Comparative Analysis of Character Development and Themes in Two Novels

This essay provides a comparative analysis of character development in two novels: 'Crow Lake' and 'A Jury of Her Peers'. The essay explores the bildungsroman aspects of 'Crow Lake,' focusing on the protagonist's psychological and emotional growth, particularly highlighting the influence of the environment and the impact of loss on the character's development. Furthermore, it examines the feminist undertones in 'A Jury of Her Peers,' analyzing the transformation of female characters within a patriarchal society and how their actions and interactions reveal societal expectations and constraints. The analysis draws on literary techniques and thematic elements to provide a comprehensive understanding of the characters' journeys and the novels' broader messages. References to scholarly articles are included to support the analysis.

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Author Note

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Bildungsroman can be defined as a literary genre that holistically focuses on moral
and psychological growth of the respective protagonist from youth to adulthood where
character change is of utmost importance. The novel Crow Lake written by Mary Lawson
shows the development of the two siblings, namely Matt and Kate, through the struggles both
of them faced in the hands of fate or fortune. Kate Morrison, one of the significant characters
of the novel, an ecologist by profession, had a sad past where her parents were killed in a car
accident. She, along with her brother, faces a huge psychological trauma after her parent’s
sudden demise. However, Kate’s strong desire and expectation to hold her family together
despite the loss they faced is the flavour of the bildungsroman genre of the novel. The
“pond” played an important role in Kate’s life. Her brother Matt used to tell her interesting
facts about nature and tadpoles in pond when she was a child that developed her interest in
ecology, so she chose such career in her future. Forgetting the tragic loss they faced, Kate
used to indulge herself in the study of nature with her brother and considered herself to be a
part of nature, which gave her solace. Kate, in the novel, got developed into a complicated
character that was afraid of any new close relations; she had “philophobia” because she did
not want to have another loss in her life. It means that her parents’ death has made deep
marks in her psyche that made her develop into a complicated personality in her later life.
Parents play an important role in a child’s life and sudden loss of parents leave children
ashtray. The novel Crow Lake by Lawson is an optimistic story that depicts struggle of
parentless children and their success at the end (Haggarty 2016).
On the other hand, A Jury of Her Peers novel is a different kind of bildungsroman
altogether which has feminist overtones and undertones in it. Three characters, Mrs. Peters,
Mrs. Hale and Minnie Foster undergo a massive transformation of character. Three characters
are women who have been kept subservient, meek and inferior by the patriarchal society of
America and their power and talent is thereby, not recognized. Mrs. Hale is a character that

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transforms herself from meek to an emotionally strong lady who has talents in multiple
dimensions and facets. She depicts how different talents of women are overlooked by their
families and society. She is seen to be solving the crime committed by Minnie Fosters from a
sense of responsibility towards her neighbour. Through showing empathy to Minnie Fosters,
Mr. Hale got involved in providing justice to Minnie, transforming her character from a mere
farmer’s wife to a wise, empathetic woman. American society that has inherently been
patriarchal is shown as an instrument in posing contradiction to Mrs. Hale’s character and
through her struggle as an oppressed gender, she emerges as a complete, different woman
(Anwar, Bayer and Hjalmarsson2019).

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References:
Anwar, S., Bayer, P. and Hjalmarsson, R., 2019. A jury of her peers: The impact of the first
female jurors on criminal convictions. The Economic Journal, 129(618), pp.603-650.
Haggarty, H.T., 2016. Book Review: Ecological Pedagogy, Buddhist Pedagogy, Hermeneutic
Pedagogy: Experiments in a Curriculum for Miracles. Journal of the Canadian Association
for Curriculum Studies, 14(2), pp.86-91.