Charles Strickland

When Crabbe meets Charles Strickland, Strickland seems like a dull, commonplace, sturdy man. He is a London stockbroker, and not good at socializing. When Strickland decides to leave it all behind and become a painter in Paris, everyone is shocked, since this seems to come out of the blue. Everyone who sees Strickland's early work laughs at it, saying that he has no talent, but he does not feel that he has a choice as to whether to paint. Strickland sees value in the act of painting itself, not in the finished product. Although he is willing to give up anything to paint, as soon as he has finished a painting, he has no use for it. He also has no use for the opinion of others. Whenever he is ridiculed for his unorthodox actions, Strickland expresses surprise that anyone would think he would care. Strickland does...