Characterization
Sergeant X(Main Character)
Sergeant X is a soldier in World War II. He was very lonely in the Army, because he did not have any friendly relationships with anyone due to all the discipline. On D-day, he met a thirteen-year-old girl named Esme, and they instantly became friends. Esme told him, "I purely came over because I thought you looked extremely lonely” (Salinger 95) This shows that she realizes X is extremely lonely. Since X was so deprived of companionship, his encounter with Esme was like a gift. She is friendly to Sergeant X because she may feel he is not like a normal American, who is wild but as a person who is calm and easy to talk to. It seemed easy for Esme to talk about her dead parents to Sergeant X, because she trusted him. After X went to war, he became sad, lonely, and depressed.
Sergeant X is a soldier in World War II. He was very lonely in the Army, because he did not have any friendly relationships with anyone due to all the discipline. On D-day, he met a thirteen-year-old girl named Esme, and they instantly became friends. Esme told him, "I purely came over because I thought you looked extremely lonely” (Salinger 95) This shows that she realizes X is extremely lonely. Since X was so deprived of companionship, his encounter with Esme was like a gift. She is friendly to Sergeant X because she may feel he is not like a normal American, who is wild but as a person who is calm and easy to talk to. It seemed easy for Esme to talk about her dead parents to Sergeant X, because she trusted him. After X went to war, he became sad, lonely, and depressed.
Esme
Esme is a thirteen year old girl who has a little brother named Charles. Her father passed away many years earlier, and she keeps his old watch to remember him. The first time Sergeant X saw Esme, he describes, "She was about thirteen, with straight ash-blond hair of ear-lobe length, an exquisite forehead, and blase eyes that, I thought, might very possibly have counted the house" (Salinger 90). This shows that Sergeant X sees Esme as beautiful due to the fact that he appreciates the chastity and purity in her youth. Not only that, when she speaks to Holden, she is very honest and sincere in her words, which what makes her such a desirable person to connect with. Her innocence and her purity is what makes her very precious and beautiful.
Esme is a thirteen year old girl who has a little brother named Charles. Her father passed away many years earlier, and she keeps his old watch to remember him. The first time Sergeant X saw Esme, he describes, "She was about thirteen, with straight ash-blond hair of ear-lobe length, an exquisite forehead, and blase eyes that, I thought, might very possibly have counted the house" (Salinger 90). This shows that Sergeant X sees Esme as beautiful due to the fact that he appreciates the chastity and purity in her youth. Not only that, when she speaks to Holden, she is very honest and sincere in her words, which what makes her such a desirable person to connect with. Her innocence and her purity is what makes her very precious and beautiful.