Characterization of Jetta

Jetta is the main character of the short story “Neutral Buoyancy” by J. R. McConvey. From the first line of the story, readers see Jetta as a woman who is isolated by choice: “They always make it harder to achieve results” (l. 1). Here, the contrast between herself and the others shows that Jetta sees people as obstacles and that she chooses to isolate herself from them:

They sometimes speak to one another (…) but Jetta never speaks to them. She treasures the pool as a silent space. Here, for Jetta, there’s no time for inane chatter or pointless conversation or mundane stresses. (…) she wonders what kind of aimless, insignificant stuff these people could possibly want to talk about. (ll. 39-44)

In this example, Jetta sees herself as superior to the other people at the pool and refuses to make friends. Although she knows all the other people as she sees them every day, she chooses to see them as obstacles. 

Moreover, when she thinks about the others in the pool, Jetta is judgmental and rather passive-aggressive, as she focuses only on their flaws. For example, she ironically calls people “Kielbasa Joe” (l. 2), “Doctor O.C.D...