Anti-hero

Bellow makes the character of Morris Selbst enough of a likeable rouge that readers can easily see why his son would be willing to forgive his crimes and try to help him improve. Morris may be considered a hero of the work because he is a sympathetic main character: certainly, he is something of a hero to his son, Woody. But he has many personal qualities that are less than heroic in the traditional sense. He is vain, petty, dishonest, greedy, and crude, to name just a few of his unattractive characteristics. Because he subverts the standard expectations of a hero, Morris functions as an anti-hero, making readers question their own expectations of what a hero is and does.

Foil

Traditional fiction often provides a protagonist with a foil, a character who is the opposite of the main character and whose traits contrast with the protagonist at every...