Guide Mentor

Character Role Analysis

Mathu

Whatever you might think about any other character in A Gathering of Old Men, there's no denying that Mathu is a boss. And when we say he's a boss, we don't mean the kind that goes around telling people what to do. We mean the kind of guy who's got so much respect that he doesn't need to go around telling people what to do. Not only that, but remember that, when Mat and Chimley are talking about what went down at Mathu's, the simple fact that it means Mathu's the one who's going to catch hell makes them feel like they have to stand up and do something.

But that's not all. Take a minute and think back to Mathu's relationship with big Charlie Biggs. Better yet, let's have Charlie tell us a little bit about it:

I'm fifty now, and I'm sure I musta run when I was no more than five, 'cause I know Parrain [Mathu] was beating more for running when I was six. 'Cause I can remember the first time he beat me for running. You remember the first time you beat me for running, Parrain? […] You tried to make me a man, didn't you, Parrain? (15.48-50)

We have to interrupt this part of the broadcast to say that we're in no way saying it's cool to beat a small child. You do have to remember, though, that Mathu comes from a generation where that was okay, so he doesn't really know any better. With all that said, you can plainly see that Mathu is trying to guide Charlie in a particular direction and teach him the importance of standing up for himself. When you take that into consideration with the relationship that Candy had with Mathu at a very early age, there's just no denying that Mathu guides and guards more than one character in Gaines's novel.