More Joy in Heaven by Morley Callaghan Book Analysis

Society exploits individuals for entertainment, to throw them away when civilization gets bored. This idea of society using people is illustrated by Morley Callaghan in his novel More Joy in Heaven, where the same people who inflate the protagonist break him down. The main character, Kip Caley, has just been released from prison and is put on display, which leads to his demise. So, in More Joy in Heaven by Morley Callaghan, although Kip Caley has noble dreams and good intentions he is doomed because his community builds him up, and gives him false hope just to throw him away.

Kip has quite good intentions, and a few dreams, which are noble. To start, Kip dreams of being left alone, or anonymous and exploring the city. He gets out of jail and does not want “anybody to pay attention to [him]” (Callaghan 15), but desires to get lost “like a kid in a big city” (Callaghan 7). Kip does not want to do anything negative as he is let out of jail and his intentions for the future are innocent. Furthermore, Kip dreams of being a liaison, or a middleman between the law and criminals. Kip wants to be “able to help discouraged jailbirds” (Callaghan 42) and his goal to be a liaison is “the thing he had always wanted” (Callaghan 188). This dream is noble and shows Kip has good intentions as he desires to help. Additionally, Kip dreams of having a simple and private life with his love interest, Julie Evans. When Kip returns from jail he wants to tell his mother about “his desire for a simple life” (Callaghan 24), and later in the story, with Julie, he is reminded “of the longing he used to have in prison for a simple life” (Callaghan 94). Kip has good intentions with this dream and does not plan on doing anything felonious; he just wants a simple life. In conclusion, Kip possesses good intentions and noble dreams.

In addition to these dreams Kip also possesses false hope because his community builds him up and makes him believe he means more to them than he truly does. Initially, the people at the hotel build up Kip’s pride and give him false hope by cheering for him on New Year's Eve. Everyone shouts things like “Hurrah for Kip” (Callaghan 77) and the moment is “his apotheosis” (Callaghan 77). People shouting for him builds Kip up and makes him feel more important to them than he really is; this dooms him by giving him false hope he can accomplish his far-fetched, yet noble dreams. Likewise, individuals like Smiley build up Kip’s confidence by manipulating him into thinking he is the best and that they love him. To get Kip to do what he desires Smiley tells Kip he does not understand “the significance” (Callaghan 41) of what he is doing and that no one could handle parole “work better” (Callaghan 42). Smiley making this claim develops Kip’s confidence and makes him believe people want him on the parole board more than they actually do. Lastly, a man naming a sandwich after Kip makes him feel like a celebrity to the community and important to them, even though he is not. The man names a “special sandwich” (Callaghan 70) after Kip as “a gesture for peace” (Callaghan 70). This action makes Kip believe the people care about him more than they honestly do, and it gives him false hope. To summarize, by encouraging him, Kip’s community builds him up and makes him assume he means more to them than he does.

Not only do they encourage Kip but eventually his community throws him away, resulting in the destruction of his dreams, and his overall demise. To begin, it is proven Kip has been discarded and his dream of becoming a liaison is destroyed when Jenkins tells him he must become a wrestler. Jenkins informs Kip that if he refuses to be a wrestler he is “through at the hotel” (Callaghan 131). Jenkins' proposal shows the community has thrown Kip away, and ruins his dream because he can not be a liaison as a wrestler. Moreover, The Senator suggesting Kip goes to the mining country shows that he is done with him, and wrecks Kip’s dream of a private life with Julie. When Kip asks for help the Senator suggests he leaves and looks like he has “a millstone around his neck” (Callaghan 136). This idea would separate Kip from Julie, and the Senator’s lack of care shows he is tired of Kip and is fine with throwing him away. Finally, society wanting Kip hung shows they have thrown him away and demolishes his dream of being unknown. After Kip commits his final crime everyone hopes “they get him quick and hang him” (Callaghan 192). Their anger illustrates they have already thrown Kip away, and their want for him to be hanged ruins his dream of being anonymous because everyone knows him. Therefore, Kip is doomed from the start because the same people who build him up are the ones who break him down and lead to his demise.

So, clearly Kip from the novel More Joy in Heaven by Morley Callaghan is doomed from the start because although he has dreams he is thrown away by the people who helped him. Specifically, Kip has noble dreams, but is built up and thrown away, proving he has always been doomed. Lastly, like the community did to Kip, society throws people away.