Charles vs. Laurie
“Charles” was one of my favorite stories because of the questions Shirley Jackson, had me asking as I read along. Is Charles the one who made up his own character? Did his mom have a clue of what was happening? Foreshadowing played a big role in this story, if you wanted to predict the ending before approaching it. Charlie seemed to have a power of words to foreshadow. Laurie would come home and talk to his mom and dad with disrespect and disobey his parents. His parents believed everything he said, so he had the advantage of the power of words, to be able to create a character and have them believe him. In the beginning of the story, the author made small hints as to what the outcome of the story would be by playing with the idea of him being rude to his family members. In the beginning of the story, Shirley Jackson makes a hint that Laurie, is starting to change. When Laurie’s mother lets him wonder off to the bus stop with the neighbor, she realizes that he doesn’t look…show more content… The mother has become obsessed with “Charles” and looks past her son’s insolent behavior. When she brings him up, the foreshadowing has come to an end, and she says, “We don’t have a Charles”. This is the point where you then realize that everything has been made up, and you assume it was Laurie. “Yes,” I said, laughing, “you must have your hands full in that kindergarten, with Charles.” “Charles?” she said. “We don’t have any Charles in the kindergarten.” The mother also says earlier, “I wanted passionately to meet Charles’s mother.” Laurie had a power of words because his parents trust was built at an early age, and therefore, they believed mostly everything he said. The mother seemed blind to all of the bad things that had been happening, so she believed Laurie when he made up a character, which gives him that power over
