Essay, Research Paper: Bull Meechum As "The Great Santini"

Pat Conroy's The Great Santini creates a dramatic statement about how men cling to ideas and apply them to their everyday lives. The main character, Bull Meecham, was a fighter pilot who loved the Marines as much as he loved his wife and children. As a result, he ran his family like a military unit. His family misunderstood his devotion to the military, enigmatic demeanor, and forthright personality. When Bull returned from a year's service in Europe, he moved his family from their hometown roots in Atlanta, Georgia to a small town in South Carolina. The family had just a short time to adjust and return to the level of discipline that he demanded of them. Behind Bull's unapproachable personality was a deep love that he felt for every member of his family, a love that was not always obvious. The only way he could feel close to his family was by treating them like Marines. Especially remarkable was the relationship between Bull and his eldest son, Ben. ". . . At the heart of the book is the search of the 18-year-old son to find himself while learning to understand and love his rigidly authoritarian Marine father, the 'great Santini.'"(Rev: 77). Bull shows how a man with good intentions can seem to be mistreating his family. Through Bull Meecham, Conroy proves that the way a person expresses love can be misunderstood.
Bull Meecham was misunderstood by his family because he lived by dying Marine traditions. "The title of the novel emphasizes the important role myths play, since 'The Great Santini' is the identity Colonel Bull Meecham assumes when he wishes to assert his unquestionable authority as head of the household."(Burkholder: 78). Bull never talked with his wife, Lillian, about any topics that involved his personal reactions or feelings. "Most of their conversation was of the Corps or of their own family."(Conroy: 41). His family could not understand that the Marine myth had such an overpowering grasp on their "untouchable" father.
Although Bull's words and actions often led family members to believe that he was lacking feelings and emotions, this was not true. Throughout the beginning of the story, Ben often complained about his father's physical abuse. When Lillian made fun of Bull's basketball loss, he took out his aggression by kicking her in typical drill sergeant manner. He never felt any guilt about it, either. Ben pointed out to Lillian that Bull had never said "I'm sorry" in the time that they had known him. At one point Lillian attempted to start a serious conversation with him about the Holocaust, but Bull quickly steered the conversation to what is apparently the only thing he cared about: the United States Marine Corps. In exasperation, Lillian declared "'It's hopeless to even try to make you feel things.'"(Conroy: 211) When Zell Posey, a local lawyer, told Bull a personal secret, Bull felt uncomfortable about it. He liked the straightforwardness of the Marines, and used the ancient military rituals as a wall to his inner self. ". . . the Old Corps myth serves as both a cover and a crutch for the real Bull Meecham . . . "(Burkholder: 78) The crutch was that his family could not understand the deep feelings Bull kept inside. At one point, Bull revealed his fear of death, that one day he could go up in a plane and never come back. Soon after beginning that thought, however, his "Old Corps" shield kicked in and he shook the thought out of his head. His family could not understand that behind his rough exterior was a caring inner self.
Bull Meecham demanded discipline because he cared about his family. He knew that without structure, his children would not grow up properly. Ben once explained to his mother that military children are the most troubled in the world, and gave an example of two boys who were constantly fleeing military police. Bull believed that by enforcing strict discipline his children would lead normal lives, despite the hardships of their life. A reviewer described the Meechams as ". . . a military family ruled by an authoritarian father who has more faith in the military institution than he has in his own family . . . "(Hutchins: 77). Bull also believed that drill sergeants were the best soldiers in the Marine Corps, because they demanded discipline and made recruits into men. Bull used this theory and acted like a drill sergeant when dealing with his family, hoping that the same idea applied. During a "briefing," he once told his children, "'Marine kids are so far ahead of other kids that it's criminal. Why? Because of discipline.'"(Conroy: 55). Bull was only looking out for his children; he believed that only through discipline could they have a normal childhood.
Bull treated his children like Marines so that he could feel closer to them. He was so caught up with the Marine way of living that he needed its structure to deal with people. Lillian once explained to Ben, "'Your father has taken the whole mythology of the Corps . . . and entwined it with his own personality.'"(Conroy: 199). Bull apparently did not want his family to become too attached to anything besides their military lifestyle. When in the car on their way to Ravenel, he and his family fought over which song to sing. Bull told his family, "'O.K., you sing 'Dixie' and I'll sing 'The Battle Hymn of the Republic.' I'll sing a winner's song and you sing a loser's song.'"(Conroy: 29). Bull chose the military song because it allowed him to express more emotion. He was always quick to remind his children how lucky they were to be part of a military family, and played war games with them when he was not conducting inspections of their rooms. "Mr. Conroy suggests that one possible reason for family 'fallouts' is that the constant interaction on the part of the rest of the family with non-military affairs . . . blocks communication."(Hutchins: 77) Bull realized that he could be closest with his wife and children if he treated them like members of the Marine Corps themselves.
Before Bull's accident, Ben realized that his father loved him, and he learned to love him in return. The process of Ben's maturity began when he first surpassed his father by beating him in a one-on-one game. After this first defeat, Bull could be heard practicing on the court outside. Lillian explained to Ben, "'You've got a strange father down there, Ben, but in his own way, that's him down there saying, 'I'm sorry, Ben. I was wrong.''"(Conroy: 132). The second incident was when his father takes him to the Marine Officer's Club, and has Ben drink and smoke and meet all of his friends. Bull was trying to give Ben all of the happiness he got from his intimate friendships with the other Marine aviators. The last step in the process was when he disobeyed his father's direct order and left his house to help Toomer, a friend of his. He explains to Bull that he did that because "Santini would have done it."(Conroy: 387). ". . .Paradoxically, by acting more like his father, Ben develops the independence of mind which will ultimately free him . . . "(Burkholder: 79). With this new perspective, he saw that his father was only looking out for him, and truly cared for him. When the maturing process was completed, Ben had learned to love his father in return, tragically not long before his father died in a plane accident.
Expressing love can be difficult for some people. Bull Meecham showed how the most demanding father can truly love his family. During his life, his family never really understood him. Part of this was because he was such a mysterious person, holding on to old myths. Often his actions and words labeled him "unfeeling." In actuality, he only demanded discipline because he cared about his family, and treated his children like Marines so that he could be closer to them. What makes this novel effective is the way only little bits and pieces of Bull are revealed to the reader. Initially, the reader can only see a biased portrait of Bull, as an abusive, controlling father. As Ben matured, the reader sees how Bull truly loved his family, and learns that it was his inability to express his emotions that caused problems in his family relationships. The reader is forced to conclude that Bull is a man who wants to give his children everything, and his attempts were aided and impeded by the powerful grasp of the United States Marine Corps.
Works Cited
Burkholder, Robert. "The Uses of Myth in Pat Conroy's 'The Great Santini'." Critique: Studies in Modern Fiction Vol. 21, No. 1, 1979. 31-7. Rpt. in Contemporary Literary Criticism. Ed. Jean C. Stine & Daniel G. Marowski. Vol. 30. Detroit: Gale Research Inc., 1984. 78-9.
Conroy, Pat. The Great Santini. New York: Bantam Books, 1976.
Hutchins, James. Rev. of The Great Santini by Pat Conroy. Best Sellers. Vol. 36, No. 6, Sept. 1976. 180. Rpt. in Contemporary Literary Criticism. Ed. Jean C. Stine & Daniel G. Marowski. Vol 30. Detroit: Gale Research Inc., 1984. 77.
Rev. of The Great Santini by Pat Conroy. The Virginia Quarterly Review. Vol. 52, No. 4, Autumn, 1976. Rpt. in Contemporary Literary Criticism. Ed. Jean C. Stine & Daniel G. Marowski. Vol 30. Detroit: Gale Research, Inc., 1984. 77.