Characters used in works of fiction react differently to different situations and this in return communicates something to the reader. These reactions elicit feelings that a reader uses to analyze how the story grows from the beginning o is climax and conclusion. It is of importance to note that in as much as these works are mere fiction, they are meant to reach out to the reader and make the readers act in a certain way in reaction to their actions. At times, when a character in a work of fiction dies or is hurt, the reader becomes sad or happy depending on the role they play in passing the intended message. This in part is because of how they react to different situations that they find themselves in, in a work of art. It is from this background that we are going to analyze the different reactions that characters exhibit during some situations and the effect that these reactions have on the reader.
Looking at the novel Native Speaker by Chang- Rae Lee, the main character Henry desires to be considered more of a white man than Korean. He is willing to forego his heritage in order to be accepted in a white dominated society. He gives in to the pressures of society and when his wife Lelia wants to completely convert him from the Korean that he is to the American that she wants to become, he more than willingly plays a long. It got to a point where his wife all his acts that were inspired by his traditions as a Korean. Henry himself admitted to the fact that all her traits and habits were beyond question. He completely resigned himself to the whitened ways of society therefore abandoning his traditions and beliefs as a Korean in the quest to be acknowledged as a white man.
His reactions towards the effort to make him whiter are those that indicate that he is ready to give up his heritage. These reactions communicate to the reader the fact that pressure can prevail and make somebody bow to it and denounce his heritage. The quest to fit in to the prevailing heritage is seen through his eventual conversion. This elicits in the reader the feelings of a person or a people fighting within them to retain their cultural heritage but have to face the prevailing forces in society. At the end of the day, he gave in to the pressures of not only his wife but also the expectations of society at the time. Perhaps this speaks volumes about the happenings in the American society back in the day when there was white supremacy over the minority groups. Henry’s reaction to the prevailing pressure communicates to the reader the historical issue of racialism and how the minority groups sought fit in by giving up their cultural heritage.
Another work of fiction that we will draw upon is the story, The Shawl by Cynthia Ozick. The story traces its history to the lives of people who survived the holocaust. In it, we see a woman Rosa who struggles so much to conceal her infant daughter Magda, giving up her food supplies for her, all through the match into the concentration camp and for a couple of days. One day when Magda strayed, a solder spotted her, went up to her and picked her up, he then threw the innocent young girl into the electric fence and killed her instantly while Rosa watched helplessly. Her reaction was that of wanting to scream in an effort to distract the soldier so as not to kill her daughter but unfortunately she does not do so for fear of her life.
In this story, the reader follows this family of a mother, daughter and niece. The daughter Magda has come a long way and survived the worst of events. It is therefore obvious that the readers will be driven to feel pity for this mother who struggles and sacrifices to give her daughter a chance to live. The reaction of wanting to scream but not doing so elicits pity and also makes a person visualize the actions and paint a picture of all these actions. The reaction is also meant to draw the picture of the exact happenings of the holocaust.
It is therefore clear, through these two works of fiction, that the reactions of various characters spark certain feelings in the reader that draw them into their worlds. When the readers get into their worlds, they get to share their feelings, joys, happiness and even sadness. These characters of course communicate in ways that are typical of the situations that they find themselves in; happiness or sadness notwithstanding, the reader is led into and through every step of their lives and that is the beauty of any piece of writing. Works of fiction are intended not only to entertain but also pass a message about the happenings in society, it is just that fiction writings take up imaginary characters but can take real life situations.
Works Cited
Lee, Chang- Rae. Native speaker. New York: Penguin Books, 2013. Print.
Ozick, Cynthia. The Shawl. The Oxford Book of American Short Stories. Ed. Joyce Carol Oates. New York, Oxford UP, 1992. 601-606.
