The Fall of Dave Boyle

Good tragedies extract their power from illustrating a fall from fortune as a result of some folly, weakness, or misjudgment. In the beginning of Mystic River, two men who claim to be cops abduct young Dave Boyle and abuse him until Dave manages to escape and return home to his friends and family. Despite it being many years since the alarming incident, Dave has a difficult time communicating and trusting people around him, including his wife, Celeste. His traumatic experience causes him to lose control and forget about his true self as well as his own actions and frustration towards other strangers. Although he has a wife and a son, Dave never rebuild his own character nor sees a psychiatrist to discuss his feelings during his fearsome experience. Instead, he continues to be an introverted husband and copes with all the fear and trauma until a scene triggers him which results in many misfortunes and chaos in the neighborhood. Dave’s actions cause Celeste to be frightened of him because she believes Dave murders Katie. His boyhood trauma comes home to haunt, but clarity is lost in the confusion of Katie's murder and the increased stress of the characters. Dave’s stories about the deep cut in the stomach and bloody hands are inconsistent every time Celeste asks and as a result, she breaks down and tells Jimmy the “truth” of who kill his daughter, Katie. Mistakes result in suffering and tragic actions. The miscommunication between Dave, Celeste, and Jimmy ultimately leads to Dave’s death and Jimmy’s guilt. If Dave allows himself to speak the truth on what actually happened when he murders a pedophile for exploiting a male child, which triggers his dissolution, then Dave’s outcome would never be ended by Jimmy.