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The Character Analysis Of Annie Proulx's Brokeback Mountain

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Annie Proulx is an eminent American journalist and writer, who has devoted herself to writing career and in turn, received quite a few prestigious awards, including Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, National Book Award for Fiction, etc. (Flanagan, n.d.) O. Henry Award was also given to her thanks to the publication of one of her masterpieces in 1997, which was called “Brokeback Mountain”, a short story raising an issue of homosexuality against homophobia. In this essay, I would prefer to pass my comments on the plot constructed in this short story as well as the characters and the messages conveyed.
To start with, what really shines through the plot is the simplicity in combination with emotion which, in turn, stirs realism. Readers tend to be struck …show more content…

Brokeback Mountain is considered as a character-driven story; therefore, how the characters are formed, including their reactions and feelings, is of critical importance. I was struck by the way Annie Proulx made up her characters. She did not intend to create her own characters possessing admirable traits; instead, the two main characters were just uneducated, poor young men, who struggled to find their jobs. They even neglected their own responsibilities as shepherds, and later on, told lies to their wives just with the intention of staying together. However, flawed as they might be, I believe that this characterization helps the readers feel as if these characters were real, and thus, arouses considerable sympathy from them. Furthermore, what strikes me is the fact that the author mainly focuses on the principal characters and obstacles they encountered (May, n.d.). By saying that I mean Proulx particularly draw readers’ attention to how Jack and Ennis articulated themselves and how they dealt with internal conflicts. Although other characters such as the two men’s wives, their boss, etc. only play minor parts, they still act as supporting roles, which help the storyline run smoothly. Moreover, it is these characters that reflect homophobic society, which has a heavy toll on the two men’s relationship. In other words, all characters in the story are …show more content…

Through her careful characterization, the author wants to pass on two moral messages in hope that people would be more tolerant towards diversity and individuals should be more sincere with their orientation. These two lessons are considered valid in Vietnamese context due to specific social and cultural

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