Atonement Briony Character Analysis

Jacqueline Dorado
June 5, 2015
British Literature
Period 6
Ms. Bueno
Atonement

The main characters in the novel, Atonement all have distinct characteristics and develop as a person differently. The character I will be focusing on will be the writer of the book, Briony. Briony is a little girl when we first meet her, but as the story progresses so does the character's development grow, either bad or good. Briony is someone who is used to being the center of attention and getting her way. She focuses mostly of herself, which can be a good thing, but also a bad thing. An ignorant person can cause as much pain and destroy a life, as much as a person who is cruel, vindictive, and plain cruel. Briony has written a play called The Trials of

Briony has changed as a person since the first time we see her, obviously. Though she probably has changed as a person, there are parts of her that remain the same. Her book of atonement is to apologize for negatively affecting Robbie's life by wrongfully accusing him of rape. But, while writing her book, she could have left out important details that she was probably ashamed of. She is an author and as an author she is also concerned with keeping the audience engaged and entertained, telling white lies were all in favor for the readers of the book. Not to mention the fact that she is suffering from a disease that will make her slowly lose her memory. Her memory could have been failing her when she was in the mist of writing her book of

The reader follows her development as a person. As a person she is very much the same as she has always been; of course over the years she has gained experience and wisdom, but many of her traits are the same, such as being the center of attention, imaginative, and a natural born leader. "It wasn't only wickedness and scheming that made people unhappy, it was confusion and misunderstanding; above all, it was the failure to grasp the simple truth that other people are as real as you." This quote is from the book and I believe it perfectly describes Briony because the mistakes Briony made in her youth were due to ignorance and not being a mature