Sympathy For Tom In The Talented Mr. Ripley By Patricia Highsmith

In the novel The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith, the author makes readers feel sympathy for Tom in spite of his worst actions. Even with Tom Ripley being a psychotic murderer, Highsmith makes the readers feel sorry for him for the majority of the book. To start, Tom is introduced initially with dead parental figures. He is raised by his crazy Aunt Dottie who does not have a good influence on him. In addition, from the reader's perspective, Tom looks like he is doing a good thing for Mr. and Mrs. Greenleaf when he already needs help himself. Lastly, Tom cannot stand being himself and he hates everything he does. These things cause the readers to feel sympathy for Tom despite his psycho self. From the beginning of the novel, it is known that Tom’s parents passed away. Tom is raised by Aunt Dottie who is his cruel aunt who seems to constantly get in his head. She

This makes the readers feel compassion for Tom because it is so sad that he is so self conscious. Although, his self consciousness is his biggest motive. Tom does everything he can do to be liked and nothing seems to work. He would “follow the patches of sunlight that came through his windows, so that he wouldn’t look so white the next time he came down to the beach. And he had spent the remainder of his feeble strength studying an Italian conversation book he had bought in the hotel lobby” (Highsmith 53). This quote is showing the extent Tom Ripley goes to be liked by others. Towards the end of the book it says, “He hated becoming Thomas Ripley again, hated being nobody, hated putting on his old set of habits again, and feeling that people looked down on him and were bored with him unless he put on an act for them like a clown…” (Highsmith 179). Although Tom stole somebody's identity and murdered two people, it is still so sad seeing that he hates himself and feels like people look down on