Round characters are what makes stories believable and interesting. They drive stories forward, and, as readers, we are lost in their thoughts and actions. One thing that round characters have that makes them so compelling is motivation--the all-encompassing drive to make a dream come true. Without motivation, a character is flat. Furthermore, when a round character loses their motivation in a story, it creates tragedy. This can be witnessed firsthand in two short stories: Shiloh by Bobbie Ann Mason and Paul’s Case by Willa Cather.
In Shiloh, Leroy Moffitt dreams of building a log cabin. After an accident leaves him unable to drive, he goes up his former job as a truck driver and fills his time with crafts. His new craving for making things is admirable and productive, but his wife wants nothing to do with his log cabin plans. In an effort to get her to understand his desire, he takes her to a Civil War battlefield, and it is here that she requests a divorce. In this moment, his dream crumbles--what good is a cabin, after all, if he will live there alone?
In Paul’s Case, Paul has a yen for art and theatre but is trapped in a small, suburban town where he cannot access these things. One day, in meticulously planned desperation, he steals a large sum of money and runs away to New York City. He is finally surrounded by the things he loves, but when he runs out of money and his father arrives to look for him, he kills himself. Then, of course, his dreams are lost forever.
Objectively, these two stories are quite different. However, they actually possess many similarities. They both feature characters with artistic temperaments who dream of something bigger than themselves. They both live in places where their dreams go unheard, unseen, and uncultivated. They both go on long journeys to achieve their dreams, and both of their dreams are lost and futile. Finally, in the end, they both lose their motivation--the one thing that makes them both round characters.
Both Leroy and Paul definitely have their own motivations. Leroy finds that his dream of a log cabin, something he yearns for for a long time, to be simplistic to keep his wife from leaving him. Paul's dream of living on his own is ruined by realizing that he cannot, so he terminates his dream. However, these motivations alone do not automatically make them round characters, not until their motivations change. Both Leroy and Paul have new motivations at the end of each story- Leroy goes to see what Norma Jean is doing on the bluff, and Paul kills himself. Explaining what these shifts in motivations mean about the characters would strengthen your argument. This piece could also benefit from examples from both stories to support your points.
ReplyDeleteI really appreciate how short this post is while still accomplishing its goal. In my opinion, one thing that could make this a little more cohesive would be blending together your discussion of the stories into multiple paragraphs instead of separating them. Overall, I think you defend your thesis well., and playing around with how you compare works of literature could benefit you.
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