Personal Experience and Self-Growth

The following essay has as its theme a discussion of the character development of the
main protagonists in “Araby” by James Joyce, “A & P” by John Updike, and “Barn
Burning” by William Faulkner. All three main characters in these short stories grow into
maturity in the course of the narrative. These characters’ transition into adulthood is
portrayed as a step towards self-identification, which at some point happens in the life of
every person. Evaluating the experience of these characters and comparing it my own
personal experience of similar kind it will be stated that there are life choices, moments
of being or existential thresholds that tend to have universal meaning because of their
significance as separate moments which powered by memory serve as powerful recurring
motive keeping human identity in touch with itself.
The main hero of “Barn Burning” goes through a massive character development
struggling for being honest but at the same time becoming an indirect reason of his
father’s death (Faulkner, 38). The narrator of “Araby” first falls in love with an older girl
whom he idealizes due to his spiritual connection and desire to fell passion (Joyce, 322).
Sammy in “A & P” establishes his self-confidence and identity revolting against
consumer society seeing it as an obstacle to beauty and non-conformism (Wheeler, 431).
All these characters loose something (father, present, job, girl) but even though they
come through this loss it becomes a source of their experience, which makes them who
they are. By making their own decisions these characters obtain their individual
personalities.
In the life of each human there are moments similar to the ones described in the
mentioned short stories. These moments are moments of decision when a person weighs
his/her certainty, fears, doubts, desires, and will in order to understand some inner source
of individuality. When we are children we do not make decisions and even if we do we
do not realize them fully because we often do not foresee their consequences or
comprehend clearly outcomes of our actions. But as every adult once was a child so sure
is the fact that each adult has a kind of threshold that divides his/her being unperceived
from a realization of his or her place in reality.
My experience of such kind that somehow shaped or predicted my coming of age was
when I first crossed the road myself. I remember this day perfectly and I remember
clearly it was the first time I ever crossed the road without anybody from my family to
support me. Even though it may most probably appear as a funny or unimportant moment
the sole fact that I remember it makes it significant. I waited for some time after it to tell
my mother that I had done it. I also remember the reason why I crossed – it was because
on the other side of the road there was a candy sales promotion event, and the provider
was giving candies for free to any kid who was asking for it. I also remember that my
mother told me that I can play whenever I want in our neighborhood but that I shouldn’t
go to the other neighborhood which was separated from ours with a 4-line road. But I did
it, I received candies and it made me proud for like a week. After that I quit thinking
about it. But that one decision made me comprehend myself as a more mature person.
Within a year or so I was going to school all by myself crossing roads here and there but I
have never forgotten the first time I ever did it.