the shovel. The force of the blow breaks Smith’s left arm. He howls but Brooks did not care about it. The next blow comes almost immediately. It smashes into the left side of
Smith’s head. Brooks takes a step to the side, cocks his wrists and swings again. The flesh that was once Smith falls to the ground. The blade of the shovel strikes Mr. Smith in
the throat very nearly taking off his head. From his way of killing his victims, Mr. Brooks can be identified as a cruel and mean person.
2. Mr. Brooks’ Structure of Personality
Mr. Brooks is identified as the major character because of his highest intensity of involvement in each event that happened in the film. In the age of 40’s years old, Mr.
Brooks seems that he has a perfect life. He has a harmonious family with a beloved wife and the only daughter Jane. He also has a big box factory and becoming a successful
businessman, but nobody knows, even his own family, that Mr. Brooks actually has a serious problem in his personality.
According to Sigmund Freud, human personality consists of three main structures. They are id, ego and superego. These structures have their own functions which relate
each other, and their function has a great role in producing human behavior. In this part of analysis, the writer would like to analyze the work mechanism of those three structures
in Mr. Brooks’ personality. In the film, there are some events of Mr. Brooks’ life which depicts how is the
work mechanism of the three main structures of personality of Mr. Brooks and how they are interacted each other in producing Mr. Brooks’ behavior. Those work mechanism will
be discussed in the following explanation.
One night, after Mr. Brooks receiving the award as “Man of the Year”, he and his wife, Emma were having a chat in their car. Among the chat, a man leans out from
behind Mr. Brooks’ head in the back seat. He is “Marshall”, the visualization of Mr. Brooks’ id. Emma can neither see nor hear “Marshall”, because he exists only in Mr.
Brooks’ mind.
At the very beginning of the film, there was a sentence written “The hunger has returned to Mr. Brooks’ brain, it never really left”.
The sentence explained that actually Mr. Brooks has becoming a killer since a long time ago, and at that night, when
“Marshall” appeared in his brain, his killer instinct returned. In “Marshall” first appearance in the film, it is clearly depicted that Mr. Brooks is inconvenient with his
existence. It can be seen from Mr. Brooks’ face which looked panic. At that time, his id, “Marshall”, talked to him.
“Marshall” : Come on Earl, give yourself a break, you know you want to do
this. Mr. Brooks
: No. “Marshall”
: You’re the fucking ‘man of the year’, you deserve it. It’s not like it’s not set up. You already know how to by-pass the alarm, you
know how to pick the locks. Tonight’s the perfect night. Mr. Brooks
: over his shoulder No, Marshall, I said ‘no’ “Marshall”
: I heard you, Earl, but you don’t mean ‘no’. Mr. Brooks 2007,
scene: 4 According to the dialogue above, “Marshall” as the visualization of Mr. Brooks’ id,
encouraged Mr. Brooks to do murder. “Marshall” tried to remind Mr. Brooks that he was a professional killer which has known the step how to kill, and killing can give a self
break to Mr. Brooks.
The id, works based on the pleasure principle. In Mr. Brooks’ personality, killing has become something fun and can give pleasure for him. Therefore, his id encouraged
him to do murder. At that time, Mr. Brooks answered ‘No’ to the force of his id. The superego in his personality, which can judge whether an action is right or wrong,
produced the word ‘no’ as the way to reject the id’s negative encouragement. Several times Mr. Brooks were fighting so hard to his id encouragement to do murder, but his id
were also still working to encourage Mr. Brooks. “Marshall”
: from the back seat They have their dance class tonight. What if
we go by and just look at them. There’s no harm in just having a look.
Mr. Brooks : No means ‘no’, Marshall.
“Marshall” : Please… pretty please.
Mr. Brooks :
to Emma the food tonight was very good, but I wasn’t crazy about the dessert. Would you like to stop somewhere and get
something sweet? Mr. Brooks 2007, scene: 5
“Marshall” the id, tried to flatter Mr. Brooks to just have a look at the dance class and found someone who might be interest to be killed. When his id still force him, he turn his
attention to his wife and made a conversation with her then finally they came back home. In this ‘conflict’ between his id which encouraged him to do murder and his superego
which refused it, the ego, the executive of the personality decided not to do the murder and let the id lost of his mind.
At the same night, when Mr. Brooks arrived at his home, “Marshall” returned to Mr. Brooks mind. “Marshall” still encouraged Mr. Brooks to do murder.
“Marshall” : I bet your dick’s getting hard, isn’t it, just imagining what they
would like dead?. Mr. Brooks
: I don’t want to start again, you promised Earl, you promised. Please, please, don’t do this, don’t do this, please.
“Marshall” : why do you fight it so hard earl?
Mr. Brooks 2007, scene: 6
The superego is dealing with the morality values in society. Based on the dialogue above, the superego of Mr. Brooks was actually occurring so hard in his mind. Mr. Brooks
thought that he did not want to kill anymore because he realized that killing is something wrong. In this time, it is clearly described that there was a conflict between the id and the
superego. The id wanted to do murder to fulfill the hunger for it and to get pleasure. At the other side, the superego fought against that encouragement. It tries to defend its
function as the control system of the mind. The superego considered that killing is something wrong and Mr. Brooks did not need to do that again. In this second conflict
between the id and the superego, the ego, which deals with the reality world, have to choose which one should be done in resulting the behavior. Mr. Brooks finally killed the
dance couple. It describes about the ego, which conducted the id encouragement. It occurred because the existence of the id was so strong in Mr. Brooks mind so that the
superego can not repress it. Then it made the ego followed the id encouragement that is killing.
After killing the dance couple, Mr. Brooks came back to his ceramic studio. He was kneeling naked in front of the kiln where his murder clothes are being reduced to
ash. Mr. Brooks
: Oh, God, forgive me. Please forgive me… Please forgive me… Mr. Brooks 2007, scene: 11
That was the representation of Mr. Brooks’ guilty feeling. The guilty feeling is produced by the superego in his mind because the ego has conducted something wrong. At this
scene, there was an appearance of “Marshall” as the visualization of Mr. Brooks’ id, but he was showed just standing behind Mr. Brooks neither doing nor saying something to
Mr. Brooks. It showed that, the contrary function between the id and the superego.
Mr. Brooks is actually a kind person who really care either to his family or other person. He even received an award for his successful business and his kindness who is
described that he is able to cut his toe nails and gives freely of his time and money to other people. All of his bad habit that is killing is actually the representation of his id, the
unconsciousness of mind. In reality, he knows that he is a businessman, a husband to his wife and a father to his daughter. Therefore, he always feels guilty of all of his bad habit.
One night he confessed to his family that he has a serious illness by a piece of letter. Mr. Brooks’ letter to his family:
Dear Emma and Jane, my loves. I have a terminal illness and instead of subjecting you to my deterioration, I have decided to disappear. Don’t try to find
me, I don’t want to be found. Please believe that the time I spent with you brought me the greatest joy of my life.
As an educated person, Mr. Brooks did not decide to do a stupid thing like suicide as an instant way to cure his illness. He decided to disappear and leave his family because he
did not want to involve them in his problem, but it does not work when “Marshall” takes over his mind. “Marshall” always succeeded in forcing Mr. Brooks to do murder.
One night, Mr. Brooks asked Mr. Smith, the photographer who captured Mr. Brooks when he killed a dance couple, to kill him because he wants to disappear from his
family and his bad life. In the middle of the road, “Marshall” appeared and have a chat with Mr. Brooks.
“Marshall” : How do you feel?
Mr. Brooks : Dirty.
“Marshall” : That’s understandable. The feeling will go away.
Mr. Brooks : I don’t think so. It’s the whole thing, Marshall. If I could find a
way to just disappear, where there was absolutely no trace of me; because eventually I will get caught doing this. And it’ll be
very embarrassing for me and Emma and Jane. So I’ve been thinking…is there a way that Mr. Smith could kill me and make
me disappear.
“Marshall” : Number one, Mr. Smith is not smart enough to do that. Number
two, there is no reason, if you’re careful, and to believe you will ever get caught.
Mr. Brooks : I know I will have to plan it for Mr. Smith, but I think that’s what
I want to do. “Marshall”
: I’m not particularly fond of that plan, Earl. Remember if you die, I go with you and I like being alive. I like eating, I like fucking, I
like killing. Mr. Brooks
: I have to end it, Marshall. One way or the other. And I think this is the best way.
“Marshall” : Well, fuck you then.
Mr. Brooks 2007, scene: 94 The dialogue above showed how the id and the superego in Mr. Brooks mind
were in conflict. The id wants to keep alive, but the superego wants to end life as the way to end all of the bad habit. It indicated that actually, in the unconsciousness Mr. Brooks is
actually still want to do murder because he enjoy it, and the feeling is represented by “Marshall” his id. Between the conflict, the ego must find the realistic way to satisfy the
demands of the id without offending the superego. And finally Mr. Brooks killed Mr. Smith.
Mr. Brooks : I really did want you to kill me. But in case at the last minute I
changed my mind, I returned to your apartment and bent the firing pin on your gun. In fact I even brought another gun for you
so you could finish me if I have decided to go through with it.
[…]
Mr. Brooks : Unfortunately for you, my daughter is pregnant and just before
you pulled the trigger, I realized how much I want to see the end of that story.
Mr. Smith : If you do anything to me, if you touch one hair on my head, the
Police will find the pictures of you killing that couple. Mr. Brooks
: The contents of your safety deposit box Mr. Smith, have vanished. Mr. Brooks 2007, scenes: 121-122
Mr. Brooks killed Mr. Smith in a very sadistic way. Without warning, he swings the shovel. The force of the blow breaks Mr. Smith’s left arm. The blades of the shovel strike
Mr. Smith in the throat very nearly taking off his head. According to this event, again, Mr. Brooks’ ego satisfied the id’s demand that is killing and killing. The id still becomes
the winner among the conflict with the superego. The last scene of the film depicted Mr. Brooks who had a bad dream at night. In
his dream, Mr. Brooks was killed by his own daughter Jane. The bad dream was the representation of his fearfulness that Jane will become a killer like him. It can be
identified from his own words at a moment Jane was accused that she did murder in her college.
Mr. Brooks puts his hands over his eyes and sobs, then wiping away the tears. He talks to himself
Mr. Brooks : I’ve been afraid of this since the day she was born. She has what
I have. Mr. Brooks 2007, scene: 78
Further, Mr. Brooks’ bad dream can also be indicated that actually, deep in his heart and
his own thinking, Mr. Brooks wanted to end his life because he has tired of his bad habit. When he awakened from his bad dream, he talked to himself:
Mr. Brooks : God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change
and wisdom to know the difference. Living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time, accepting hardship as a pathway
to peace, taking as He did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it. Trusting that He will make all things right if I
surrender to His will. That I may be reasonably happy in this life, and supremely happy with Him forever in the next. Amen.
Mr. Brooks 2007, scene: 128
In fact, Mr. Brooks is always in conflict between his id and superego. His id, which only refers to the pleasure principle, forced him to conduct murders. Meanwhile, the superego,
made him feels guilty of all of his bad habit. Based on the explanation about the work mechanism of Mr. Brooks’ structure of
personality above, it can be concluded that the id has a dominant place in Mr. Brooks’ personality structure and becoming the winner between the conflicts with the superego. It
can be identified from his bad habit that is killing. Although he knows and realizes that killing is wrong and can embarrass his family, he still can not stop it because of his strong
id which always encourages him to kill.
CHAPTER IV
CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION
A. Conclusion
