Characters are elements of oral literature pieces that make up a story. Without characters, there is no story to tell, only scenery. Characters from movies, poems, stories, and television series significantly impact the audience. In most cases, the audience is introduced to [powerful characters who seem to have everything in their lives under control. For this reason, the audience may want to emulate these characters, for they seem to have better lives but forget that these are fictional characters. Pierces of literature usually have the main characters and the minor characters. The protagonist is the major character, and the whole story revolves around that character’s life. The main character is dynamic and changes from time to time. Minor characters are usually static, meaning they do not change throughout the story. However, the minor characters help push the story forward and impact the actions and decisions of the protagonist. This essay aims to analyze the different characters from the short stories and poems as well as show what makes them powerful or powerless.
The speaker in “My Papa Waltz” poem by Theodore and Evaline in “Evaline” short story are both powerless, and their childhood trauma influences this. Both characters have abusive parents, and this significantly contributes to their way of doing things. The speaker in the poem recalls a moment in his childhood, revealing the tension between his father and. The speaker reveals a time when he refused to go to bed, as most children do, as a way of executing his power. The father carried him to bed as he threw him up and down (Theodore 15). Recalling this, the speaker feels some powerlessness because he cannot compete with his powerful father; he is just a small, powerless boy. Although the speaker has changed and wants to demonstrate that he is now powerful through mastery of art, that does not overlook that he has always been powerless. Theodore uses alliteration, “The hand that held my wrist”(Theodore 9), to emphasize the father’s dominating nature if wanting to lead through the repetition of the consonant sound “h.” the speaker is powerless and has to follow the father’s instructions.
Similarly, lost in a dilemma, Evaline cannot come up with a decision of staying at home and being harassed or escaping to Argentina for marriage. However, it is notable that her dilemma is not a result of being indecisive but is because she wants to fulfill the promise she made to her mother despite having a domestically violent father and being so close to leaving. Evaline tries to remember the slightest kindness she has ever received from her father. Evaline remembers how her father cared for her when she was sick and the picnic they had gone for days before her mother passed on (Joyce 4). It is because of these childhood memories that Evaline chooses to stay home despite her father’s continuously abusive nature. In most situations, instances that require Evaline to choose happiness and unhappiness. Evaline has to choose unhappiness. Evaline is depicted as a powerless character in Dublin who fails to choose her happiness first. Joyce uses water to symbolize Evaline’s powerlessness and fear of the unknown (Joyce 1). Water, especially in seas, represents the unknown, and this is similar to Evaline’s life; she is in fear of the unknown.
Chicago, from the Chicago poem by Sandburg and Aminadab in the short story, Birthmark by Hawthorne, differ in their characters; Chicago is powerful because Chicago fights everything that tries to drag it behind and is later filled with joy and laughter. At the same time, Aminadab is powerless because he does not make firm decisions and always agrees with Aylmer’s experiments. Chicago, a city in the Chicago poem, is a character by itself. Chicago is personified and defined as an influential person who is ready to fight despite the criticism and hatred she receives. To show the powerful nature of Chicago, the poet uses imagery to portray the city vividly. For example, the poet says that Chicago is under the smoke, and the reader gets to visualize the struggles that Chicago has to undergo. However, despite these challenges, Chicago continues to prosper because it is vital. Additionally, the poet plays a huge role in promoting the powerful es of Chicago through the theme of social realism and progress. Despite the notable challenges, the city continues to progress by building and rebuilding (Sandburg 11). Like any other city with its positive and negative sides, Chicago has to overcome these challenges no matter what. The city is piling with jobs, expands by building railroads, and gives the impression of a joyful, cunning, tough, and fierce city. The poet greatly admires the power of Chicago for its vibrancy. Additionally, Chicago is filled with laughter for accomplishing its set goals and objectives and fighting all odds (Sandburg 20).
On the other hand, Aminadab in Birthmark is introduced to the audience as a strong, ugly, and earthy man; however, this is not the case because he fails to make decisions independently. Aminadab, though physically strong, cannot understand a number of experiments conducted by his boss. For this reason, Aminadab is powerless and has to work under the control of Aylmer because Aylmer is his boss. Without protest, Aminadab agrees to Aylmer’s experiments. Hawthorne uses irony to describe Aminadab’s powerlessness. Aminadab’s physical appearance suggests that he is such a powerful individual who has everything under control. However, this is not the case because he cannot comprehend all of Aylmer’s experiments. Additionally, it is ironic that despite Aminadab being sympathetic, the author brings out to the audience a dumb Aminadab. Aminadab’s humane character is seen when she sympathizes with Georgina, Aylmer’s wife, over the birthmark. Aminadab feels that if Georgina were his wife, she would never have gotten rid of the birthmark (Hawthorne 30). However, despite his struggles to fight for humanity, Aminadab is still powerless and has to follow and respect the decisions of Aylmer. The reader expects such a powerful character, mainly because of his description, but this is not the case. As stated above, Chicago and Aminadab are different. Chicago is powerful, while Aminadab is powerless.
To conclude, characters in short stories and poems have a significant role in bringing out the intended meaning of the short story or the poem. Characters behave differently, which brings in different types of themes in a story or a poem. While some characters are dynamic, meaning they change throughout the story, other characters are static and do not change at any point. From the analysis, there are powerful and powerless characters. The speaker in “My Papa Waltz” poem is a powerless character, and this is a result of his abusive parent who dominated most of his childhood life. In the “Evaline” short story, Evaline is also a powerless character who cannot make her own decisions. She chooses happiness even when she is on the verge of dying; she has to stay at home. While Chicago is powerful, Aminadab is a powerless character. Chicago is powerful in how the city chooses to progress despite its challenges and criticism. Aminadab in “Birthmark” is a powerless character who cannot comprehend simple science experiments.
Work Cited
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. “The Birthmark.” The Bedford Introduction to Literature. Ed. Michael Meyer. 9th ed. Boston, 2011
Joyce, James. “Evaline” Creative Short Stories. Library Binding. 2012
Sandburg, Carl. Chicago poems. Vol. 32. University of Illinois Press, 2012.
Theodore, Roethke, and William De Witt Snodgrass. My papa’s waltz. Bluestem Press, College of Saint Benedict, 2009.
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