The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell

The author juxtaposes two decisive moments for Sam when his first playdate with a friend ends in a violent beating, the day ultimately presenting two contrasting aspects of childhood: carefreeness and vulnerability. The playdate presents childlike joy, while the assault turns the boys’ helplessness into an experience of humiliation and terror.

The day traces a steep downward arc from happiness to dismay, beginning with a beaming Sam going with his new bike to Ernie’s house, the boys enjoying an idyllic afternoon just being kids. Their jaunt highlights the theme of friendship: Sam is in awe of Ernie’s athletic ability, but Ernie in no way makes Sam feel inferior. However, when Sam shatters the window, Ernie does what any normal kid does in the face of imminent adult reprimand: He runs. The narrative creates an ominous foreboding as Sam navigates his way home alone in an unfamiliar part of his neighborhood, leading up to the scene of Sam’s beating, which is grotesque on many levels. Sam helplessly watches the savage destruction of his bike as a prequel to what he knows is coming for his body. Though the author has, up to now, lent David’s character certain humanizing elements, this scene portrays him as soulless and monstrous, and the narration conveys the protagonist’s profound sense of entrapment as David brutalizes him with no help in sight. While Sam carries the burden of the nickname “Devil Boy,” it is ironically David who increasingly seems demonic. The tyrant’s malice is gratuitous and appears purely sadistic, lacking any motivation beyond the perverse pleasure of abusing those less powerful than himself. Still, the narrative at times hints at the possibility of David’s home life somehow fostering this hostility.

When later asked about the incident, Sam lies to cover the truth again—in part to protect his mother, but also to prevent further brutality from David, since exposing the bully’s wrongdoing may provoke even worse retaliation. Herein Sam encounters an awful truth about bullying: Victims lie to cover for the bully out of self-preservation, but this can paradoxically enable an unending cycle of further abuse. The bully creates a culture of fear where everyone is afraid to confront them or expose their cruelty. Even Sam’s mother and the physician appear to fear speaking the truth aloud. The tragic sounds of Sam’s mother praying return to the theme of religion. Sam has had his doubts about prayer ever since God did not grant his fervent request for changed eyes, and now, he cannot fathom the existence of a God who would allow the merciless beating of a child. The novel began with Madeline’s claim of God’s benevolent plan for Sam, and as the narrative progresses, anticipation builds upon the tacit question of when such providence will show its face. It seems only pain is in store for the protagonist due to his extraordinary features.

If Sam doubts the presence of God after the vicious attack, Father Brogan’s swift and decisive action revives his faith at least in the clergy. David’s friends also make a brave decision to expose the truth, showing that redemption is possible even for outwardly infernal figures. David, however, is another case. Father Brogan expresses vulnerability in sharing the story of his own and his brothers’ abuse as children, but the story does not move David to confess, further exemplifying his pathological comportment. Sam’s relationship with faith is still shaky, but seeing the priest stand up for him and remove David’s villainous presence is comforting.

While Sam feels certain the bully is destined for an eternity in flames, he worries his own noble lie will damn him as well. As Sam is a small child, his notion of damnation is inevitably simplistic, and his acute moral anxiety demonstrates the childlike state of his mind. However, as naïve as his quandary may seem, it also highlights a real dilemma, as some of the more austerely religious adults in Sam’s life might very well tell him his “lie” was a sin, even while they are quick to bend the rules for their own personal benefit.

In an ironic moment when he runs back to confess, Sam finds Sister Beatrice swilling liquor from a flask. Sister Beatrice represents the hypocrisy that often exists in church leadership. Because both she and Father Brogan are authority figures at a religious institution, they both hold the distinct responsibility of representing the God they worship; yet both characters are so different that it seems they cannot possibly represent the same divinity. This disparity further complicates the idea of faith, and it challenges the legalistic assumption that just because someone has religious stature, they embody their religion’s ideals.