THEMES ANALYSIS An understanding of self - In first-person narratives, the narrator may play one of two types of roles. He may be a low profile, colorless character, who acts as a medium to convey the actions of others around him who are more dramatic and colorful. Alternately, he may be one of the central characters in the literary work. Charlie belongs to the latter category. What makes him stand out is that he doesn't …showed first 75 words of 1591 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1591 total…since his adolescence. Yet, Alice and he do not part ways, but have a deep friendship. A relationship develops between him and his neighbor Fay. He likes and admires many of Fay's qualities, but he seeks her only for a sexual outlet, not at an emotional level. His love for Alice reaches fulfillment only in the final stages of the book but its intensity comforts him for all the lost days, and his bleak future.