oh God you can really see will henry changing in isle of blood. tbh ppls takes that final descent is a unhinged ooc version of him is incorrect because I think it is in character for who he's developing to be
like tbj im still a little foggy on the symbolism in the book but basically moral of the story; man is the monster. will henry is beginning to see killing as a necessity. even as warthrop moralizes and fusses, he was the one to suggest that they kill kearns in the first place, a so called "unnecessary death". he also inadvertently allows multiple people to be killed because he wasn't able to kill the two Russian guys that endangered not only him, but veronica and her husband, Arthur conan doyle (LOLLL), who KILLED torrance.
the progression of deaths is interesting bc
1. kenneth dies at the hand of the doctor because of kearns. will henry is still resistant to it.
2. will henry plots trapping arkwright and threatening him to get an answer out. torrance shoves pwe de ser into the guys mouth and kills him. will henry feels awful and screams at torrance. someone died indirectly because of will
3. torrance dies at the hotel because of the Russians that warthrop knew were tailing him and he decided to rizz doyle with that info and make it so his death lacks dignity. will jenry is still upset and upset at the doctor for doing so.
4. veronica. the doctor talks to her knowing that the agents are still tailing him. he asks her to take his place, and she does.
5. Rimbaud shows will henry the cisterns, and essentially presents him with a choice/escape plan. will henry gets confronted by the Russians; admittedly, given their track record, they would've either killed him if he didn't give up tje information or killed him after. this is the true death made of necessity, though executed far too late. also tje first kill of another human being that was perpetrated directly by him using Pellinores gun
and from there.... downhill. he continues to make the choice to kill over and over again . though we can debate whether it is in character for him or not, I think it fits the metaphor of the monstrumologist that man is his own monster, and he creates it.
like the mark of cain metaphor warthrop alludes to- he is responsible for how will henry came to be this way. he clings to a child, expecting him to pull him up, but instead, drags what he thought was his cross, down with him
