Genre
A novel
Setting and Context
The events take place in Olinger and Alton, Pennsylvania after the World War II. They are mostly dedicated to George Caldwell, who suffers from depressive and suicidal thoughts, and his son Peter, who tries to help his father. It is a personal, social and family drama against the background of social issues. Mythological context helps to clarify intentions of the characters.
Narrator and Point of View
The story is mostly told from the third point of view by an omniscient narrator. However, there are several chapters, which are told from the first point of view by Peter.
Tone and Mood
To depict Caldwell’s uneasiness, lack of self-confidence and depressiveness, the depressive tone is used. The mood is troubling.
Protagonist and Antagonist
George Caldwell is the protagonist of the story. Zimmerman (Zeus) is the antagonist of the story.
Major Conflict
The major conflict is person vs. self. George Caldwell gives up on himself and it prevents him from living a normal life.
Climax
The moment, when George Caldwell finds out that he doesn’t have a terminal decease could be considered the climax of the novel.
Foreshadowing
An arrow, which strikes George’s leg, is foreshadowing. According to the myth, The Centaur Chiron starts thinking about death and eventually dies after getting an injury by an arrow. Keeping in mind that George is The Centaur Chiron, a reader knows his fate from the very beginning.
Understatement
Zimmerman’s (Zeus’s) sexual interest in a student from the high school isn’t depicted as something abnormal.
Allusions
Hitler, Zeus, Apollo, Venus, Kirk Douglas, Doris Day, Achilles, Hercules, Jason, Asclepios etc.
Imagery
Imagery helps to create meaningful and difficult images and portray emotions and feelings of a person, who suffers from depression.
Paradox
Thank God I’m half-blind and three-quarters deaf.
The quote belongs to George Caldwell. Thanking God for his partial blindness and partial deafness, he jokes that they protect him from ignorance of people.
Parallelism
Relax, girl, you’ll get a mate. You’ll get a date and then a mate. And they you will rate.
This example of parallelism shows that George Caldwell can rhyme when he is inspired or amused. It also indicates that George Caldwell is quite sarcastic.
Metonymy and Synecdoche
Tell Cassie town misses her. (Metonymy)
A town denotes people, who live there.
Johnny Dedman in a separate booth is smoking his eight Camel of the hour. (Synecdoche)
Camel denotes a cigarette.
Personification
The zeros stared back.
Figures are inanimate and can’t stare.
