The Hatchet Character Analysis-Brian

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The main character in Hatchet, written by Gary Paulsen, is Brian Robeson, a thirteen-year-old boy from New York City. Brian is a very important character. While he demonstrates frustration and anger at the beginning of the novel, his experiences in the north woods of Canada change his outlook on life forever. Brian's parents have just recently divorced, and this conflict between them has deeply affected Brian and his sense of stability. His parents’ split has disrupted his view on life, and he bears the burden of "The Secret," that is, the knowledge that his mother is having an affair with another man. He learns lessons that are important qualities not only to wilderness survival but also to life as a whole. Patience contributes to Brian's character development and to his maturity. Setbacks that would have stopped the "old Brian," the Brian at the start of the novel, later become bearable. He learns to control his temper when he realizes that his frustration does not help his family situation. When he works to complete a specific project, such as hunting or building a shelter, he learns by trial-and-error. If certain methods fail to accomplish the job, Brian learns from his mistakes rather than getting stuck on them. Brian also develops a keen sense of observation, using his senses to survive. The constant noise of the city had dulled his senses. The relative silence of the woods allows him to hear and to pick up on millions of sounds now that he has learned to hear them. He also uses his sharpened senses to survive. For example, at first he cannot seem to locate the fool birds he attempts to hunt; they pop up out of nowhere surprising him. After he trains his eyes to spot their outline, however, he is successful in lunging at them with his spear. Brian also develops an ability to hear the slightest noise. He adopts a lighter sleeping pattern in which he awakes

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