Summary:
An essay about characterization, comparing approaches by John Cheever in his short story "Goodbye, My Brother" and Tobias Wolff in his short story "Powder." Both authors create their respective fictional personages through first-person narration, which lead one to conclude in each story that the reasoning for the antagonist's actions is misunderstood by the antagonist's family.
One of the main aspects of a story that truly keeps our attention is character. A person is more likely to enjoy, maintain interest in, or be more intimately engaged with a story if they can relate to or are intrigued by a character or characters. In order for this to happen an author must demonstrate good characterization, the art and technique of representing fictional personages. Characterization relies heavily on narration and point of view. In John Cheever's "Goodbye, My Brother" and Tobias Wolff's "Powder," the point of view of the narration is limited to one person. Known as first-person narration, the story is told from the "I" perspective and the reader only can understand the story from the narrator's point of view.
Because of first-person narration, the reader is provided with easy access to the main.....
This is a free excerpt of 135 words. There are 2,291 words (approx.
8 pages at 300 words per page) in the full essay.
Read the rest of this Essay with our Contrast of Antagonists in "Goodbye, My Brother" and "Powder" Access Pass.
