Characterization and Conflict

[MichaelS4]

Michael Schwartz
Per 4
Summary
In The Hitchhiker's Guide the main character Arthur who lives on Earth has a alien friend, who saved him from the earth then takes him on adventures, on a alien planet while finding out why earth was made for and who bought it, and throughout it all almost dying.

Characterization
I would like to focus on the character Arthur. If you met him you would see that he is “He was about thirty as well, tall, dark-haired and never quite at ease with himself”(7). He also is also kind of a grumpy personality. Arthur is a dynamic character because he changes. In the beginning he is more of a boring guy and he doesn't do much he even works at a “He worked on a local radio which he always use to tell his friends was a lot more interesting then they probably thought”(7). He is probably just didn't want to admit that woking on a local radio wasn't very interesting at all. Another time when he changes is when he is totally surprised by that he's still alive from his planet and he is even more caught off because Ford his friend turning out to be an alien from a planet from Beetlejuice. Later on in the story he starts to become more comfortable with all the amazing things that he goes though like when he kinda freaks out but isn't screaming or anything when a translating fish gets stuffed into his ear(40). By the end of the book he is adventurous and brave like when he trust a complete stranger on a alien planet and gets in his hovercraft(101-103). Since Arthur went through all of this he is definitely a dynamic character because he changes from being a boring regular man, into a surprised person, to a more comfortable person with the galexsy, to an adventurer. After all of that he is definitely a dynamic character.

Conflict
A giant problem occurs later in the story where the mice want to take Arthur's brain to analyze the answer to their question. This is a external, Man vs Man conflict. The conflict started when the mice learn that the Earth was destroyed and the answer to their question that they made Earth for was most likely inside Arthur's brain(132-133). Then the problem continues when they offer money for his brain and state that “‘but we’d have to get it out first. It’s gotta be prepared.’ ‘Treated’ said Benjy. ‘Diced.’”(133). As a consequence of the mice wanting his brain he doesn't give it to them because its his brain and the mice decide to attack Arthur for his brain. The conflict is never resolved because he didn't give them his brain and cops intercept them. Because of this encounter Arthur learns not to trust the mice who bought the Earth, Douglas Adams wants people to learn to not underestimate things because they might surprise you maybe not as much as being super intelligent rodents that try to kill you, but to not underestimate what people or animals can do.

Opinion
This book is a great book for people who like to read science fiction because throughout the entire book it's filled with spaceships, aliens, and different planets. This book also has a sarcastic narrator like when it stated “IN order that some sense of mystery should still be preserved, no revelation will yet be made concerning whose upper are sustains the bruise. This fact may safely be made the subject of suspense since it is of no significance whatsoever”(82). That's a pretty sarcastic character and latter he returns to the subject. This is a very funny and amazing book it is for all those who want an adventure in space with weird lizard people, two headed people, and just tons of amazing things to set the imagination wild I would definitely recommend this book.