Characters

The main character in the short story “Bone Deep” by Martin Malone is Ian, who is also the narrator of the events. Although Ian is only 13 years old, he shows great insight into his family’s dynamics and understands the reason behind their conflict with their father. 

The story also focuses on the relationship between the family members, so it can be argued that all characters are equally important. There is a conflict between the parents and between the father and the children, mostly between the father and Ann, who keeps trying to start an argument with him. Ann and Ian blame their father for the car accident that killed Marcus and caused Terry to be paralyzed. This has resulted in them refusing to see him as a reliable authority figure and caretaker. 

You can read a full characterization of Ian and an analysis of the relationship between the family members in the following pages.