Character Summaries

CHARACTER SUMMARIES

General What They Say What Others Say

· Female born 1935 · Middle child of the Pickles family · Slender brown girl with a dark straight hair cut straight across her forehead…. (p8) · ‘the woman and the daughter do not · Good relationship with Sam, openly loves and speak’ (p16) protects her from Dolly. · ‘Rose loves that weird boy, she knows · Doesn’t get along with Dolly it.’ (p158) · ‘She feels tough all of a sudden and · First falls in love with fish, he has · Sam: “Jesus, Rose, you look like a corpse grown up’ (p14) no boundaries or expectations on her. these days.” (p159) · ‘felt tough sometimes’ (p121) Rose · Rose’s relationship with Toby highlights her · ‘Dolly tried not to think about how she · ‘she was hot in the face like she was Pickles emerging womanhood and desire to rise above hated Rose these days… when you know holding something back.’ (p16) Dolly all of a sudden that someone of your own · “I can’t bear to think of any of us leaving. · Very rational about sex, goes ‘melancholy and flesh and blood cant find a spark of We belong to it… and I want to stay.” fanciful’ (p291) worth to your name – then you harden (p418) · Deprives herself of food to spite and punish up.’ (p154) Dolly, reflects the pain and loss she feels (loss · ‘some of [her] will be forever watching of family) [Fish] on the landing’ (p290) · Death of baby allows her to relate to Dolly. · Her desire for a new house with quick indicates rejection of her life and identity… eventually realises she doesn’t want to leave. (p418)

· “Of course I read the bloody paper. I want to fight evil.” (p327) · Male born 1934 · ‘Quick Lamb reads the paper every day · ‘Quick thought of his room at · 3rd youngest the Lamb family and sees the long lists of missing Cloudstreet, the victims dancing on his believed killed… he picks up sadness like wall, all the things there were to be he’s got a radar for it.’ (p89) stopped.’ (p327) Quick Lamb

· Dual persona: o Temporal Fish: physical mentally retarded child in a man’s body. o Spiritual Fish: the warrior of light, able to

be everywhere, see everything, anytime. · “Fish wants a whacko but come the Man · ‘It’s like Fish is stuck somewhere. Not the · In the end the two aspects come together again with arms.’ (p119) way all the living are stuck in time and when he does drown. · ‘Fish Lamb. Perfectly. Always. Fish space; he’s in another stuckness · Main authorial voice à agency passed around to Everyplace. Me.’ (p424) altogether. Like he’s half in and half out.’ each character though. · ‘Oh Rose you loved me…And some of you (p69) · Omniscient and omnipresent will be forever watching me on the · Throughout, he seeks the water, symbolic to landing.’ (p290) him as a place of healing and achieving oneness.

· · Alcaholic. · Doesn’t appear to have as many compassionate Dolly emotions or seem like a very good mother. Pickles · Appears more stereotypically masculine because of lack of emotional attachments to family · Able to relate to her in modern society. · Constructed in sensual/sexual terms and relates to the world in this way · Her sister was her mother. · Associates self-esteem and worth with sexual attractiveness. · Drawn to the railway tracks all the time, symbolic of her desire to escape. · Degree of envy between Dolly and Oriel, she feels superior to the asexual, bossy woman but envies how she copes so well with the circumstances of life. · In the end seems more understanding and compassionate.

· Fatalist, believes fate will determine their future

· Optimist always believes things will turn in · ‘sam knew damn well that when the shifty their favour. shadow is about, you roll yourself a smoke · Doesn’t believe in creating your own · “I didn’t go through a fuckin depression and stay under the sheet and don’t move luck à Rose & Dolly call him “hopeless” and a war to see my children turn their til you see what happens.’ (p9) · Generous, forgiving and loving: nose up at food.” (p160) Sam · Rose: ‘She didn’t know whether to put a o Tries hard to find excuses for all Dolly’s · “Everythin’s easier to believe in when it Pickles cool hand on his brow or shake him by the behaviour comes a man’s way.’ (p99) throat… but she loved him.’ (p16) o Tries to fill gap left by Dolly à shows love & · “Like I’m winnin. Luck. It’s a light shinin · ‘Rose stood in the yard and looked back at concern for Rose especially on you. You can feel it.’ (p99) him and it didn’t seem so strange to love o Knows what his kids needs and wants are him’ (p85) Rose = pens desk etc

· Helps Sam out after Sam’s gamble debt · The family is the reason he lives: “it’s why · ‘… he’d spent years arresting people for · Feels guilty after affair with Dolly. I don’t shoot myself quietly in the head things both mild and manical. He’d been · Despite being weak and a show off, he is a with the old Webly.” to war ad lived a Depression on the land, devoted father to his six children and it is the · “He’ll never play the ponies again, no been a father and a husband, and this family that kept him alive more grog” (p114) week, even an adulterer.’ (p262) Lester · Believes in fate: “knife never lies.” (p54) · ‘Why was it that he didn’t know a thing Lamb · Wants to help and save everyone, yet he is too about the underlying nature of people, submissive and compliant, allows Oriel to take the shadows and shifts, the hungers and over him life. hopes that caused them to do the tings they did?’ (p262) Oriel Lamb