Roots | Teaching Key Figures

Character Descriptions

This section provides a short description of all the major characters in the book. This can be printed out as a study guide for students, used as a "key" for leading a class discussion, or you can jump to the quiz/homework section to find worksheets that incorporate these descriptions into a variety of question formats.

Characters

Bell - The plantation cook who becomes the wife of the man known as the African.

Nyo Boto - An old woman who cares for the children and who fears no one.

The Fiddler - The man who earns money to buy his freedom only to be told that the price has increased.

Chicken George - The flamboyant grandson of the man known as the African who becomes an expert trainer of gamecocks.

Alex Haley - The author of Roots.

Simon Haley - A railroad employee who becomes a professor.

0l'George Johnson -...
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