Nick Adams

Outer characterisation

Nick is the main character of “The Battler” by Ernest Hemingway. Nick comes from Chicago (l. 122). His age is never explicitly stated, however, the brakeman refers to him as “kid” (l. 12), implying that he is young. He is also addressed as “kid” (l. 62) by Ad.

Nick Adams’ outer characterisation is very brief. After he falls from the train, he is injured and his clothes are torn: “The pants were torn and the skin was barked. His hands were scraped and there were sand and cinders driven up under his nails” (ll. 5-6). His eye is also bruised: “Nick rubbed his eye. There was a big bump coming up” (l. 17). So all in all, he is a sorry sight at this moment.

Inner characterisation

Nick seems to come from a poor and violent background. He is travelling as a stowaway on a freight train (l. 26), implying that he most likely does not have enough money to buy a train ticket. Moreover, he is a “kid” (l. 12) from Chicago, but he gets on the train at Walton Junction in Michigan (l. 27). This could imply that he ran away fr...