Previous

Bunny comes across as extremely affable, being the first one to welcome Richard into their group. Of Julian’s students, he is the only one with relationships outside their circle, having a girlfriend and being close friends with Cloke Rayburn. However, to the people closest to him, Bunny’s loud personality, gluttony, and offensive beliefs become extremely grating. Hailing from a family of old money in Connecticut who has lost their fortune, Bunny has the institutional knowledge of wealth and the confidence to act as though he is as privileged as Henry and the others, while not feeling self-conscious about grifting them as often as possible. While not an exceptionally bright student, Bunny is extremely adept at reading people and digging into their deepest insecurities. While these qualities all annoy his friends, they become increasingly difficult to deal with after Bunny learns of the farmer’s death. 

Bunny does not pester the others about their role in the murder out of any sense of moral outrage, but rather because he is angry that he was left out of the bacchanal. His actions reveal his pettiness and own sense of insecurity. However, Bunny was not left out because his friends disliked or mistrusted him, but because he did not entirely buy into the bacchanal, and so they blamed him for their unsuccessful previous attempts. While the others took Greek extremely seriously, Bunny was more interested in drinking, eating, and having a good time, not in transcending reality. Bunny does not embody the status of elite intellectual that Henry aspires to, and this lack more than anything was what led to him being excluded and eventually murdered by his friends.

Previous section Henry Winter

Take a Study Break