Broken Lives
"Broken Lives" by Estelle Blackburn is a relevant expository text that through research has lead to a solid argument; 19 year old John Button was wrongfully convicted of killing his 17 year old girlfriend in a hit-run. In her efforts to influence her readers of such views, Blackburn has entered into the world of a serial killer, presenting a credible, solid account of these events and their surrounding matters. In result the reader accepts the book as a genuine explanation of an increasingly explicable miscarriage of justice. The reader feels obliged to adopt Blackburn's views.
The notion of justice is Blackburn's principal value, and her attitudes express the unfairness of Buttons imprisonment. Together they underline the purpose of the book; to convince the public of buttons innocence and Cooke's guilt in the death of Rosemary Anderson, and hopefully have Button's name cleared. Blackburn makes it clear that there were inconsistencies throughout the police investigation and a failure of justice in the High Court etc. The police are seen as incompetent.
Eric Edgar Cookes feelings and emotions, were created, to make him a disgusting creature, in the eyes of the reader. This creation of Eric Edgar Cookes feelings, emotions and motives are even acknowledged by Estelle Blackburn as being her own.
'My Reconstruction of Eric Edgar Cooke's complex personality, his thinking and motives is entirely my interpretation.' Throughout the entire novel, Cooke's feelings and motives have been created by Blackburn, so the reader dislikes Cooke, and is sympathetic to Button. 'He felt vengeful, too. He wanted to spoil things for those happy people' (p27). This demonstrates Blackburns creation of Cooke's feelings and motive. This creation is carried out throughout the book, sustaining this dislike, or disgust for Crooke, as he had a greed for power and vengeance.
'This was more - this was an urge of more power and a realisation that...
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