The Natural Character Essay

673 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Studying gender roles in literature

In the novel The Natural, everybody doubts the main character, Roy Hobbs. Roy is old, so when he decides to play for a great baseball team, everybody doubts him. With the help of characters along the way such as Pop (the head coach), Iris (one of Roy’s biggest fans, Roy is not sure if he loves her), Memo (teammates girlfriend), Bump (rival teammate who is dating Memo and Roy wants to outplay), and many other characters, Roy is able to surprise all of the fans. Throughout the novel Roy surprises everyone, the more and more the season goes on, the more surprised fans. In the novel, a young baseball player by the name of Roy Hobbs is getting ready to enter baseball as his career. Roy has a great future ahead of him, but it all comes to a halt when Roy is shot. Roy is shot by a woman named Harriet Bird. Harriet tries to kill many athletes, luckily she fails when she attempts to kill Roy. Roy then stops playing baseball for fifteen years before picking up his bat again. When Roy comes back to baseball he goes to the New York Knights. The coach of the Knights, Pop, is very upset when he sees …show more content…

Iris Lemon, a fan of Roy, helps Roy come out of a slump that he is in during the middle of the season. Iris stands up at a game when everyone else is sitting, when Roy notices her he hits a homerun. After the game he talks to Iris, and he can’t tell if he loves her. Later she asks Roy to move to Hollywood with her, but he cannot accept this offer. Roy later realizes he does not love Iris, he loves Memo. Memo is Roy’s teammate, Bump’s girlfriend. Memo hates Roy, because when Bump dies she blames it on him. Memo believes Bump tried to outplay Roy, causing Bump to run into the wall when trying to catch a ball, and Bump dies. Roy loves Memo throughout the novel, but she never feels the same way. Pop is another character who pushes Roy to do great. Pop coaches Roy and sets him on the right

Show More
Related

  • Throwing Strikes by R.A. Dickey and About R.A. Dickey

    862 Words  | 2 Pages

    first person about his struggles in the beginning of his baseball career, and how he miraculously turns his

    Read More

  • Chris Mccandless Failure

    432 Words  | 1 Pages

    Before going to Alaska, Chris McCandless had failed to communicate with his family while on his journey; I believe this was Chris’s biggest mistake. Chris spent time with people in different parts of the nation while hitchhiking, most of them whom figured out that McCandless kept a part of him “hidden”. In chapter three, it was stated that Chris stayed with a man named Wayne Westerberg in South Dakota. Although Westerberg was not seen too often throughout the story, nevertheless he was an important character. Introducing himself as Alex, McCandless was in Westerberg’s company for quite some time: sometimes for a few days, other times for several weeks. Westerberg first realized the truth about Chris when he discovered his tax papers, which stated that “McCandless’s real name was Chris, not Alex.” Wayne further on claims that it was obvious that “something wasn’t right between him and his family” (Krakauer 18). Further in the book, Westerberg concluded with the fact that Chris had not spoken to his family “for all that time, treating them like dirt” (Krakauer 64). Westerberg concluded with the fact that during the time he spent with Chris, McCandless neither mentioned his

    Read More

  • Roy Hobbs: The Tragic Hero in “The Natural” by Bernard Malamud

    1758 Words  | 4 Pages

    The book “The Natural” talks mostly about the heroic acts of Roy Hobbs, his strength of not giving up his wish. The book is basically about the characters flaws that lead him to his fate. Hobbs wish was to become one of the most popular baseball players ever existed in history. He wanted to break any record that was ever existed in any record books, he wanted to be remembered in history forever. Hobbs meets Harriet Bird in the train who did not like his notion of becoming popular and shoots him in his upper body with a gun. One of Hobbs biggest flaws was falling in love with Harriet. But his flaws lead him toward his fate in the sense that he did not quit what he had planned for his life to become one of the best baseball players. At the age of 34, he came back in to the baseball game and tries to make things right for himself. Hobbs character in the book gives a similar role as it was given by the Greek tragedy characters; hubris like characters. Hobbs character was brought to suffer extreme sorrow like the Greek tragedy characters. Hobbs did not seems to learn from his mistakes, one of the biggest mistakes was falling in love with Harriet and in the second time he was fell in love with Pop's niece Memo which is a clear example that shows he does not learn from his mistakes.

    Read More

  • Foul Trouble Sparknotes

    624 Words  | 2 Pages

    Next, the games start and every court is being used. Danny, Terrell, and Jay Swanson are all on the Rebels. The first game is against the Crushers. The Crushers star player is Omar Whytlaw. He was ranked the third best in the camp. During the game, Jay did not hustle back on defense, so Danny calls him out on it. Jay responds with a smart comment of his own, which causes Danny to fire a hard pass at him. Jay ends up getting hit in the face and knocked over. He charges at Danny and catches him with a fist. The referee cannot eject them because they’re on the same team. Coach Wilcox decides to sit Danny and Jay for the rest of the game. The Rebels are down by two with only a couple seconds left. Terrell has the ball and

    Read More

  • Character Flaws In The Natural By Bernard Malamud's The Natural

    1641 Words  | 4 Pages

    The book “The Natural” is a very interesting book that talks mostly about the heroic act of Roy Hobbs of not giving it up. The book basically is about the characters flaws that lead him to his fate. Hobbs wish was him to become one of the popular baseball player ever existed in history. He wants to break any record that was ever existed in the books, he want to be a history that will be remembered forever. Hobbs meets Harriet Bird in the train who did not like his notion of becoming popular and shoots him in his upper body. Hobbs one of the biggest flaws was fallen in love with Harriet. But his flaws lead him toward his fate in the sense that he did not quit what he had planned for his life to become a best baseball player. At age 34, he came back to the baseball game and tries to make things right for himself. Hobbs character in the book gives a same role as it was given by the Greek tragedy characters; hubris like characters. Hobbs character was brought to suffer extreme sorrow like the Greek tragedy characters. Hobbs did not seems to learn from his mistakes, one of the biggest mistakes was him fallen in love with Harriet and in the second time he was fallen in love with Pop's niece Memo which is a clear example to show he does not learn from his mistakes.

    Read More

  • The Big Field by Mike Lupica

    723 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hutch, the main character of The Big Field, has played baseball all of his life. He has always played shortstop, the same position that his father dreamed of playing as a professional. “Hutch, had always thought of himself as the captain of any infield he’d ever been a part of” (Lupica 1). Hutch finds himself being demoted to second base because there is another player, Darryl, on his new team that is expected to go pro and also plays shortstop. Hutch struggles because he does not want to play second base and his father does not support him because he does not want baseball to break Hutch’s dreams like it did his own. Hutch is betrayed by his father and Darryl when he finds them practicing together. Hutch has to learn to adjust and eventually becomes friends with Darryl, the up and coming shortstop. He understands that if he wants to win, then he needs to work together with Darryl. His father also comes around and finally gives Hutch his approval. Students should read this book in a high school English classroom because it demonstrates how relationships can be difficult, but teamwork can help to solve many issues.

    Read More

  • The Natural

    571 Words  | 2 Pages

    Roy Hobbs is also a natural in the sense that he is a kind of idiot. In the pre-game Roy shows lots of this characteristic. It started right way in the book on page four where he isn’t able to put both feet in separate pant legs. He had a hard time of doing some simple stuff like shavi...

    Read More

  • Archetypes In The Natural

    1376 Words  | 3 Pages

    Roy’s task is to identify himself so that he may reassume his rightful position as the best baseball player in the game. He earned the position the first time when he struck out the Whammer. After returning to baseball, Roy must again prove himself as the best. First, Roy must earn the respect from his coach and the players before he can attempt to make a name for himself. Once that is accomplished by showing off his hitting talents, Roy Hobbs easily becomes a household name. It takes awhile, but he does become the persistent front-page story.

    Read More

  • The Natural by Bernard Malamud

    1043 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...d but he could not achieve his goals. His situation is relatable to the audience even if one is not a baseball player. The book teaches the audience to avoid company and mistakes that can rob them their success. Roy Hobbs misfortunes remind the readers how some obstacles can alter someone’s dreams.

    Read More

  • The Art Of Fielding Analysis

    1463 Words  | 3 Pages

    Chad Harbach’s The Art of Fielding focuses on Henry, a small town boy that learns the value of life through the sport of baseball. Henry comes from humble beginnings of small town America, but suffers from a case of perfectionism – he will not stop short of achieving total perfection and this will eventually lead to his demise. He meets Mike Schwartz, a college baseball player that convinces him that college baseball is his future. Henry’s curiosity gets the best of him as he stumbles into the dark, cutthroat, and competitive world of college athletics. Once he steps foot in this world, Henry’s hunger for perfection is amplified. He sees the real world of athletics and

    Read More

  • National Honor Society Character Essay

    535 Words  | 2 Pages

    Nominees were asked to try and write about one experience, which proves quite difficult and uninteresting. It's much more interesting to discuss the value of the "pillars" of the National Honor Society. One thing defines us in life. One thing that outshines service, leadership, and even scholarship. In fact, without this thing, the other three are irrelevant. Character. Character carries us through our lives. It gives motivation and strength. It gives love and hate. It gives decisions of yes or no. Character is most important to me. It is character that literally defines all of us. Character is more than being kind and polite. If everyone's character could be summed in that way of unkind or kind and polite or impolite the world would not be interesting anymore would it? The world is interesting and so is everyone else, all because of character.

    Read More

  • Why No One Else Saw Mullet Finger Running Down The Street?

    681 Words  | 2 Pages

    Roy is being bullied by Dana a girl who is picking on him for what he wears and cause he new.Why didn't anyone stand up for Roy or why didn't anyone tell Dana what she doing is wrong. Roy is riding his bike in the rain and Dana sees him when she should not have and tell his parents.I was wondering what Dana was doing alone in the rain?Why couldn`t Roy just tell on Dana to her parents ? Mullet Finger should have told Beatrice what was going on at home and how there mom was treating him .Towards the beginning of the book why was Beatrice getting teased. Why was Beatrice nickname “Beatrice the

    Read More

  • Character Analysis of Roy Hobbs in the Natural

    1225 Words  | 3 Pages

    "He was like a hunter stalking a bear, a whale, or maybe the sight of a single fleeing star the way he went after that ball (Malamud, 162)." Since he is young, Roy Hobbs has great ability and amazing talent in baseball. However, just like a tragic hero in Greek myth, those ones who fight for their honor, but fail because of their hubris or the desire of being such immortal and an aspects of not accepting the truth and reality, Roy Hobbs' hubris, ambition and a desire for fame and his fortune really tell that he is a tragic hero.

    Read More

  • Critical Response To The Natural Essay

    813 Words  | 2 Pages

    His new book followed a pretentious character, Roy Hobbs, who seemingly possessed all the skills necessary to become an iconic baseball player. This rise was put to rest after a near fatal gun shot to the stomach stopped him from becoming a player for the Chicago Cubs (27). Most critics agree Malamud gained the inspiration for this from the shooting of the Yankees first basemen, Eddie Whitcrys.(CITE). This is only the first instance in which Roy Hobbs falls victim to the woes of women. Malamud's idea of placing this tragedy at the start of the story foreshadowed what the reader would later interpret one of the major character flaws in Roy Hobbs

    Read More

  • Pride And Prejudice Character Analysis Essay

    1257 Words  | 3 Pages

    The main protagonist of the story, Elizabeth Bennet (nicknamed both Lizzy and Eliza), is the second daughter in the Bennet family. Second only to her elder sister in beauty, Elizabeth’s figure is said to be “light and pleasing,” with “dark eyes,” and “intelligent…expression” (24). At 20 years old, she is still creating her place in society. Known for her wit and playful nature, “Elizabeth is the soul of Pride and Prejudice, [she] reveals in her own person the very title qualities that she spots so easily” (“Pride and Prejudice”) in others. Her insightfulness often leads her to jump to conclusions and think herself above social demand. These tendencies lead her to be prejudice towards others; this is an essential characteristic of her role

    Read More

More about The Natural Character Essay

Open Document