Character Transformations in Literature

Life is all about challenges and how they affect us as a person; they are surely painful to cope with, but they enable us to change, for the better. These experiences make or break you, as seen in the following stories. The main characters in "The Strength of God",Sea Wolf, and The Great Gatsby encounter many obstacles that change their personalities and beliefs. Humphrey in Sea Wolf , Reverend Curtis Hartman in "The Strength of God", and Nick in The Great Gatsby are faced with difficult situations, but as a result they flourish into better individuals.

In "The Strength of God", Reverend Curtis Hartman, goes from being a confused, unhappy, and hypocritical pastor to someone who is fully aware of his purpose in life. As a result of this he is content. By falling into sin, Rev. Curtis is able to rise into holiness. Rev. Curtis was unsure whether being a pastor was his true calling. He was not passionate about his occupation, and did not preach God's word whole-heartedly. In addition, he did not feel the need to preach God's word outside his church. His sermons were bleak, and lackluster, he was almost embarrassed to stand up in front of his congregation to preach. He was an unhappy man because these thoughts haunted him. "In reality he was much in earnest and sometimes suffered prolonged periods of remorse because he could not go crying the word of God in the highways and byways of town." (Anderson 4). His lust for Kate Swift, brought even more confusion to his life. His feelings for Kate make him think twice about whether he should stay a pastor and be a hypocrite. He hated the fact that he felt compelled to peep through his church tower window every night to get a glimpse of Kate Swift lying in her bed. However, he could not control this temptation as much as he tried. One day as he looked out the window he saw Kate, naked, crying, and praying to God for forgiveness. This event completely altered the way Rev. Curtis viewed Kate; she was no longer a sexual object, but something innocent and God-like. He shared that same guilt Kate felt, he was a sinner, just like she was. He could now relate to her and this made her a sign from God. He broke the window, the symbol of temptation, by doing so, he broke away from sin. He acknowledges his transformation and his deliverance from sin: "I am delivered. Have no fear. I smashed the glass of the window. The strength of God was in me and it broke with my fist."(Anderson 21).Kate strengthened Rev. Curtis' faith, he was no longer sinful, but found a chaste adoration for Kate. He now saw God working through her, and he saw himself in her. She was God's method of helping him overcome temptation.

In Sea Wolf, Humphrey goes from being a physically and emotionally weak character to a strong man who can survived the toughest situations, both mentally and physically. Having lived through the terrifying experience of being on Larsen's ship, Humphrey changed from a weak, dependent, fearful man to someone strong, self-reliant, and fearless of even death. Humphrey first arrived on Larsen's ship with a "piggish" mentality; never in his life had he worked, but work had always been done for him. All his life, his every need and want had been fulfilled instantly. He was fed, but never had to cook, and was clothed but never had to make his clothing. For once, he now saw what hard labor others had to do for him. Under Larsen's control Humphrey learned to be independent and not have to rely on others for his needs. He underwent a spiritual awakening; material things such as clothing and money do not seem to mean much to him anymore when faced with the more significant issue of survival. At first, Humphrey was a scrawny individual, unaccustomed to strenuous physical activity, but after several weeks of painstaking labor, his physical appearance was transformed; he is strong and his body size increased, he became more fit for survival. When he first arrived onboard and realized that he was stuck there, he was so frightened that he pleads another boat to rescue him. He became fearless at a certain point. He was not afraid to defend himself when other crew mates mistreat him. When he met Mattie and fell in love with her, he admits that he was not afraid of death. Humphrey had little responsibilities, if any at all; he could barely take care of himself, let alone another. But when he is stranded on an unknown island with Mattie, he proves to be very responsible, and cautious about their safety and well-being. He took good care of Mattie and himself. Mattie also changed his views on love. Humphrey was a bookworm, and was too occupied reading books to care about love and women, but when he met Mattie he fell in love with her. Humphrey even acknowledges his transformation: "Wolf Larsen had been quite right. I had stood on my father's legs. My lawyers and agents had taken care of my money for me. I had no responsibilities at all then, on the Ghost I had learned to be responsible for myself. And now for the first time in my life, I found myself responsible for someone else." (London 189). Although it was difficult for Humphrey, to get accustomed to the evils of ship-life, he grew into a better individual out of the trials and tribulations he faced .

In The Great Gatsby , Nick's character was naive and easily influenced. However, Gatsby's death causes Nick to re-analyze people and his values. Ultimately, Gatsby's death helped him realize how selfish and cruel people could be, something that he could not fully see before. Nick was enamored by Gatsby's charm and personality, but he is the only person who actually had an honest relationship with Gatsby. He cared about him and was the only one friend to show up at his funeral. People attended Gatsby's parties, but never really cared to meet the host of the parties. Nick was one of the few who cared to meet the host. Sadly, it is no surprise that when Gatsby died and Nick tried inviting his close friends to his funeral, everyone manages to come up with an excuse for not attending. Klipspringer, the piano player has the audacity to say he had the audacity that he had a family picnic the same day of the funeral so he could not make it. Mr. Wolfshiem, one of Gatsby's closest business friends, refused to go because he believed that one should show affection for a friend when he is alive, not dead. Even after Gatsby had taken the blame for running over Myrtle, Daisy, who ironically, had proclaimed her love for Gatsby, was unaffected by Gatsby's death, and didn't even send flowers or a letter with her condolences. Nick was shocked that no one showed up at Gatsby's funeral, except himself, but it wasn't until then that he realized how heartless those people were .Nick was attracted to Jordan Baker and also it was noted that she was a dishonest person. This didn't seem to bother Nick much, he cared more about his attraction to her, rather than the fact she would lie. As he got to know her better, he loses interest in her. After Gatsby's death he spoke to Jordan, and during the conversation he makes it clear that dishonesty is not something to be proud of. "I'm thirty. I'm five years too old to lie to myself and call it an honor." He clearly despises dishonesty, and this broke the bond he shared with Jordan. Tom, although a despicable character, was someone who never really aroused any despisement in Nick, that is, until Gatsby's death. Throughout the book, Tom is someone who is hard to like , he was cruel, unaffectionate, and self-centered, but it just never seemed to bother Nick, until Gatsby's death. He felt like Tom was the reason why Gatsby was murdered, since he told Wilson that Gatsby was driving the car which ran over Myrtle. Shortly after Gatsby's death he saw Tom again in the street; he was angry at Tom at first, but did not allow his feelings to control him. He actually pitied him in a way, and viewed Tom child-like and immature. Nick gained a lot of maturity and understanding, which Tom, and others lacked. It seemed as if all his former friends and acquaintances were dishonest and heartless, as a result of this he had a different outlook on life and is more mature having learned a great deal about people and about values.

Humphrey in Sea Wolf , Reverend Curtis Hartman in "The Strength of God", and Nick in The Great Gatsby are faced with difficult situations, but as a result they flourish into better individuals. The main characters in "The Strength of God",Sea Wolf, and The Great Gatsby encounter many obstacles that change their personalities and beliefs.