The Pigman Essay Topics

The Pigman by Paul Zindel is a realistic fiction novel about adolescence. The Pigman is a realistic fiction novel because it is about growing up in 1960’s America. Zindel shows many examples of the adolescents in the novel being unable to communicate with their parents and instead misbehaving and lying. He also shows how adolescents are able to overcome this and mature. Zindel shows that love is the key to being able to live as a responsible adult.

The novel The Pigman takes place in New York City in the 1960’s. Zindel indicates that The Pigman takes place in the 1960’s by writing about many examples of 1960’s technology, including rotary phones, cars, televisions, and oscilloscopes. He also indicates that it takes place in this time period

when he describes the amount of money that products cost. Zindel sets the novel in the 1960’s because it was a time of great social unrest, which is similar to how John and Lorraine rebel against authority in the novel. Some of the examples of social unrest that happened in this time period are the Civil Rights Movement, the Feminist Movement, and the protests against the Vietnam War. The Pigman takes place in the New York City borough of Staten Island, specifically in the neighborhood of Silver Lake. Zindel indicates that the novel takes place in Staten Island when he writes about Mr. Pignati, Lorraine, and John taking a ferry from Staten Island to Manhattan. He indicates that the novel takes place in the neighborhood of Silver Lake, in Staten Island, when he names the two streets that Lorraine and John’s bus stop is on, Eddy Street and Victory Boulevard, which are in Silver Lake. Zindel also indicates that The Pigman takes place in Silver Lake when Lorraine and John find Mrs. Pignati’s funeral bill, which says Silver Lake on it. Zindel sets it in this place and time to help show the theme.
Zindel tells The Pigman in first person point of view through the perspective of two of the main characters, John and Lorraine. Zindel shows the thoughts and feelings of John and Lorraine through this point of view. However, Zindel describes the events of The Pigman through only John and Lorraine’s points of view. Zindel chooses this point of view because it describes the story through the perspectives of two characters, not just one. This makes the story more interesting because it shows John and Lorraine’s conflicting opinions.
One of the main characters in The Pigman is John Conlan.

One of John’s most obvious physical characteristics is that he is handsome. He is sophomore at Franklin High, where he used to cause lots of trouble. He caused trouble in his freshman year because he did not respect the teachers. Another example of John disrespecting authority occurs when he does not respect his parents. He does not respect his parents because they did not raise him well. One is example of John not respecting his parents occurs when he glues the lock that his father placed on their telephone shut. Another example of John disrespecting his parents occurs when he argues with his father about what he wants his profession to be. His father wants him to work in the coffee exchange, while John wants to be an actor. Another of John’s qualities is that he drinks alcoholic beverages and smokes cigarettes. His habits of drinking and smoking began when he saw his father doing the same. One of John’s internal characteristics is that he is extremely proud. Zindel shows this when John is bragging about how handsome he is. Another of John’s internal characteristics is that he pretends that he does not care about anything, but he is really compassionate. Zindel shows this when Lorraine describes John. John is a dynamic character because he changes throughout the course of the novel. One example of John changing occurs when he kisses Lorraine for the first time. This shows that he is starting to have

romantic feelings for her. Another example of John changing occurs when he feels ashamed for Mr. Pignati’s death. This is an example of John changing because he is starting to take responsibility for his actions. [Needs concluding sentence]
Another of the main characters in The Pigman is Lorraine Jensen. Lorraine is not as attractive is John, in fact, she is fairly average-looking. She, like John, is a sophomore at Franklin High. Another way that she is similar to John is that she also has a dysfunctional family. Her father died of a Sexually Transmitted Infection that he received from another woman, and as a result Lorraine’s mother hates all men. As a result of this, she does not want Lorraine to be friends with any boys. She also tries to stop John from doing making brash choices. One of Lorraine’s internal characteristics is that she is extremely sympathetic and compassionate. Zindel shows this when Lorraine feels ashamed for prank calling Mr. Pignati. Another example of this occurs when Lorraine thinks that John pretends to not care about anything. [Needs concluding sentence]
The final main character in The Pigman is Angelo Pignati.

Angelo, also known as Mr. Pignati, is a retired electrician. He is also a overweight and lives by himself in a run-down house. Because he is overweight, he unhealthy and eventually dies of a heart attack. Even though Zindel never discloses Mr. Pignati’s exact age, he is somewhere in his fifties. One of Mr. Pignati’s internal characteristics is that he is extremely lonely. One reason he is lonely is because his wife, Conchetta Pignati, died. At the beginning of the novel, he denies this and says she is visiting her sister in California. However, he eventually admits that she is dead to John and Lorraine. Another reason that he is so lonely is because he never had any children. This is why he spoils John and Lorraine and treats them like his children. Zindel shows that Mr. Pignati is lonely when he writes about how Mr. Pignati’s best friend is a baboon named Bobo. [Needs Concluding Sentence]

Zindel uses many unusual techniques in The Pigman. One unusual technique that Zindel uses is Lorraine censoring all of the obscenities that John writes. This makes the novel more interesting and more humorous. Another unusual technique that Zindel uses is that the entire novel is a flashback. As a result of this, there is a high amount of flashbacks in The Pigman. A final unusual technique that Zindel uses is that there are two different narrators. Because of this, there are conflicting opinions between the chapters

of The Pigman. Because Zindel uses so many unusual techniques, the story is interesting.
Zindel uses figurative language extremely often. One kind of figurative language that Zindel uses in The Pigman is simile. Zindel uses a simile when he compares John to a bat in a cage. Zindel uses this simile to describe how John felt trapped. Another kind of figurative language that Zindel uses in the novel is metaphor. Zindel uses a metaphor when he compares the characters in The Pigman to baboons. Zindel uses this metaphor to describe how everyone in the novel was being ignorant. A third kind of figurative language that Zindel uses in the book is personification. Zindel personificates Mr. Pignati’s ceramic pigs by describing them with human characteristics. Zindel does this to show Mr. Pignati’s connection with the pigs. The final kind of figurative language that Zindel uses in The Pigman is hyperbole. Zindel uses hyperbole when John says that he hates everything. Because Zindel uses figurative language, the story is interesting.