The Collector

Frederick Clegg is a solitary city hall clerk who collects butterflies in his spare time. He lives a life on the fringes of social interaction, observing others from a distance while his inner world grows more obsessive. The narrative begins from his point of view, establishing his orderly routines and emotional loneliness.

Clegg wins a large football pools prize and quits his job. He buys an isolated house in Sussex near Lewes, seeking privacy and control. The move deepens his isolation and strengthens his fantasy of being with Miranda Grey.

He fixates on Miranda Grey, a middle-class art student he admires from afar. He is unable to contact her through normal means, leaving his fantasies untested and dangerous. The obsession marks the shift from mere longing to a calculated plan.

Unable to make any normal contact, Clegg decides to add Miranda to his 'collection' of pretty, preserved objects. He makes careful preparations, choosing how to seize and imprison her. He envisions keeping her captive until she loves him, a grim fantasy that dehumanizes his target.

After careful preparations, he drugs Miranda with chloroform and abducts her, locking her up in the cellar of his house. The act is clinical and cold, marking a transition from fantasy to a brutal reality. Miranda awakens to a situation she cannot escape.

When Miranda wakes, Clegg promises to 'show her every respect' and to avoid sexual molestation while she stays in the cellar. He provides her comforts and controls her environment, attempting to simulate a domestic life. Miranda must come to terms with her new, confined reality.

Part two is narrated through Miranda's diary, as she recalls her life before captivity. She writes to her sister and to the artist G.P., revealing hopes, friendships, and her personal ambitions. The diary gives an intimate account of her inner world during imprisonment.

Miranda comes to see that Clegg's motive is possession rather than sexuality, and that he believes the bond between them will grow with time. He even claims his first name is Ferdinand, tying his fantasy to The Tempest. She notes his resemblance to Caliban as she judges his true nature.

Miranda makes several attempts to escape, while she also tries to seduce him to gain her freedom. Each attempt frustrates him and exposes his impotence and confusion. The dynamic deepens as his control tightens and her options dwindle.

Miranda fantasizes about killing Clegg as a last resort, but her attempt fails and leaves her consumed by self-loathing. Her health deteriorates under captivity, and she dies soon after. The failed escape attempt reinforces the grim stalemate between captor and captive.

After Miranda's death, Clegg contemplates suicide but decides not to blame himself. He reads her diary and concludes that she never loved him, which he uses to rationalize his actions. He buries her corpse in the garden, maintaining the illusion of control.

The narrative ends with Clegg brooding about kidnapping another girl, unable to let go of his fantasy. He remains emotionally unrepentant, seeing the act as a continuation of his possession. The ending leaves his psyche intact but morally hollow.