Doubt John Shanley

Doubt, described in the dictionary is to be uncertain about something or to hesitate to believe. Doubt is a perfect way to describe this book. The author of the story John Patrick Shanley chose a perfect title. The story involves a Father of a church school who is accused of giving special treatment, favoring, and molesting a boy named Donald Muller. The principle of the school thinks that the Father is guilty of the horrendous crime, and stops at nothing to prove his guilt. I believe that Father Flynn is guilty of the crime. I believe Father Flynn is guilty because of his actions and the excuses he uses. When the Father is accused of taking Donald into the rectory alone and assaulting him, he continued to ask questions about the boy.

Also because of the words Donald Müllers mother uses when she find out about the accusations. When Sister Aloysius starts to investigate the crime Father Flynn becomes enraged. “No, Sister. No third party. You and me are due for a talk”(Shanley 50). Sister Aloysius and Father Flynn are always supposed to have a third party present when they are talking. When Father Flynn slams the door and starts yelling at Sister Aloysius, he is breaking the rules. It seems to me he keeps going out of his way to prove his innocence. If one was accused of a crime, of course they would try to stop the gossip, but yelling and breaking rules is not the usual way of doing it. When Sister Aloysius invites Donald Muller’s mother in for a chat, you learn very interesting facts. Mrs. Muller tells the principal that she does not want to get into the accusations about her son and the priest. She says several times that Donald just has to make it at the school until June. After June he can go into a good high school, so she just wants the sister to leave the situation alone. Donald’s mother says that maybe some of the boys want to get caught. She tells the sister that Donald’s father beat him after the incident with the wine. Later you learn that Donald was not beat because of the wine, but because of whom he is. “But you can not hold a child responsible for what God gave him to be”(Shanley 48). By saying this Mrs. Muller is telling the sister that her son is not to be blamed for what happened. Even if Donald did not see it to be wrong, he still cannot be