A Prayer for Owen Meany, by John Irving

How many people honestly know their true identity? In today’s society, some try so hard to fit in, they lose themselves in the mixture. However, those who stay true to themselves sometimes lose society in the mix. In the novel, A Prayer for Owen Meany, written by John Irving, the characters all show some sort of notable identity. Whether the character’s characteristics are known or hidden, they all assume uniqueness that significantly affect major characters in the novel such as Johnny and Owen. A theme clearly portrayed throughout this novel is having a sense of identity, which is shown through the characters Harriet, Dick and Mr. Merrill.

If one were to do an analysis on the character Harriet Wheelwright, they would see that her character changes throughout the novel. In the beginning, the readers see Harriet as a snobbish character, one that flaunts her family heritage in everyone’s face. This is seen when Johnny explains what his family heritage is:

I am descended from John Adams on my grandmother’s side (her maiden name was Bates, and her family came to America on the Mayflower); yet in our town, it was my grandfather’s name that had the clout, and my grandmother wielded her married name with such a sure sense of self-possession that she might as well have been a Wheelwright and an Adams and a Bates. (Irving 8)

However, once Tabby died, something changed in Harriet. Harriet became softer, nicer, and more pleasant to be around, especially around Owen. Owen and Harriet bond over the most unsuspecting thing: the television, and especially Liberace. Together, the two became close and Harriet starts to regard Owen as a second grandson; where as before she just finds him annoying. An example of this is when Harriet pays for ...

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...ill can be considered as a minor character that has the most impact upon the characters. The Reverend may have more than likely been the reason that the baseball hit Tabby, because as the novel suggests, it is “NO COINCIDENCE” that things happen the way they do. One can not help but not like the Reverend. Although Irving sets it up for the reader to pity him by telling us his family story, throughout the novel, the Reverend is an annoying character who is most of the times very disagreeable.

As one can see, Harriet, Dick and Reverend Lewis Merrill, even though they are all minor characters, affect the major characters, such as Johnny and Owen with their identity, or personality. Without these characters, the novel would never be the same. As Alan Rudolph said, “Human identity is the most fragile thing that we have, and it's often only found in moments of truth.”