Analyzing Characters and

Synthesizing Texts
First Read - Analyzing the Development of Character
Pages 45-51
Meet the Author: Charles
Frazier
 His second novel was a best seller
 Best book of the year
 He won an award for fiction
 His first published book was a travel
guide
 He received North Carolina award for
literature
 Third novel Night Woods
 Cold Mountain – where he lived near his
grandparents
 The Odyssey was always on his desk
 Analyzing the Development of Character
Background

 Set near the end of the American Civil War, Cold Mountain tells the story of a wounded
Confederate soldier’s journey home to reunite with the love of his life. In this excerpt, the
soldier, Inman, awakens in a hospital ward and recalls his experiences of being wounded.
 Objective
 As you read, underline details that provide clues to Inman’s character and record character
traits in the My Thoughts column that these details reveal about him.
  What is the setting at the beginning of the story?
 What is Inman’s mood when he first arrives at the hospital?

As you read,  Why do you think he wanted to speak to the blind man?
What character trait does Inman exhibit when he survives
answer the


despite his injuries?

following  What are the conditions of the train?

How do you know Inman is getting better?
questions


 Why do you think Inman is fascinated with the blind man?

 Based on the setting of the story, what does Inman mean
when he says, “There’s plenty I wish I’d never seen?”
 Review underlined traits
 It is important to cite textual evidence when analyzing characters
 Character analysis should be based upon descriptions or actions of the characters from the
text.
 Focus on Development of
Character

 Fiction writers strive to develop interesting

complex-characters – characters who are like real
people.

 What does the excerpt reveal about Inman’s

predominant character traits?
 Inman is This is revealed in the text when…

patient Inman had sometimes counted off slow numbers in his head to see how
long it would be before anything of significance altered.

someone who enjoys Had it not been too dim, Inman would have read to pass the time until
reading breakfast . . . .

Independent
Positive attitude
wide imagination