In "Sleeping Dogs", the reader struggles to come to terms with Sonya Hartnett's most repulsive character, Griffin Willow. As the book progresses, we become more disgusted with his behaviour. He is absolutely undeserving of the titles "father" and "husband", and the reader can't help but feel that while his children aren't perfect, he is the root of the evil and any family of his is a doomed one. Yet somewhere, on some level, he's not the fully-fledged vicious monster we thought he was. We find him intriguing, and mysteriously appealing. But when asked to explain exactly what makes him even the most remotely appealing, were hard-pressed to find anything.
The primary reason is because there really isn't one specific attribute that makes Griffin appealing. The reader finds his actions throughout "Sleeping Dogs" utterly nauseating. The oppression of his children, and the designation of demanding chores to them, along with the beatings of Jordan ensure that all of the children (with the exception of Edward) are absolutely petrified of their father. Not surprisingly, the readers too find themselves cringing a little at some of the gruesome portrayals throughout "Sleeping dogs". .
Hartnett conveys an important message about Griffin on page 77: "Griffin loves the land as a good fighter loves his adversary - for the challenge and for the spoils- (p. 77). This is the first indication that Griffin isn't merely on the land for want of something else to do, or another way to make a living (albeit a poor one). It is clear, however, that while he may posses some form of passion for the land, he is obviously not interested in seeing his farm succeed, and he is satisfied to remain hard at work being idle while his children execute the farm duties. He fails to take responsibility for his own passions and hopes. .
A lack of impartiality towards children is a poor parenting practice, and it indefinitely has adverse effects on both the favoured children and the overlooked ones.
