Bird in the House
...already got skeptical about anyone who was not in the family. “Anyone who approached the front gate when he was in the yard was met in the same way, with the low warning growl” (Pg. 159). The physical bullying that Harvey applied on Nanuk made Nanuk more doubtful and aware of other people. During the young stages of growing, Nanuk was being abused in various ways, and he had to endure the pain while he hides it inside himself. This constant abuse makes a negative side effect on Nanuk’s personality. This hate for Harvey made Nanuk have a personality to kill and hate. Vanessa first realized this behaviour when she saw Harvey shot Nanuk with a slingshot. “Nanuk had all the muscular force and all the equipment he need to kill a man.” Some personalities are built on people by other people. Harvey was the person who built Nanuk’s bad personality. Harvey inflicts pain on others because of the hate he had to endure from his aunt’s abuse. It was shown mainly how he inflicts pain on Nanuk. He used slingshots to cause pain on the dog, or he used pepper to inflame Nanuk’s eyes. Harvey was at the front gate of Vanessa’s house, and Vanessa saw Harvey pulling out his slingshot. “It hit Nanuk on the throat” (Pg. 153). After Harvey sprayed Nanuk’s eyes, he rode off. Vanessa found “traces of the pepper around his still-closed eyes” (Pg. 151). All these events happened because Harvey wanting others to endure the abuse that he endured. This young sixteen years old paperboy lived with his aunt since the death of his own mother. His aunt took care of him, but she did not care about him. When the aunt was asking Harvey where the telescope is, she smacked Harvey’s face with a wooden spoon. “His aunt, with an explosive quickness that made me jerk in every nerve, snatched the wooden spoon out of the bowl of the batter and hit him across the face” (Pg. 158). Harvey had been growing inside this shattered family since the death of his mother. This aunt taught Harvey something psychologically, which is to be angry and corrupted to obtain what he wanted. Harvey was also persistently bashed by his aunt about how useless he was, and Vanessa heard her aunt criticizing Harvey when Vanessa was in Harvey’s house to get her telescope back. “What was I supposed to do, left with a kid to look after? Who would have married me? What man would have taken on that? He’s never been anything but trouble to me” (Pg. 159). These continuous complaints about Harvey made him more reserved about what he thinks, and it made him have hateful attitudes towards others. This hate was shown when Harvey gave Vanessa the telescope. “He threw the telescope on the floor, and he gave me a devastatingly scornful look” (Pg. 158). His hate toward others was also shown when he bullied Nanuk. Harvey did not like Nanuk being loved by a person, so Harvey bullied Nanuk. He bullied Nanuk, but he blamed Nanuk for mistreating him in the first place. “He tried to bite me. He’s dangerous” (Pg. 150). This Harvey changed his personality because of his surrounding and especially his aunt. His only way to vent the melancholic feelings is to act the same way he was treated by his aunt, so it made Harvey continuously bully Vanessa’s dog, Nanuk. Because Harvey’s aunt could not marry anyone, her personalities changed, and she imposed her anger on Harvey by abuse. She never liked having a child around, and especially a child who does not belong to her. This aunt was forced to take the child to take care of him. This present of Harvey from her sister is the worst gift that Harvey’s aunt could get. She was saying to Grandfather Connor that how her life is ruined because of this useless teenager. “He’s never been anything but trouble to me” (Pg. 159). This belief revolved around Harvey’s aunt for ages, and she could not do anything about it. Harvey’s aunt asked Harvey to return the telescope, but Harvey just threw the telescope on the floor. After she picked up the telescope, she spoke to Grandfather Connor. “Her voice was a whine, but underneath it there was a desolate anger” (Pg. 158). The hate was constructed on the fact that she could not marry anyone because she had to live with Harvey. The aunt told Grandfather Connor about what she had to endure when she thought Grandfather Connor ...