O’Brien’s intent in writing The Third Policeman to create a Hell which the narrator was to navigate. This unnamed character was cast there for having broken two of the ten commandments. O’Brien created this Hell by alluding to the Bible, specifically the books of Mathew and Luke. He created a world like Hell in that the narrator retained his knowledge from life, and was tormented with this knowledge. Further, he was tormented perpetually. Therefore, it can be concluded that the setting in which the majority of Flann O’Brien’s The Third Policeman takes place is Hell.
In order for a person to be committed to Hell, they must commit a crime against God, or in other words, commit a sin. A sin which has not been repented for will result in the sinner being sent to Hell. “The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil”(Matt.13.41). Committing a sin means to break one of the ten commandments. Generally speaking, a sinner is a repeat offender. This is a result of not being close to God, and not understanding the error of his or her ways. The narrator in O’Brien’s work is one such repeat offender.
The fifth commandment is thou shall not kill. The narrator in O’Brien’s novel breaks this commandment when he assists in the planning and murder of Mathers. The narrator comments, suggesting the murder in the following: “I [...] smashed the blade of it with all my strength against the protruding chin. I felt and almost heard the fabric of his skull crumple up crisply like an empty eggshell. I do not know how often I struck him, but I did not stop until I was tired” (O’Brien, 16). If murder had been the only crime the narrator had committed, and he’d repented, he might not have been sent to Hell. However, this was not the case.
The narrator’s initial intention had not been to kill Mathers, but rather, to steal from him his cash box which was known to contain a large sum of money. The narrator needed it to publish his life’s work, the De Selby Index, and “[...] he meant to kill him as well in order to avoid the possibility of being identified as the robber afterwards” (O’Brien, 15). Divney succeeded in getting “[...] the black cash-box in his hand” and though it wasn’t the narrator whom actually removed the box from Mathers’ person, he conspired to steal the money from the old man alongside Divney. Therefore, he is also guilty of breaking the seventh commandment, thou shall not steal. As such, he is committed to a hellish place as punishment for his sins in life.
The Bible, one of the only sources of information on the topic of Hell, suggests that, in Hell “[...] there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth" (Matt. 8.12). Though there is little weeping in The Third Policeman, teeth are discussed in length upon the arrival of the narrator in “Hell”. Gnashing, or grinding of teeth is also present in the dialog of the novel. Being that the above quote is regarded as one of the most famous commentaries on Hell, and that as soon as the character arrives in “Hell” in O’Brien’s work he is immediately bombarded with discussions of teeth, it is obvious that this is not coincidental. Rather, the discussions are alluding to the book of Matthew and the discussion of Hell therein.
Upon arrival at the barracks, the narrator was met by a policeman “[...] as he gazed into a mirror” (O’Brien, 54). “ ‘It’s my teeth. [...] Nearly every sickness is from the teeth,’ “ (O’Brien, 54) the policeman said. Teeth are not a topic one would consider commonplace in conversation, especially upon meeting somebody for the first time. Until this moment, Pluck and the narrator had not been acquainted, and as such one might expect an introduction before conversation of teeth or the like. This is, no doubt, an allusion to the book of Matthew.
However, this instance is not the only allusion to the biblical passage aforementioned. In the following, the author again alludes to the New Testament:
“Nowadays,” the Sergeant said, “it is nothing strange to see a class of boys at First Book with wholesome teeth and with junior plates manufactured by the County Council for half nothing.”
“Grinding the teeth half-way up a hill,” said Gilhaney, “there is nothing worse, it files away the best part of them and leads to a hob-nailed liver indirectly.”
“In Russia,” said the Sergeant, “they make teeth out of old piano-keys for elderly cows”(O’Brien, 80).
In the above, O’Brien directly alludes to the gnashing or grinding of teeth present within the book of Matthew. Gilhaney directly suggests a grinding of teeth common in the “Hell” of O’Brien’s The Third Policeman. As such, the author’s intent of creating a sort of “Hell” within his novel becomes apparent to the audience.
Followers of the Catholic church believe that the knowledge attained in life is carried on to the afterlife. This knowledge is used against an individual as a form of torment, either physical or mental. This belief comes from the following passage:
There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.
The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried. In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony
in this fire.'
But Abraham replied, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you
received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.'
He answered, 'Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father's house, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.'
Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.'
'No, father Abraham,' he said, 'but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.'
He said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead' (Luke.16.19-31).
In the above, the rich man is sent to Hell remembering his family and the beggar Lazarus. He is tormented knowing that he has committed a sin and that his brothers will soon face a similar fate.
The narrator in The Third Policeman also enters Hell having retained the knowledge he acquired in life. This is evident because as he sets out into Hell, his first thought was that he “[...] recalled John Divney and [...] life with him” (O’Brien, 39). Furthermore, he recalls how he and Divney “[...] came to wait under the dripping trees” the night of Mathers murder (Ibid). The fact that he retains the knowledge he had of life suggests that the narrator has entered a form of Hell. However, this does not necessarily constitute Hell.
Hell is the place of perpetual torment for sinners. Sinners are cast into Hell where they are forever tormented with the knowledge they retained from life. In the case of the narrator, it was mainly two pieces of knowledge he was initially tormented with - that of the whereabouts of the cash box, and the need to publish and complete the De Selby Index. As he walks about Hell, the narrator wonders about “[...] the hiding-place of the black box” (Ibid). Throughout the novel, he attempts to trick the policemen into leading him to the box suggesting that he’d lost his American gold watch (O’Brien, 60). Throughout the entirety of the novel, the narrator is on a quest to find the cash-box. However, he never succeeds in actually doing so.
While on the quest to find the stolen money, the narrator is constantly reminded of De Selby, the philosopher on which he’d compiled an Index. These reminders are present in the text in the form of footnotes outlining how De Selby would have felt about many of the situations the narrator is faced with. The Index was likely the narrator’s greatest accomplishment and to complete it, all that was required was to have the work published. However, money was required to ensure that such a thing would happen. Essentially, it was a never ending cycle where the money was required to publish his works, and the money had to be found. However, neither occurs.
When the reader assumes that the book is finally coming to an end, we are made aware that the narrator has been dead all along.
“He said I was dead. He said that what he had put under the boards in the big house was not the black box but a mine, a bomb. I had gone up when I touched it. He had watched the bursting of it from where I had left him. The house was blown to bits. I was dead, [...] I was dead for sixteen years” (O’Brien, 197).At this point, the narrator realizes that the search he had undergone for the box had been futile and that, furthermore, his lifes work would never be published. He had been dead all along, living in a hellish afterlife, tormented, thinking he was alive and still had an opportunity to complete his life work.
However, Hell suggests that one suffers torment perpetually, or for eternity. At the beginning of the book, when the narrator is initially cast into hell, he encounters the police barracks.
Being that Hell is a place of eternal torment, it would not have been a fitting ending had the book concluded with the narrators realization that he had been dead the whole time. Rather, the book ends in the same way Hell had begun.I saw, standing with his back to me, an enormous policeman. His back appearance was unusual. He was standing behind a little counter in a neat whitewashed day-room; his mouth was open and he was looking into a mirror which hung upon the wall.
[...]
“It’s my teeth,” I heard him say abstractedly and half
aloud. [...] “Nearly every sickness is from the teeth.”
His face gave me one more surprise. It was enormously fat, red and widespread, sitting squarely on the neck of his tunic with a clumsy weightiness that reminded me of a sack of
flour. The lower half of it was hidden by a violent red moustache which shot out from his skin far into the air like the antennae of some unusual animal. His cheeks were red and chubby and his eyes were nearly invisible, hidden from above
by the obstruction of his tufted brows and from below by the fat foldings of his skin. He came over ponderously to the inside of the counter and I advanced meekly from the door until we were face to face.
“Is it about a bicycle?” he asked (O’Brien, 54).
We saw, standing with his back to us, an enormous policeman. His back appearance was unusual. He was standing behind a little counter in a neat whitewashed day-room; his mouth was open and he was looking into a mirror which hung upon the wall.This ending suggests that the narrator will forever search, to no avail, for the black cash-box in an attempt to publish the De Selby Index. This, though not a physical torment, is the emotional torment the narrator must undergo in his Hell.
“It’s my teeth,” I heard him say abstractedly and half aloud. “Nearly every sickness is from the teeth.”
His face, when he turned, surprised us. It was enormously fat, red and widespread, sitting squarely on the neck of his tunic with a clumsy weightiness that reminded me of a sack of flour. The lower half of it was hidden by a violent red moustache which shot out from his skin far into the air like the antennae of some unusual animal. His cheeks were red and chubby and his eyes were nearly invisible, hidden from above by the obstruction of his tufted brows and from below by the fat foldings of his skin. He came over ponderously to the inside of the counter and I advanced meekly from the door until we were face to face.
“Is it about a bicycle?” he asked
(O’Brien, 199).
It is evident that it was O’Brien’s intent in writing The Third Policeman to create a Hell which the narrator was to navigate. This unnamed character was cast there for having broken two of the ten commandments. O’Brien created this Hell by alluding to the Bible, specifically the books of Mathew and Luke. He created a world like Hell in that the narrator retained his knowledge from life, and was tormented with this knowledge. Further, he was tormented perpetually. Therefore, it can be concluded that the setting in which the majority of Flann O’Brien’s The Third Policeman takes place is Hell.
