What drives Gary?

[lavkathleen]

I did not think of Gary as pathetic or broken because of his physical and mental health. I think I see a person who was determined to live. For a person with few friends, it takes a lot of determination to keep going. I think the questions are excellent. I think he may have also been motivated by the fact that he was frustrated about his ill-health. He wanted someone else to feel the pain of his own circumstances by putting them in a similar position.

Wow, this is beautiful. I agree with all of this. For the last sentence, though, I think it's less of wanting someone else to feel his pain but more of putting the blame on something/someone more tangible that he can lash out his frustrations at. What happened ruined his life forever and it's not even something deliberate that he can direct his anger and sadness at someone.

[lavkathleen]

Perhaps it really was downright hatred. But it can also be a mental problem.
Gary from the blackline seems like a very strange guy to me. Of course, he had huge health problems. But he could take care of himself (for example, he could dress himself, wash, etc.), he could walk, he could make love, and even play games for hours on end. He was not really a helpless cripple.
Then why couldn't he become like Gary from the other line? He could find himself a job that did not require physical exertion. He could continue his education like the other Gary did. His physical problems would not have prevented him from becoming a great scientist, businessman or artist. For him, only a military and sport’s career was closed. However, he doesn't try to do anything, he just plays games and says nasty things to his family members. No wonder his fantasies are so strange and violent.

You described his case well. Obviously, it's a problem with the mental health and he needs help with it. The things you mentioned are easier said than done for people like him. They can't "just" do this or that however logical they are because they need to heal mentally, too and that's not an easy feat.

[lavkathleen]

It might be more connected to the general reflection about human nature. How many of us would do something despicable if we were sure there would be no consequences? I think this is what the author wanted to show. We all have the dark side. But usually, we're able to control it out of fear or simply because we're good enough people to not want to actually hurt others. And in everyday life hardly ever can we avoid punishment for our actions.
This Gary was sure there would be no consequence of his actions. Otherwise, I think, he would not do that.

It's scary how true all of this is. For me, though, it was still sick of him to have such an urge to harm Michelle. It also didn't help how the author portrayed the whole thing— it wasn't just your classic stab-the-stomach-with-a-knife scene. But now that I think about it, though, it's not like we haven't had these kinds of thoughts at least once. As readers, we just hate it 'cause the author actually showed us how the events would progress if it were to happen.

[scaryeyes_25]

I believe Gary (black line) was driven by a combination of many things. But most of it boils down to being hurt. He was hurt by various people with various things. Yet he was not given any chance to process it. Or no one took the time to help him process it. Hurt people will hurt other people. I think Gary (black line) being aware of the repercussion of his hatred, has now realized that revenge is not the best reaction to the hurt he experienced. Reaching out to Michelle (black line) is a good start to recovery.

[yomide]

I believe Gary (black line) was driven by a combination of many things. But most of it boils down to being hurt. He was hurt by various people with various things. Yet he was not given any chance to process it. Or no one took the time to help him process it. Hurt people will hurt other people. I think Gary (black line) being aware of the repercussion of his hatred, has now realized that revenge is not the best reaction to the hurt he experienced. Reaching out to Michelle (black line) is a good start to recovery.

I wouldnt have agreed more. Not a single thing you said is wrong and i absolutely agree. Gary hurt michelle not just because she hurt him but because everyone else did (in a way) except for sinead and her parent. And the part about recovery, i think you are right. Gary spent a long time locking himself up mentally and towards the end, he tried to piece things together.

[SweetSourSalty AndSpicy]

It seems like Gary experimented. He was exploring the possibilities of lucid dreaming. Will his dreams affect his waking life? It was too late when he realized that there are consequences and the changes are irreversible.

[Parahiyo]

I believe that murdering Michelle was Gary's response to rejection. I agree he did because he was humiliated and wanted to take revenge on her. He might also have mental health issues because his response to rejection was not normal.

[Precious DA]

I think it was the humiliation Gary felt that led him to act like that. There are probably a lot of things we would do if there were no consequences for our actions, sometimes I personally want to act in a particular way but I don't due to underlying circumstances.

[Emidio Inocencio]

I think it's the humiliation combined with his mental deviations. However, I don't blame him since Michele from the backline isn't properly an angel.

[Josie Wert]

Gary in the black line seem more of a pathetic broken man with permanent damage on his physical and mental health. I thought perharps he is driven to show his ability by means of revenge.
What would you say drives Gary to stabbing Michelle; is it the humiliation he felt in her rejection? Is it perharps his mental health? Is it another hidden part of him? Or is it downright hatred? Or maybe something else entirely?

I believe it's humiliation that he underwent due to MIchelle's refusal. He definitely wanted to take his revenge over her. In my opinion, Gary from the black line represents the dark side of human soul overall. But we still should take into consideration that he honestly thought it was just a dream when he stubbed Michelle.

I agree that it’s important to note that while Gary obviously has some mental issues in the black line, he wouldn’t have killed Michelle in real life. Lucid dreaming is a powerful thing, and if it’s just a dream, why not explore all the possibilities? I sympathize with the black line’s Gary, as he truly didn’t mean to kill anyone. I think the reason he fantasized about stabbing Michelle in the first place is because he felt that she rejected him because of his lorry accident. He’s already clearly bitter about the accident and the struggles associated with it, so anything he related mentally with the accident is therefore a very emotional subject. So while he’s still clearly bitter, I believe that if he had really wanted to kill Michelle, he would’ve.

[Unosthetic]

The question is intriguing. It might be all of the reasons. Everything might have mixed, from his mental health, to Michelle's rejection, to his hatred, everything might have mixed-up. People are sometimes like that, when everytging went wrong, they'll just somehow outburst their emotions onto something.

[Wesley Friday]

I do not think Gary from the black line is solely driven by the humiliation of the rejection. If he had been in good health despite the rejection, I think he would have carried on with his life without feeling bitter. I believe the last straw that broke Gary was the maiming accident he experienced after being rejected. He is most likely subconsciously fuelled or motivated but the accident, with the rejection only being a surface level representation of his pain.

[Ana C Barrantes]

I think what drives Gary is his hatred and his need for revenge. Gary is not broken because of his mental illness. He is broken because of the hatred he harbors towards Michelle and towards himself.

[collinsogw555]

I think Grey's mental health was one of the reasons he stabbed Michelle because if he was in his right sense of mind he would not have to do such a thing. And also because he loved Michelle.

[Chukwuebuka Ifedigbo]

I believe what motivated Gary into stabbing Michelle is hatred and the humiliation he suffered from her refusal. There's a part of every human nature that wants revenge when rejected. This is exactly what Gary suffered that prompted his inaction.