Filth (novel)
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| Author | Irvine Welsh |
|---|---|
| Country | Scotland |
| Language | English, Scots |
| Genre | Crime novel |
| Publisher |
Jonathan Cape (UK) W. W. Norton (US) |
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Publication date
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1998 |
| Media type | Print (Paperback & Hardback) |
| Pages | 393 pp |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 67804913 |
| Followed by | Crime |
Filth is a 1998 novel by Scottish writer Irvine Welsh. A sequel, Crime, was published in 2008. It was adapted into a 2013 film of the same name, directed by Jon S. Baird with James McAvoy in the lead role.
Bruce Robertson is a detective sergeant serving in Edinburgh's "Lothian Constabulary". Robertson is a Machiavellian, intensely misanthropic man who spends his time indulging in cocaine and alcohol abuse, sexually abusive relationships, compulsive gorging on junk food, and, most of all, his penchant for "the games" – Bruce's euphemism for the myriad foul plots he hatches directed at workmates. He is able to pander to all of his vices during his annual holidays in Amsterdam.
The novel begins by introducing the murder of Efan Wurie, a case Bruce has been assigned. The plot has little to do with the actual crime; instead, the novel traces Bruce throughout his life, told in a first-person, stream-of-consciousness style. Through narrative devices such as the tapeworm he acquires, the reader explores the facets of Bruce's personality and learns about his past, as well as the various tedious police routines Bruce absconds from, his often-backfiring sexual endeavours, and his various short- and long-term schemes and plots against his colleagues (ultimately in order to raise his chances of gaining the hoped-for promotion to detective inspector). Apart from the general malevolent scheming, along the way Bruce Robertson also seeks to satisfy his cravings for violence, drugs, sex, and pornography whilst happily voicing his racism, anti-Catholic sectarianism, and misogyny, all the while pining for his ex-wife.
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