Character+Sketch

= Character Traits of Dave Conroy. =

In //A Mountain Jorney// by Howard O'Hagan, Dave Conroy, the protagonist is not specifically described; however, by reading his actions, one can infer what kind of person he is. Everyone has different views toward Dave Conroy. One might say he is dauntless or exuberant or even foolish. However, in my mind Dave Conroy is inferred as an unambiguous, daring and greedy character. Dave Conroy is always unambiguous and clear to the point in what he is going to do next. He knows what his goals are and tries to achieve then as best as he can. He is rectant on some occasions but in most cases, he does what he thinks is right without a moment of hesitation. For example, when he comes across a tree that can be used as a shelter for him to spend the night, he instantly realizes that he could arrive at the camp before dark and leaves the tree right away without hesitation at all. If Dave Conroy had not been so unambiguous and had pondered about other decisions he could have made when he fell in the river, he might have saved his limbs from freezing. Dave Conroy had thought that he understood himself and knew perfectly what he was capable of doing, however, he had completely overestimated himself. Daring as a tiger, Dave Conroy tries to achieve whatever he thinks is possible. He is either too stupid to realize the danger or is impressively brave, because nobody can be as daring as Dave Conroy without being either of those two. However, this trait of Dave Conroy leads him to serious concequences. First, he knows that there could be danger in crossing across the river but takes the risk to get to his destination. When he falls into the river and his hands become wet, he thinks,"If I hurried I could make it."(p.94)  He takes a tremendous risk in this scene and his decision turns out to be a very serious mistake. If he hadn't been so daring and had been like me (I am not as near daring as Dave and would not have taken the risk), he would have stayed where he had fallen and dried his limbs to save himself. He keeps going and going until he has no life in him to go on further. As this example illustrates, being impressively daring does not always lead to benefiting consequences. Eagerness is an essential of Dave Conroy's main character trait. He is significantly eager to do anything. If he hadn't been so eager and desperate to arrive at his destination, which in his case is home, he would have waited two weeks to come out and not have suffered as much. "Man is not truly one, but truly two," Robert Louis Stevenson wrote in //Dr.Jekyll and Mr.Hyde//. As Robert Stevenson suggests in this quote, we can not completely control one side (The Mr.Hyde side) of us. Dave Conroy was an example of this; he could not resist himself when his emotion were at boil. His eagerness propels him to make another serious mistake when he falls in the water. "He was less than three miles away from the cabin and the promise of its warmth and comfort would not let him stop."(p.94) In this way eagerness influenced the story's outcome by a signifcant amount. All three character traits of Dave Conroy equally contributes in compelling him to make seious mistakes which costs him his life. Thus, these three traits--unambiguousness, eagerness and daringness--make up Dave Conroy and eventually his blatant death. Good Paragraph Tom!

5.5/6 because this paragraphs structure is very well written but it just couldn't reach the highest mark.

Excellent reference to Jekyll and Hyde. 6/6