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Breaking bad character analysis
Breaking bad character analysis
Breaking bad character analysis
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In the show Breaking Bad, there’s conflict throughout the entire series. There’s conflict with the family, there’s conflict with the job Walter White is associated with, but the main conflict throughout the whole story is Walter White’s relationship. Walter White throughout the series goes from being a high school chemistry teacher who was diagnosed with stage 3 lung cancer to a high-end meth dealer named Heisenberg. He deals with many confrontations, and has to adapt to who he’s become. Throughout the show, Walter goes through what Mark Knapp likes to call “Knapp’s Relationship Model,” and causes a healthy relationship to basically rot.
At the start of the season, Walter White is happily married to his wife Skylar. Which in Knapp’s model
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She ends up getting with her boss, and when Walter finds out, he attempts to kill him. Another thing that happens is when Skylar and Walter come across each other they have constant arguments, and it seems as if nothing gets resolved. During this season, it seems as if Walter has now gotten over Skylar, and is focusing on making millions of dollars’ worth of meth. He becomes very coldhearted, and then ends up killing Skylar’s sisters husband in a shooting. Walter then begins to present himself to Skylar as if he has his entire life under control, and there’s nothing she can do about it to ruin …show more content…
In Breaking Bad, betrayal is the biggest issue. Making his relationship become the darkest it could be. With him have emotional infidelity for the money he was making, he is basically blinded to everything else he’s been doing. He doesn’t care about who’s he damaging as long as it’s not hurting him, which shows how much he uses deception throughout the seasons. Walter has used deception to trick his ex-wife, and has used it to try and convince his son that he was doing good. Constantly lying made Walter develop into someone he wasn’t supposed to be, but when he got involved with meth dealing he accepted the terms of giving up his loyalty as a truthful
Mama talks to Walter about her fears of the family falling apart. This is the reason she bought the house and she wants him to understand. Walter doesn't understand and gets angry. "What you need me to say you done right for? You the head of this family. You run our lives like you want to. It was your money and you did what you wanted with it. So what you need for me to say it was all right for? So you butchered up a dream of mine - you - who always talking 'bout your children's dreams..." Walter is so obsessive over money that he yells at his mom for not giving him all of it. He doesn't know that what his mom is doing is for the family. He thinks that having money will make the family happy, when in reality the family doesn't need anymore than what they have to be happy.
He struggles every day to achieve his dream of getting more money. When the $10,000 check came in, it was his shot at success. His mother gave him a big chunk of it and he invested it in a liquor store and lost the money. After that, Walter became very depressed. He had lost the trust and respect of his family.
No longer is he this big, tall, smart man. He is now sweaty, hunched over in a chair, knowing that he has lost and plans to run away. Much like a husband on his death bed telling his wife to take care of his kids, Walter begs Keyes to protect Nino and Phyllis’ daughter, Lola (Jean Heather), after he is gone. This final sequence now shows Keyes dominating much of the frame, he is now the bigger figure, he has the power. Walter is slouched in the chair looking up to him now, completely opposite of their roles throughout the bulk of the movie. Though obviously stunned that Walter is a killer, Keyes still pities him. He does not try to physically restrain Walter nor does he call the police on him, he knows with the bullet wound, Walter will not make it to his destination of crossing the border. Walter struggles to the door and finally collapses, indicating his complete failure. Keyes follows him and kneels next to him, still dominating the frame. While we only see Walter’s face and torso, we can see pretty much Keyes’ entire body looking down to him. We get a almost flirtatious final conversation between the two as Walter explains the reason why Keyes could not figure out it was him, because they were too close, sitting across the desk from each other. Keyes responds by saying they were “closer than that”, indicating the depth of their relationship. Walter repeats a line he said earlier in the film, “I love you too”, before struggling to light a cigarette. Although it was Walter’s job to light Keyes’ cigarettes throughout the entire movie, everything has come full circle, the power has shifted, and Keyes lights Walter’s cigarette and the film ends. Keyes realizes his “lover” is gone and he must step up to run things now. He cannot be helpless and not be able to light his cigarettes now; he must help Walter light
Walter lives with his mother, sister, wife and child Travis. After the receival of a life insurance check from the deceased Walter Lee Senior, Mama makes a decision to give it to Walter to make him feel like the man of the house. She places endless trust into her son; she gives him the money that is needed for his sisters school, and the house payments. She has high hopes Walter would not let her down by the use of it for something that goes against her values. Unfortunately, as he receives the money one can see how hastily he works to use it for a meer liquor store as he confesses his wrongdoings: “Mama… I never went to the bank at all… It’s all gone.” (Hansberry 129). Prior to this moment, Mama had asked Walter to
Walter has no desire to find out about himself through his African American Heritage. He believes he can define himself through money, money is everything to this man. Money is status, money is wealth, money is happiness, money is almost God to him.
First off, Walter Younger changes by becoming more of an honest man like how his father was. In the beginning, Walter was just an average family man who wanted to support his family by himself. He tries to find new ways to keep a stable economic success within his family. To him he believes that money is a solution to all his problems and family needs it in order to survive. His obsession with money clouded his mind which made him mostly think about himself. Walter says, “Yeah. You see, this little liquor store we got in mind cost seventh-five thousand and we figured the initial investment on the place be ‘bout thirty-thousand, see.” (Hansberry 33). This shows that he plans on using the money to achieve his dream by owning a liquor store. He wanted to support his own family independently without aid from anyone else. He felt sadden that he’s the head of the family and he can’t even offer them a positive and joyful life. Near the end of play, Walter had to make a final decision for the outcome for his family’s life. Walter says, “And we decided to move into our house because my father-my father-he earne...
Walter brings to topic his importance to the scenario, and decides to break away from the event and think of his answer towards his wife’s information and response. He later is shown the understanding of his wife by the reaction of his mother, who questions his standing on how his father would have reacted. This brings Walter to think of why he should change and not walk out on times of importance. Walter discovers that his turmoil of drinking and appearance on the topic could end up losing the life of his newly developing child. At the discussion over selling the house owned by the family to Mr. Linder, Walter is shown the original faith that the selfish purpose of the money for himself would be better the property that would benefit the entire family, including his child.
The first reason I believe that Walter is the protagonist is because he isn’t a selfish man. What I mean by this is when he is talking about issues he tends to discuss family issues above his own personal things. Though at times in the play when he is drunk and loses his temper he does start speaking selfishly, I believe that his overall attitude in the play is for his family to move up the world. I believe that Walter’s son Travis is the main reason why he acts so unselfishly. He seems to want the best for this son and doesn’t want his son to feel that there isn’t anything he can’t have or do.
His position in life can be regarded as symbolic of every black male struggling to provide for his family by any means necessary. Although Walter has a job, it seems inadequate for his survival. As a result, he has become frustrated and lacks good judgement. Throughout this play, Walter searches for the key ingredient that will make his life blissful. His frustrations stem from him not being able to act as a man and provide for his family and grasp hold of his ideals to watch them manifest into a positive situation.
... love and happiness of one’s family. Walter changes from being self-centered to self-less. He gives up his dream of having a liquor store when Willy Harris runs away with the money. Walter does that so the Younger family can fill their lives with joy and do not have to struggle anymore. This is the biggest sacrifice that Walter makes for the family. This theme also applies to everyday life. Many people sacrifice their wishes and dreams that they have, so they could help their family through tough times and always keep a smile on their faces. Love, sacrifice, and happiness is a part of everyday life.
... therefore he is taught and did not inherit. Moore explores both of these issues in depth, and creates a third element. This third element is the most controversy. People are not born to be good or bad, nor are they raised to be good or bad. Psychologists would say they are either natured or nurtured to be good or bad. Rorschach is a good example of both of those. He is also a confusion in the argument because he develops himself into a super hero. His mother did not influence him in anyway, either through gene heritage or observational learning to become a super hero. Through creation of this alter ego Walter receives attention. When he is dressed up he is no longer vulnerable to his mother or society, now he is feared and respected. He can hide from his memories of abuse because his sole concentration is on being a super hero. Even though he can forget, the memories still exist and therefore effect the rest of his life. Moore adds the third element to a psychological argument that disrupts the whole concept of either beliefs. Rorschach is a developed image in Walter’s mind that allows him to act as what he sees as a psychologically sound human being, with an average up bringing.
Walter has an interesting turn of events towards the end of the book. He is forced to abandon his quest to the North Pole, he is faced with the monster and must hear the monster's plans for self-destruction, he has to watch idly as his new friend, Victor, passes from this world. He has such noble dreams and aspirations, but they are all brought to a halt because of his chance meeting with Frankenstein. Or, was his expedition doom from the start because of the nature of wanting to do what no other man had done? Was it his ambition that led him to untimely failure? The evidence from the text proves that possibly he was never meant to surpass his peers and obtain the glory that he pursued.
Witness and girlfriend of Walter, Grace Callow stated that Walter was a drug dealer and that she sometimes helped him grow, package, and sell marijuana for him. She
...the deeds done for your family. Instead of choosing to give up the home his mother purchased for the family Walter stands up and chooses not only a better home for his family but also a better life. He chooses to keep a place his mother purchased that went against his dreams to provide his son with a real home and in doing so he finally and truly understood what it was to have his manhood restored.
Walter attempts to reinvent himself through his work and relationships to try and provide for his wife and family. Walter is fighting a battle within his household because he believes that Ruth, his wife, “couldn’t be on [his] side that long for nothing,” even though she is just trying to do what is best for everyone involved (Hansberry 32). Walter cannot see past his dream to realize the impact it would have on everyone else if it failed, so he drowns his sorrows in alcohol. Although “he knows the possibility of failure is also a vital part of the American success story” Walter is not just risking his own future, he is risking his child’s, mother’s and sister’s and without a second thought to his personal relationships, he blindly makes an investment on the chance of having the wealth and house he desires for everyone (Washington 98). Walter is so focused on reinventing his work life and having money that he loses sight of his family’s values and ideas. He does not care about Ruth being pregnant and the possibility of aborting their child as long as he can achieve his goals. Walter is living in a dream where he believes that “anyone can become anything he wants to be,” and that is not true in his case with the social and racial standards that are set against him (Washington 95). Walter sees wealth as ensuring happiness and having everything he desires, which is why he is pushing his family so hard for the money, causing issues. Even though all the odds are set against him in this time period, Walter cannot see past being able to provide for his family and having the American Dream that he most