Oh my gosh! I don’t think there have ever been two more powerful and emotional works of art than The Metal Children and “Taxi Driver.” In both, the protagonists are harmed emotionally by society, in ways unimaginable to most. Tobin and Travis, although they react differently, are both are brought down into depression by society.
In The Metal Children, Tobin’s bodyguard nearly had to force him to go to the town where his book was being banned. Tobin really didn’t care much. I mean, his wife had just left him for another man…who cares much about life after that? After being forced to go to Midlothia to fight the ban on his book, he is abused, beaten, and pretty much torn to pieces. But then again, he does nothing to stop it. He’s just a lonely man, desperate to find his way in life again. He is sad and pathetic, not only because his marriage fall to ruin, but also because he lacks the confidence to do anything about it. He is too calm to stand up to the challenges life throws in his face, and he just sits back and watches everything going on around him. He has no control over anything that happens. He lets his wife leave without a fight, calling her only to sound desperate and foolish…he lets Vera undress in front of him, and then succumbs to the temptations…he lets the town ban his book, not bothering to put up a fight…and finally at the end of the book, he lets Vera have her way once again, by giving her the money she needs and letting her keep their baby with a non-committal agreement to visit one day.
Unlike Tobin, Travis in “Taxi Driver” stood up to the establishments of his society. Although he was like Tobin in that he was a lonely, sad man, he was different in that he took action when things didn’t go his way. Because Betsy didn’t accept his invitations out after one little mistake he made, he decided to take away what was important to her: Palantine. Travis felt that rather than being with him, Betsy had decided to support Palantine instead, and this hurt Travis because it felt like betrayal. Rather than sit back and watch her choose another man the way Tobin watched his wife leave with another man, Travis plots to assassinate Palantine. His attempt, however, is thwarted, and he instead decides to go after another girl. Not in an emotional-relationship way, but instead in a friendly and caring way. So he tries to help Iris escape the brutal environment she is “working” in. He eventually succeeds in his assassination of her pimp, Sport, finally overtaking society’s limitations and becoming a proclaimed “hero.”
Throughout both works, the protagonists are shot down by society like a deer during hunting season. Neither really stood a chance against what they were faced with. Tobin realized that, and didn’t bother trying to change it. He accepted his defeat, and let things collapse around him. Travis on the other hand, also knew things weren’t going well for him, but rather than sit back like Tobin and be miserable about it, he decided that if things were going to be horrible anyway, he might as well continue the trend and get rid of the man that was causing him pain. By assassinating Palantine, he would have hurt Betsy, which would have made him feel better, but he also would have been sent to jail. But he was nearly caught in his attempt. Instead, he went after Sport. With all his pent up anger and rage, Travis was able to take out Sport as well as a few other men who were a part of the prostitution chain. It was for a good cause, he knew, and for that reason, he didn’t care that it was illegal. What an unexpected shock it was when he was hailed a national hero for ridding society of these evil men.
The only thing shared between the two men is that they both gave into the sad lives they were living, but whereas Tobin did nothing to either fix or worsen it, Travis reacted in his own way, knowing that he could make it worse, but knowing that it wouldn’t matter, because without the girl he wanted, life would be miserable anyway. So although he ended up being a hero, he only did what he did to make himself feel better about his nearly non-existent position in society. Travis and Tobin were both in the same life situation, although under obviously different circumstances, but each reacted in their own way, doing what they thought was fitting for their specific situation. In the end, we can see which man came out on top, with a better life, and which is still sitting at home, moping.
