And clothes seem to help make these statements, rather blatantly, throughout the book. Gender is a major focus with all of McCullers characters, the way they opt-in and -out of conventional roles. ClothingĬlothes make the man, and in Ballad, they also make the mannish woman. (Ballad.215)Ī flavor of the supernatural seals it: this act of traitorous aggression proves that Cousin Lymon has become an entirely different kind of beast. He landed on the broad strong back of Miss Amelia and clutched at her neck with his clawed little fingers. at the instant Miss Amelia grasped the throat of Marvin Macy the hunchback sprang forward and sailed through the air as though he had grown hawk wings. When Cousin Lymon finds his own aggression, we understand that he has shifted not only in his loyalties, but also his essence, when Miss Amelia gains the upper hand in her fight with evil Marvin:
"He had chopped off the tails of squirrels in the pinewoods just to please his fancy." (Ballad.84) Here's a man who is not only mean, but likes being mean. When it comes to Marvin Macy, we're given a list of his terrible, aggressive deeds, and their motivations. The story may not reveal all of the nooks and crannies of her motivation, but defense and aggression totally illuminate each character's values. And when Miss Amelia reacts to Marvin Macy's cuddling by boxing his ears? We learn that she's not interested in the normal kind of romance-aggressively not interested-in fact. Miss Amelia? She keeps to herself, working hard to make her whiskey, spending "whole nights back in her shed in the swamp" (Ballad.4). Her characters perform their essence in each moment of their lives. The famous philosopher Carl Jung wrote that "you are what you do, not what you say you'll do," and Ms.
Character Clues Character Analysis Action
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