Likeable characters in literature/文学作品里的可喜角色(13)
CPE writing task: "A literary magazine has asked readers to send in articles about the importance of the main characters in a novel being likeable. You decide to write an article about the main characters in the book you have read. In your article, you must address whether the characters in your novel are likeable or not, and how important this is to the novel. Write your article."
Likeable characters in literature
This article was written by Roland Simon
We relish reading about loveable characters and their deeds, thereby WE HAVE a strong saviour IN WHOM we lay our hope. The CULT hero has spanned literature, from Viking sagas to modern novels. I am going to analyse Ralph, the main character of the Lord of the flies.
A plane crashes on a desert island, where the story takes place.
The sole survivors are a number of English schoolboys. After the accident Ralph is meandering ON the beach. He is blond, athletic and charismatic. HE IS ACCOMPANIED BY A boy nicknamed Piggy, who is overweight, has glasses and IS intelligent. The fair hair boy comes across a conch ON the seashore; which symbolises civilization. Ralph blows the shell in order to congregate all of the dispersed possible survivors. The distinctive sartorial style of the choir members draws everyone attention. The choir master is Jack, who also possesses a remarkable degree of charisma. Both of them long for power, which begs
the question who should be in charge OF this tiny society.
When Ralph is elected as the chief, the tense feud begins between him and Jack. Later they scour the entire island for the beast whom they DREAM about. The lurking “monster” represents their inner fears. The children split into two groups. Most of the boys choose TO ADOPT AN exciting sense of savagery. They paint their faces and sharpen sticks. The rebellious boy and his followers are preoccupied with hunting instead of caring ABOUT their responsibilities. While they are killing pigs, the fire goes out as well as their hopes OF being rescued. The expiration OF THE FIRE unfortunately coincides with a ship passing by. Despite the happening, Ralph‘s determination remains unflinching.
Apparently this novel tells the story of the long-running debate of nurture against nature. William Golding lifts the veil FROM human society. So delighted are the children liberating themselves from the rules of adults at first. The island is not hostile and resources abound. Ralph commands the children to build shelter and TO PROTECT THE signal fire in the hope to being rescued. He makes fire by using Piggy's glasses. His heuristic ideas are a victory for common sense. Not only is he the embodiment of a typical hero, but he also reveals his altruistic traits. Unlike most of the children, he never mocks his bespectacled friend.
In conclusion, I feel that a likeable character has always played an indispensable role in literature. Readers can feel great sympathy with Ralph, as they follow his adventure from page to page.