Character Clues

Character Analysis

Direct Characterization

The book has a way of making blunt observations about people and their actions. The text never comes right out and says, "That dude's a jerk" or "man, she's pretentious," but there are descriptions of characters' actions that tune us into what they're really like. Just take a look at Mr. and Mrs. Ackerman at the barn-raising:

Erlo made for the kitchen porch and settled himself in a rocker right at the top of the steps, where he would have an uninterrupted view. Polly Ann brought him a glass of switchel but he asked for coffee so she brought him a cup and small side table from the parlor to put it on. Mrs. Ackerman meanwhile was going down the tables checking on everything there was under the cheesecloth [...] (47.2)

Erlo Ackerman is Tom's boss at the mill, and he seems to think that also makes him boss at the barn-raising, sitting back to watch (from the prime seat) and demanding a different beverage instead of getting in on the action. It's not that he's a bad guy. But he's in charge.

Mrs. Ackerman is bossy in her own way, checking on all the food under the cheesecloths. It's not even your barn-raising, lady! But like her husband, Mrs. Ackerman doesn't have bad intentions. They're both just fussy, finicky people who like to be in charge.

Polly Ann also makes an appearance in this passage, attending to Mr. Ackerman's demands more than ably. Throughout the book, she's the solid, thoughtful worker behind the scenes. Even the minor actions of bringing Mr. Ackerman a special drink and a table to rest it on demonstrate her character perfectly. The novel is jam-packed with actions, large and small, that give us these character clues.

Physical Appearance

When characters are first introduced, we usually get a physical description of them right away. For instance, Mr. Hook's housekeeper, Mrs. Conroy:

She did have gray hair, but she was a big, raw-boned woman, as tall as Mr. Hook, with a voice you could hear from one end of the yard to the other. (44.24)

From that description, you might guess she's a no-nonsense kind of woman who gets things done. If you did, you'd be right.

When we meet Yantis Flancher, he's described as "thin and tall" (30.7), but it gets even more descriptive: 

His eyes water a little. They were a kind of lightless gray. His nose bent a small bit leftward. There were tobacco stains at the corners of his mouth, which also had a smell of whiskey. But he wasn't drunk. Tom could see that. He was whiskey-mean. (30.7)

This dude might as well have a tattoo on his forehead reading, "I'm the bad guy."

Physical appearances certainly give info about characters, but there's also sometimes a looks-can-be-deceiving thing. For example, Birdy has brown teeth and a humped shoulder. He doesn't look like much, but he's resourceful, knowledgeable, and skillful—so much so that the other men at the barn-raising readily elect him to be their leader for the day's work.

Another example is Polly Ann. She's short, youthful, and exceptionally pretty, but don't let that fool you into thinking she's frail or superficial. Polly Ann fulfills the role of provider for her family more adequately than either her husband or her father could. You go, girl.

Thoughts and Opinions

Even though he's the main character, we never get any lengthy descriptions about what Tom looks like or about his personality. But we do get access to his thoughts, and that's what clues us in to Tom's character the most. Here are some of the things we learn about Tom from his thoughts:

He's reserved and introverted:

He tried to picture how it was [when Tom's mother met his father], whether she had just run away, or whether Nob Dolan had come to fetch her. He felt shy of asking Birdy about it. (4.11)

He's thoughtful and perceptive:

It occurred to Tom that [Mr. Hook] must lead a lonely life, and he liked the chatter of the girls. Tom could see also that Mr. Hook was taken with Polly Ann, which wasn't surprising. (34.9)

He's ambitious and a meticulous planner:

[His savings] didn't amount to but a bit over twelve dollars, but he figured if the Breen place came up for sale he would find enough money somewhere to bid in. Just the same, he was relieved when Billy-Bob Baxter told him that the place wasn't among those on the April list. A year more of saving and he would have likely fifty dollars to bid in on the place with. (30.2-3)

The novel also occasionally gives us the thoughts and opinions of other characters. Take a look at what the Widow Breen thinks of Tom and Birdy when she catches them snooping around her barn:

The Widow Breen watched them as they walked up the footpath from the barn with what might have been a smile tugging at her old and wrinkled lips. The youngster, already long in the leg, and the round-shouldered old man looked like a couple of boys who had been caught out. Pretty sheepish, she thought. She had always liked Birdy, though. He was the same simple honest person he'd been when he first showed up on their place. (6.9)