Characters

The main character of the short story “The Tree of War” by Tanya Datta is Krishna. In what follows, we will offer a few ideas that can help you characterise him, as well as his relationship with his parents and with his surroundings.

Krishna

Krishna, the main character of the story, is a boy who is “ten and a quarter” (ll. 20-21).

Outer characterisation

His outer characterisation reveals that he is Hindi and that, for the past six years, he lived in North London with his mother. The boy’s father used to live in India with his parents and, at the time of the narration, he has come to join his wife and son in England.

The boy’s appearance is only described in relation to his father because they look very similar:

… we were practically identical. My father has skin the colour of Jaffa cakes, exactly like me. He’s tall, too, the way I’m shaping up to be. Heavy drooping eyelids give his face the same sleepy look as me, although he’s anything but sleepy. (ll. 90-92)

Inner characterisation

One of the first things related to Krishna’s inner characterisation is his friendship with Feargal and Angus. In their “gang” (l. 20), Krishna appoints himself leader because he is taller and more imposing:

Feargal comes from Belfast and is as delicate as an elf. Angus is even smaller but is really brave for his size. Once he gets going, he’s just like Asterix: invincible. As for me, I tower over both of them, which is good because I’m the leader. (ll. 22-25)

The boys’ main concern is the Nuclear War game (...