Into the Water

Hawkins uses the phrases “troublesome women” and “good men” frequently throughout Into the Water. Nel’s obsession with troublesome women forms the core of the story, as she delves into Beckford’s history and learns how many times women have been drowned or drowned themselves for behaving inappropriately. “Troublesome” is a code word for women who behave outside the norms of expected behavior in a society dominated by men. Any woman who stands up for herself against men, who engages in sex for enjoyment, who has potentially questionable relationships, or who simply seems to exist outside the bounds of “accepted” behavior is “troublesome.” A good woman, by Beckford’s definition, would be Patrick’s ideal—plain, honest, virginal, obedient. Most of the women of modern Beckford are troublesome. Nel, Jules, Lena, Katie, Nickie, and Erin all behave outside their supposed bounds, and all of them are insulted, disparaged, shunned, or killed, often with contributions from other women. However, those who survive eventually find strength in each other and in standing up against the system that tries to keep them down.

The only two “good” women—Helen and Louise—lose what they love, including the understanding of who they thought the people around them were. Being troublesome may often end in disaster, but being a slave is no better. Additionally, almost all of the “troublesome” women in the story are victims of “good” men. For Hawkins, a “good man” is a man who commits atrocities against women but escapes punishment because of his position in society or simply the internalized misogyny of the surrounding culture. Libby Seeton, whose story starts the history of the Drowning Pool, is killed for “seducing” a married man. No one considers the man at fault, despite being the adult in the situation. Similarly, Katie continually puts the onus of her relationship with Mark on herself, in large part because Mark himself does as well. Patrick murders his wife for being a “slut,” yet no proof is ever offered that she was an adulterer, and Hawkins suggests that this was not the case.

In the end, while society continues to protect them, the “good” men do suffer for their crimes. Patrick serves out his last days in jail for two murders—ones he committed and one he didn’t, though his treatment of his son indirectly contributed to the second. Mark disappears, presumably into the sea, for good. Sean leaves the police force and goes into an ambiguous future, unable to reconcile the person he thought he was with who he actually is. Tellingly, however, most of the “good” men never really admit guilt or atone for their sins. Patrick may have confessed to Lauren’s murder, but he feels no remorse. Rather, he laments not killing two more “troublesome” women instead. Mark goes to his presumed death believing that his life fell apart only because Katie did wrong by him. He, too, wishes not that he had been a better person, but that he had strung his fiancée along longer so that he could have had a better alibi. By not placing the blame where it belongs, society allows these so-called “good” men to continue violating women and escaping punishment.