The Mars Room
Author: Rachel Kushner
ISBN: 9781476756554
Genre: Literary Fiction, Crime Fiction, Social Commentary
Published Year: 2018
Introduction to The Mars Room
Rachel Kushner’s The Mars Room is a stark, unvarnished look into the grim realities of the American criminal justice system, particularly for women on the margins of society. The novel primarily follows Romy Hall, a former stripper sentenced to life in prison for killing her stalker. Through her story, Kushner exposes the harshness of incarceration and the struggles of women whose lives have been shaped by poverty, violence, and systemic failure.
The novel weaves together multiple narratives and timelines, offering glimpses into Romy’s past and the lives of those around her, both inside and outside prison walls. Kushner combines sharp social critique with an intimate portrayal of characters trapped by circumstances beyond their control, creating a powerful commentary on the American penal system and society’s neglect of the disenfranchised.
Plot Summary
1. Romy Hall’s Imprisonment
The novel begins with Romy Hall, the protagonist, being transported to the Central California Women’s Facility, where she will serve two consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole. Romy has been convicted of murdering a man named Kurt Kennedy, a patron of the strip club, the Mars Room, where she worked. Kennedy had been stalking Romy, following her and her young son, Jackson, across the country.
Romy’s perspective serves as the novel’s emotional core, and through her, Kushner paints a vivid and harrowing portrait of life in prison. Romy reflects on her past and the choices that led her to prison, as well as the crushing reality of her present. The novel alternates between her memories of her pre-incarceration life in San Francisco and the brutality of her daily life in the prison system.
2. The Mars Room: A World of Exploitation
Romy’s life before prison revolves around the seedy, exploitative world of the Mars Room, a strip club in San Francisco’s Tenderloin district. Through Romy’s flashbacks, we see how the club operates as a microcosm of the economic and social forces that trap women like her. The dancers are objectified and mistreated, but the money they make keeps them coming back.
Romy describes the customers—men like Kurt Kennedy—as sad, lonely figures, seeking some semblance of connection in an environment built on power dynamics and exploitation. Her work at the Mars Room is emblematic of the choices many women in her situation are forced to make to survive, choices that are limited by their lack of opportunity and societal support.
3. The Prison Environment
Inside prison, Romy encounters a bleak and dehumanizing system. The prison is overcrowded, underfunded, and rife with violence. The women Romy meets have all been shaped by trauma, poverty, and desperation, and their interactions highlight the systemic failures that led them there.
Sammy: A hardened inmate who befriends Romy and teaches her the unspoken rules of prison life. Sammy is a tragic figure, reflecting the lifelong institutionalization that many women face.
Conrad: A corrupt prison guard who takes advantage of his position by exploiting the prisoners. His interactions with Romy and the other women underscore the imbalance of power in the prison system.
Button Sanchez: A mentally ill woman whose erratic behavior makes her a target for both the guards and the other prisoners. Button’s story reflects the lack of mental health care available to inmates and the indifference of the system to their suffering.
4. Romy’s Relationship with Her Son
One of the most poignant aspects of Romy’s story is her relationship with her son, Jackson. Jackson, now living with Romy’s estranged mother, is a constant presence in her thoughts. The separation from him is unbearable, and Romy’s longing to reconnect with her child is a major emotional driver of the narrative.
Romy’s sense of guilt over leaving Jackson behind, combined with her growing realization that she will never see him again, creates an overwhelming sense of loss. This part of the novel explores the devastating impact incarceration has on families, particularly the children of incarcerated parents, who are often left adrift in a system that offers them little support.
5. Other Narrative Threads: The Perspectives of Doc and Gordon
In addition to Romy’s story, The Mars Room includes chapters from the perspectives of two other characters: Doc and Gordon Hauser.
Doc is a corrupt, misogynistic former cop who becomes involved with Romy during her trial. His chapters reveal the dark underbelly of law enforcement and the ways in which power is abused.
Gordon Hauser is a prison educator who teaches literature classes to the women inmates. He represents one of the few people in the novel who genuinely wants to help the prisoners, but his efforts are ultimately futile. Gordon becomes fascinated by Romy, though he fails to understand the complexity of her situation and the deep-seated issues that led her to prison.
These characters’ perspectives serve to broaden the novel’s critique of the criminal justice system, showing how corruption, apathy, and moral ambiguity permeate every level of the system.
6. The Themes of Injustice and Class
Throughout the novel, Kushner emphasizes the stark class divide that exists within the justice system. Romy, like many of the other women in prison, comes from a background of poverty and marginalization. The novel portrays the legal system as indifferent to the circumstances that drive people to crime, focusing instead on punishment without considering rehabilitation or understanding.
Romy’s case is emblematic of this. She was convicted of killing a man who posed a real threat to her and her son, yet the court showed little sympathy for her situation. Kushner uses Romy’s story to highlight the ways in which poor, disenfranchised women are disproportionately affected by the justice system, which prioritizes punishment over understanding.
7. Life Sentences and the Absence of Redemption
One of the most haunting aspects of The Mars Room is its portrayal of life without parole. Romy and many of the women around her are serving sentences that ensure they will never leave prison. There is no hope for redemption or rehabilitation in this system; their lives have been reduced to mere survival within the prison’s walls.
Kushner’s depiction of these life sentences raises questions about the ethics of a system that condemns people to a lifetime of imprisonment, often for crimes committed in desperate circumstances. The novel suggests that this kind of punishment is not just harsh but inhumane, stripping people of any chance at redemption or change.
Themes in The Mars Room
1. The Injustice of the Criminal Justice System
One of the novel’s most prominent themes is the injustice of the criminal justice system, particularly for the poor and marginalized. Romy’s story, along with the stories of the other inmates, illustrates how the system disproportionately punishes those without resources or privilege. The novel critiques the way society turns a blind eye to the systemic issues that drive people to crime and instead focuses on punitive measures that offer no possibility of rehabilitation.
2. Poverty and Marginalization
Kushner paints a vivid portrait of the cycle of poverty that traps people like Romy. Born into a life of poverty, with little access to education or opportunity, Romy’s path seems almost predetermined. The novel explores how people on the margins of society are often forced into desperate situations, with few options available to them.
3. The Dehumanization of Incarceration
The novel portrays prison as a place of dehumanization and violence. The inmates are stripped of their identities and agency, reduced to mere numbers in a system that sees them as expendable. The lack of mental health care, the brutality of the guards, and the constant threat of violence from other prisoners all contribute to the sense of dehumanization that pervades the prison.
4. Gender and Power Dynamics
Kushner also examines the gender dynamics within the prison system and in the broader society. The women in The Mars Room have all been shaped by a world that is hostile to them, whether through sexual violence, economic exploitation, or the indifference of the legal system. The novel highlights the ways in which women are often powerless in the face of male authority, both inside and outside prison.
Conclusion
The Mars Room is a powerful and harrowing exploration of the American criminal justice system and the lives of women trapped within it. Rachel Kushner’s novel offers a searing critique of the ways in which poverty, class, and gender intersect to create a system that punishes the most vulnerable members of society. Through the story of Romy Hall, Kushner exposes the brutal realities of incarceration, while also questioning the ethics of a system that offers no possibility of redemption or rehabilitation.
The novel’s unflinching portrayal of life inside prison and the emotional toll of separation from family, especially for mothers like Romy, makes it a profoundly moving and thought-provoking read. At its core, The Mars Room is a story about the forgotten and marginalized, and the devastating consequences of a society that fails to care for its most vulnerable.