Characterisation of Paul

The main character in the short story “Machine Man” by Marlish Glorie is Paul, who is also the narrator. The story also includes a few secondary characters: Black Jack, Nut, the nurse and the old woman.

Paul

Outer characterisation

Paul’s outer characterisation reveals that he is 19 years old (l. 28) and has been living in a “caravan” (l. 6) at his workplace since he was fifteen. He works at an auto wrecker’s yard: “I don't pay rent. I just have to keep an eye on the place at night and on weekends and feed the guard dogs.” (ll. 8-9)

Paul used to run away from his mother, until his boss took found a place for him: “I was always running away from her until the day Black Jack scooped me up and gave me a home” (ll. 68-69). Also, Paul cannot write (ll. 118-119) although he went to school as a kid (l. 38), and the story suggests that he probably has some cognitive disability as his boss offensively calls him “Dill-brain” (l. 45). These elements suggest that Black Jack may be exploiting him – taking advantage of Paul’s lack of family and education and possible cognitive disability and convincing Paul that he is looking after him, when he is using him as a 24-hour guard: “I don't pay rent. I just have to keep an eye on the place at night and on weekends and feed the guard dogs” (ll. 7-8). At the age of 15, when Paul started work in the wrecker’s yard, he should have been at school.

Various parts of the story focus on his physical appearance: “…all I need now is bolts either side of my neck and I'd look like Frankenstein. Black Jack calls me the machine man because of all the bits of metal I've got sticking out of me…” (ll. 22-24); “…a kid with bits of metal thingmajings hanging off him, not to mention the dyed orange hair and half his arse hanging out the back of his dacks” (ll. 46-47). The many pi...