Jason Grady Character Analysis

In the Podcast, Serial, Jay Wilds is a main character whose alibi and story from episode one to four. The reporter, Sarah Koenig, maps the whole case out for us. Jay has given a minimum of seven different stories about what happened on January thirteenth. Four police interviews, two trial testimonies, and most recently, an interview he gave to the Intercept.

Approaching the topic of how war stories should not be moral, O’Brien brings an interesting point to the novel by introducing Curt Lemon as a character who died in a pointless manner. As described by O’Brien in his short story, Curt Lemon is a young and free-spirited soldier in Vietnam whose life ends in an extremely sudden and horrific way when he  accidentally steps on a rigged mortar round. Through the analysis of sentence structure in The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien, one can find that Curt Lemon’s character demonstrates the carelessness that many soldiers in Vietnam displayed.

Our actions and interactions with others and society are what define us. Society’s perception of an individual may contrast with that individual’s perception of self. Our actions and interactions with others create certain stigmas which may not change despite progression and change an individual has undergone. But however at the end of the day we are our own creators and we chose who we interact with.

When thinking about the well known comedy Much Ado About Nothing, by William Shakespeare the audience is quick to focus on the wit and comedy that the play has to offer, rather than the understated villain who easily disappears in the background. While reading the play, one can posit that Don John is not the typical villain who acts with a specific motive in mind, rather, he is acting out of an obligation he feels to serve as an antagonist considering his position as a bastard. This is demonstrated in his dialogue, which reveals his inner turmoil on being chained to the villainous role and his willingness to act on any malicious opportunity that presents itself to him. This is significant in that, it provides another layer to our villain and causes the audience to think beyond the first layer that is easily presented, and into the true inner motives of the character.

In society, people tend to follow the people's footsteps and apply new characteristic or methods that they obtain from there person. In the story, Into the Wild, Chris McCandless was a boy who favors several literacy heroes. He was able to understand each hero and apply there knowledge that they obtain from other people. He was favoriting Henry David Thoreau, Jack London, Leo Tolstoy and much more. Henry David Thoreau was an American poet and an essayist and wrote numerous books based on his philosophy. However, in the book, he plays a crucial role in giving Chris McCandless life lesson throughout his journey. Jack London is a worldwide celebrity and a famous novelist and journalist. He also has some characteristics that Chris has also obtained from him. In addition, Leo Tolstoy was one of the greatest Russian authors of all times. He has inspired Chris with some of his quotes which reflects him during his journey. There are more heroes that Chris mentions in the story but these are three which he tends to reflect more on.

Randy Pausch. Who is he? What does he stand for? The day he gave the last lecture... His last lecture he only had months to live. He packed a lot of lessons into his lecture. The claims he gave that stood out were to be optimistic, to be determined, and to take risks.

Many of us readers would agree that after reading Tim O’Brien’s “In the Lake of the Woods” we find John Wade’s behavior more than unusual as he would do some unusual things such as burning plants with boiling water while saying “Kill Jesus”, and have flashbacks. Most readers would wonder how a psychologist would diagnose John Wade. Based on his behavior, John Wade would probably be diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). PTSD is a severe anxiety disorder that can develop after exposure to any life-threatening event which results in psychological trauma. Wade’s diagnoses would affect O’Brien’s implicit argument as anyone that has a perfect or normal life can be ruined by PTSD.

There is no need to always be in an agreement with the main character. Our opinions are developed from our own experiences and how we were raised. As for the opinion whether John Grady matures, he does grow up to have control over his emotions. This is seen after killing someone and being in a near death situation. After being set free, he goes back to where he was arrested to get the horses back. He was seeking to bring them back to the original owners. This action is perceived to be taking action into his hands. He is not abiding by the laws of the town the horses were in. Is John Grady classified as a hero or a vigilante? Is he a hero in the terms set by society and culture of this novel? What is a hero? What is a vigilante? What is a hero in the book? A hero is someone who brings justice according to the law of the land while a vigilante is someone who follows their own philosophy of justice and administers their philosophy of justice. John Grady is no hero in terms of the definition

The Things They Carried is a work of historical fiction written by Vietnam war veteran, Tim O’Brien. This novella is a collection of linked short stories about American soldiers serving in the Vietnam war. The novella contains a numerous amount of deep,complex characters who help characterize each other. In the The Things They Carried, Tim O'Brien characterizes the soldiers through the round female characters

Chris McCandless is the main character from the book Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, he is a idealistic man who beliefs that life should be spent out in the wild. He took a journey all the way to Alaska by himself leaving his whole life and family behind to pursue his dream. On his way to Alaska he faced many obstacles and got through them with the help of several people whom he met throughout this journey. Jan Burres, Ronald Franz and Westerberg are some of the people whom Chris interacted with leaving them behind with different impressions on each of them.

Often enough, society pressures individuals into acting in accordance to social norms out of fear of being cast away from both their communities and by their loved ones. In the instance of the novel Gilead by Marilynne Robinson, the character Jack Boughton may not necessarily be regarded as a respectable figure nor act in the manner that the narrator John Ames reveres, yet it is revealed throughout the process of the novel that Jack does in fact question both his past and present actions as well as the security of his future in heaven despite keeping this and a large part of his identity hidden from his family and friends in the form of a secret marriage. Through the guidance of his namesake John Ames, Jack Boughton eventually leaves the town of Gilead pondering the concept of predestination and intending to serve as a better husband and father to his wife and child as well as questions how his attempts at conforming to social standards have led him astray from his family, thus ultimately leaving the reader and John Ames himself hoping that he can make amends to his life in addition to his behaviors while he still has the time.

“There’s a thin, blurry line between humor and tragedy,” Christopher Paul Curtis. In many cases people don’t even see across the line that Curtis has pointed out. Many people only see the humor or the tragedy, or the good and bad of the world. In the book The Watsons go to Birmingham-1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis, Kenny Watson only sees the good in the world until he meets Rufus and goes to Birmingham, Alabama. Kenny doesn’t recognize any of the real horrors in the world because his society has filtered everything in his life.

Ron Williamson is the character I chose for this character sketch essay. This book was written about Ron’s life and a true story about wrongful convictions. Ron was supposed to be the town’s hero, the next Mickey Mantle. Then later in his life, and the book, he ended up perceived as the villain. The book starts out with him as a little kid, always playing baseball outside with his friends. That’s when people started realizing Ron was something special. His favorite thing about baseball was hitting. He was by far the best in Ada, his hometown. Then when he got into High School he was even better than what people expected. Scouts would come from all across the country to come watch him play. His parents gave him everything he wanted or needed. Anytime he needed anything they’d somehow come up with the money. Even his sisters spoiled Ron. If his parents couldn’t come up with the money for Ron somehow his sisters would. They were a very poor family, but somehow they would manage to get him whatever he wanted. Around High School, he started forming very bad habits. He picked up a few bad habits such as smoking and drinking. Then he finally finished High School and got offered a full ride scholarship to the University of Oklahoma. Better than that, he got offered a contract to the Oakland A’s professional baseball team.

Massive. Brave. Strong. Tall. These words all describe Maxwell Kane. Maxwell Kane is a thirteen year old boy that is a big guy with an even bigger heart. He might not be the bravest person in the world, but Maxwell Kane is braver than he believes.

Christopher Johnson McCandless graduated from Emory University in 1990. The son of well-to-do parents, it appeared that Chris was prepared to embark on the next chapter of his life. He had been editor of the student newspaper, earned honors with a double major in history and anthropology, and seemed destined for law school. Determined to rewrite his story, Chris eschewed conventional expectations. He divested himself of money and possessions and immersed himself in a new identity: Alexander Supertramp, Alaskan Adventurer. Four months after beginning his trek into the wilderness north of Mt. McKinley, Chris's decomposed body was found. When the details of his story emerged, many people thought Chris was mentally disturbed, calling him a "kook," a "nut," and "a half-cocked greenhorn," among other things (Krakauer, 1996, pp. 71-72). Had Chris's story had a happy ending, he would probably be described differently. He brought the tragic ending on himself, and people called him crazy. "Crazy" is a non-clinical word often used to describe someone with an underlying pathology. In this sense, there was nothing wrong with Chris McCandless. What he did suffer from was the enthusiasm and over-confidence of youth. Combined with poor planning and insufficient skills and experience in the outdoors, his "affliction" became fatal. McCandless made bad decisions, but he was not crazy.