"A Personal Matter" and Character 'Bird'

Paper Summary:

The purpose of this paper is to introduce, discuss, and analyze the book, "A Personal Matter", by Kenzaburo Oe. Specifically, it discusses how the name "Bird" represents the characteristics of the main character and describes how his name corresponds to the actions he takes throughout the novel. It looks at how "Bird" is the perfect name for a character that flits from person to person, flies away when times are hard, and dreams of migrating to Africa to get away from his troubles at home. Bird is not ready for fatherhood or a family, and so he abandons the "nest" for revelry and excess until he finally takes responsibility for his actions and sheds his childhood nickname forever.

From the Paper:

"Many of Bird's characteristics match those of the birds he is named after, from his appearance to the way he takes flight after he leaves his baby at the new hospital. He is flying away from his troubles, and acting as if he ignores them, they will disappear on the wind. This not only represents how Bird is like his namesakes, who fly away on the wind, it shows how immature he is, and how he may be 27 years old, but he is really still a boy. He would rather fly away than take responsibility for his "vegetable" son, and the only thing that gives him pleasure is running away from responsibility. Even his movements mimic that of a bird. He is often tentative, awkward, and gawky, just like an ungainly bird on land. He even reacts to adversity like a bird regurgitating up his whiskey like a bird regurgitates dinner for their young."

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