Stephan Ouelette
Mrs. Siragusa
4ac
STAARS/TEARS


"S" Subject- Coming of age

"T" Theme- Throughout our lives we come across situations that change who we are and how we act. We understand more thoroughly when certain scenarios involve us and our lives can be altered for the better or worse.

"A" Attitude- Toleration, Understanding, Apprehensive, Anxious, Concerned

"A" Audience- Charlie is writing to anyone who seems to be older and more mature than himself. Chbosky is writing to the generations who are coming of age.

"R"- Characterization

"S" - The two real friends Charlie has in high school is Sam and Patrick. Since the suicide of his friend Michael,Charlie has not had anyone to befriend him. The characterization of Sam and Patrick respect Charlie and make him feel wanted. On page 22 Sam says:"Charlie has a Charlie-esque crush on me , Patrick." Normally if a young boy was to say intimate things to an older girl in high school usually the boy would be harassed verbally or physically. But Sam's characterization allowed us to see that instead of freaking out she was mature about the situation. Instead of making Charlie feel completely wrong and disrespected she comforted him about the things which are normal feelings to have. Patrick has felt some of the same feelings as Charlie has felt about being left out or purposely disregarded. On page 44 Brad says:"Man, I was so wasted. I don't remember a thing." This refers to the intimate relations between Patrick and Brad. Brad, to avoid tarnishing his reputation, blames his relations with Patrick on drugs and alcohol. Patrick's personal character sees Charlie as a lost soul that needs guidance. He doesn't want Charlie to feel the loneliness that he feels when he knows that Brad is only with him behind closed doors.

the perks of being a wallflower by Stephen Chbosky is a bildungsrosman novel. It focuses on the psychological and moral growth of a protagonist. Throughout our lives we come across situations that change who we are and how we act. We understand more thoroughly when certain scenarios involve us and our lives can be altered for the better or worse. The actions that Charlie encounters during these first 2 parts of this novel could be seen as common coming of age things. He deals with sex, drugs, and alcohol. Charlie is introduced to all of these things in a fast manner. The characterization of Charlie is that he is ignorant, awkward, and uneducated about some aspects of life. On page 36 Charlie's ignorance of homosexuality shows through. Patrick says:"Brad doesn't want people to know." Charlie returns with a "why?" Everyone knows that to be gay is disrespected in our society except for Charlie. He just doesn't understand that to be gay is to be socially unequal. Without Charlie and his nonchalant personality about these new life things helps increase the audiences realization that Charlie is just a lonely boy who has no guidance on such topics. It also shows that he will cling to every word a trusted person will tell him. Charlie in the perks of being a wallflower and Holden in The Catcher and the Rye have similar qualities. They both seek friendship. They both grief the lose of a person close to them. They both have awkward personalities which allow them to be seen as "different."

Question-
What is the deal with Charlie's identity kept a secret? It's not like he's a superhero. He tells us basically his whole life story, the most awkward things he has to say, but we will probably never know his full name.