H. P. Lovecraft’s short story “The Rats in the Walls” can be seen as a discussion on the way people in a modern time period view the events and people of the past. This focus shifts from one’s own heritage and extended family to the individual, to the point that people begin to see their own heritage in a negative or apathetic way. Through his use of some very common themes with minor alterations, the traditional hero’s journey for example, Lovecraft illustrates this idea of shifting focus while telling an engaging story of a man, Mr. De la Poer, and his attempt to re-build his name sake’s historic home to honor his son, Alfred, who died during the first world war. The use of this theme, however not in line with the traditional telling of similar hero’s journeys, is present in “The Rats in the Walls” through the use of hero’s journey plot points and supporting roles. For example, the traditional hero’s journey tends to include many of the same features between retellings of other hero’s and their travels. For example, the hero will often resist the quest, usually is aided by a mentor, the includes the event of crossing from the known world to the unknown during the voyage, super natural aid, and the hero typically goes through the process of a metaphorical (occasionally literal) death and rebirth before returning home. In “The Rats in the Walls” all of these elements are in place except for the final rebirth and return home which makes it an imperfect hero’s journey but the inconclusiveness of the journey helps to provide evidence for the overall theme, and contrasts the ideas of modern day and the past in which the hero would have traditionally been successful.

The first aspect of the Hero’s journey that appears in “The Rats in the Walls” is the concept of the rejection of the quest. There is not a blatant rejection, but rather an apathetic sense of where the De la Poer family comes from. Also, his actual acceptance of the quest is directly related to the tragedy of his son’s death. This is exemplified when Mr. De la Poer speaks of an envelope containing his family history, “Neither my father nor I ever knew what our hereditary envelope had contained, and as I merged into the greyness of Massachusetts business life I lost all interest in the mysteries which evidently lurked far back in my family tree.” (Lovecraft 76) This one quote not only supports this idea of apathy for the quest but also supports the idea of the changing importance to modern of family to the individual.

The next feature of a hero’s journey is the mentor. In this short story the mentor is Captain Edward Norrys, Alfred’s commanding officer, who is knowledgeable about the family’s history. This is due to the fact that the Norrys family also lived at the same time and place as the De la Poers. Capt. Norrys is also the one who introduced Alfred to the intricate family history that he then wrote home to Mr. De la Poer about, which initiated his interest in re- building the house and therefore the quest. This too can be seen in the text. “It was this legendry which definitely turned my attention to my transatlantic heritage, and made me resolve to purchase and restore the family seat which Norrys shewed to Alfred in its picturesque desertion, and offered to get for him at a surprisingly reasonable figure, since his own uncle was the present owner.” (Lovecraft 76) Capt. Norrys helps Mr. De la Poer throughout the rest of the short story as well providing insight and history of the location and the locals. “Piecing together the tales which Norrys collected for me, and supplementing them with the accounts of the several servants who had studied the ruins,” (Lovecraft 77) This aid that Norrys provides is essential to Mr. De la Poer and his quest as well as the advancement of the plot.

The single biggest event during a quest in a Hero’s Journey is the cross from the known world to the unknown. This happens to Mr. De la Poer when he travels to England to begin his project. When he arrives he faces numerous problems based in the fact that he, as a De la Poer is not welcome back into the village that was once his family’s home “I began to hire workmen for the reconstruction. In every case I was forced to go outside the immediate locality, for the Anchester villagers had an almost unbelievable fear and hatred of the place. This sentiment was so great that it was sometimes communicated to the outside labourers, causing numerous desertions.” (Lovecraft 76) Even after the reconstruction, despite the hatred, that was unknown to Mr. De la Poer prior to arriving, events continued to happen that were part of the unknowingness of his move. Mr. De la Poer and his cat experienced these happenings at night, “my old black cat, whose moods I know so well, was undoubtedly alert and anxious to an extent wholly out of keeping with his natural character. He roved from room to room, restless and disturbed, and sniffed constantly about the walls which formed part of the old Gothic structure.” (Lovecraft 80) This fear of the unknown is based in our instinct to survive and when ignored can be deadly.

Another feature previously discussed is super natural aid. The primary source for this in “The Rats in the Walls” is Mr. De la Poer’s cat Nigger-man. Though the walls are thought to be solid all the way through, Nigger-man and the other cats can sense them while none of the humans can. (Lovecraft 80) “I saw the jetty form of Nigger-Man creeping along the west wall and scratching at the new panels which overlaid the ancient stone.” (Lovecraft 80) This along with the fact that none of the servants in the house could hear what was happening provided Mr. De la Poer with the evidence he needed to pursue the tracking of these rodents.

The last major piece of the Hero’s Journey that is present in this short story is the death and rebirth of the hero. However, Mr. De la Poer does not have a re-birth after his metaphorical death and because of this he could not have a homecoming the traditional end to one of these journeys. As he and his investigation party travel down into the sub-cellar of the house he begins to go increasingly mad. This happens because he is influenced by the generations of wrong doings by his family, until in his madness “they found me in the blackness after three hours; found me crouching in the blackness over the plump, half-eaten body of Capt. Norrys, with my own cat leaping and tearing at my throat. Now they have blown up Exham Priory, taken my Nigger-Man away from me, and shut me into this barred room at Hanwell with fearful whispers about my heredity and experiences.” (Lovecraft 89) This final break down to the point of institutionalization is the death and since the story ends after that point there is no re-birth.

“The Rats in the Walls” is a short story that shows ideas of how society has changed it prospective in the last few centuries. Mainly from the extended family to the individual. The theme of a hero’s journey shows this by the change made within it from tradition to now the loss of returning home or to one’s family. Overall this story makes minor changes to traditional tropes in order to be in the thinking of a new modern world wide perspective so focused on one person and the people they care about that vital information of the past is lost to time.
