Character Interaction

When I first read the Prologue to the story, it seemed pretty obvious that the characters were in on the murder together, and I expected some bond to be shared between them. However, their relationship constantly changes throughout the novel, and it bothers me how fast they go from close friends to mere acquaintances. The main change in relationship occurs between the narrator, Richard, and the other characters. I believe that since he is the newcomer, he is still classified as an outsider and only gets little glimpses of the society that they have created for themselves. These seemingly never-ending volt-faces are frustrating, yet keep the reader engaged as to what will happen next.

In the beginning of the novel, it is supposed that Richard will never be one of them, and that he will never be able to join the Greek class. He is immediately looked at as minuscule, just as the group of students view the rest of the school. Even though he is an outsider, he has natural curiosity for the group-"At close range, though, they were an arresting party- at least to me, who had never seen anything like them, and to whom they suggest a variety of picturesque and fictive qualities." (Tartt, 17) Following this passage, Richard listens in on their conversation in the library because he can't help but fulfill his desire to know them. Here lies the characters' first interaction. Will he play it safe and just simply watch them from afar? Or will he be brave enough to do what no human has done before- interact with the students studying Greek? I'm glad he was able to converse with them, and it made me think that they weren't actually as stuck up as they seemed.

I don't think that Richard ever expected the students to actually engage with him. He is so drawn back by their welcome that he couldn't believe he was connecting with them. Richard says that he was "confused by this sudden glare of attention; it was as if the characters in a favorite painting, absorbed in their own concerns, had looked up out of the canvas and spoken to me." I was happy that the characters started to interact with each other, and I predicted that their bond would be strong. However, Richard thinks so highly of them that this could possibly play out wrong later on in the novel. Knowing Richard's character, he might end up lying about his life story just to be accepted. But enough with my conjectures, back to the relationship between characters.

Right after Richard has his ''glorious moment," he is immediately thrown back into his world and out of the one the students immured themselves in. Henry is the main person to show no curiosity in Richard, and the others then follow his lead. On page 22 of the novel, Henry evaluates Richard, but then waves him away with disinterest. This interaction between the two is very awkward. Richard can feel that he is no longer needed, but for some reason unbeknownst to me, he doesn't leave. Henry takes the initiative of saying that they should leave, which I felt was a sign that he was the most uncomfortable with a new face. That entire scene in the book went very slowly, yet their perception of Richard changed promptly from recognition to exclusion.

After a few weeks Richard is put into their class, so it's awkward between him and the students. No one can forget that at first they didn't care for him at all, yet everyone attempts to be friendly. When Camilla and Charles invited him to their house, I was overcome with joy because I really really wanted him to be accepted. However, the very next day he is treated as if he is nothing. Richard realizes this and is bothered, but not as much as I would have imagined:

"I had certainly plenty to worry about besides the coldness which apparently had infected my classmates once again, their crisp air of solidarity, the cool way their eyes seemed to look right through me. There had been an opening in their ranks, but now it was closed; I was back, it seemed, exactly where I'd begun."

It's almost as if he is used to being mistreated. I think that he values them so much that it really doesn't matter whether or not he is actually accepted. I didn't take his character to be somebody who hangs around people who mistreat him, but obviously I'm wrong.

Even though the main characters have a very testy relationship, I feel that in the end they are all going to get along great for a very long time. This is first seen when Richard goes to the country with them for a weekend. He felt accepted and noticed that they were opening up to him:

" At any rate, this was the weekend that things started to change, that the dark gaps between the street lamps begin to grow smaller and smaller, and farther apart, the first sign that one's train is approaching familiar territory, and will soon be passing through the well-known, well-lighted streets of town. The house was their trump card, their fondest treasure, and that weekend they revealed it to me slyly, by degrees..."

Richard's use of metaphor really helps get the picture that the characters are actually bonding. By showing him their house, he is being invited back into their world. They are opening up to him, which is hopefully the relationship that the main characters will have for the rest of the novel.

To sum up the relationship between characters, they start out with noncommunication. Richard is new to Hampden, and he's not in their clique anyways. However, when he breached the invisible wall between them he opened up their world and increased his chances of getting to know them. Sadly, Henry is rude and disinterested, so Richard is shut back out. When Richard finally has the full access to the world of the Greek scholars, he is still treated as an outcast, but also welcomed at times. The characters are moody, but only towards him.