Greasy Lake Character Analysis

“Greasy Lake” By T.C. Boyle, The Protagonist’s Personality Traits
The “Greasy Lake” is set up in the typical ‘rebel without a cause’ setting. The protagonist and his two friends Digby and Jeff are rebellious teenagers, brought up at ‘a time when it was noble to be bad’ (Boyle). As the story unfolds, the protagonist and his friends encounter a chain of events that forces him to reevaluate his stance on life. The story depicts culture change with time something that the three friends are keen to be part of. The protagonist’s character evolves all through the story. First, he is committed to being the lifestyle of being bad and is a rebel of everything that is considered traditional. The protagonist begins to contemplate his actions once he realizes the magnitude of the

While he stands to look at the greasy character in the dirt, he envisions headlines, pitted faces of police interrogators, the glow of handcuffs, clank of metal bars, and the big black windows rising from the back of the cell (Boyle). Convinced that he had murdered a man in cold blood, the protagonist is dragged back to reality, and he knows there will be repercussions. Nonetheless, his remorse is momentary as they all spot the half- naked woman that was with the bad character. Like animals, they pounce on her with the intention of raping her. However, before they could do anything to her, a car pulls over, and they are all caught in the headlights. They are caught red-handed as the protagonist describes the moment as being dissociated from humanity and civilization, bloody, dirty, and guilty.
In the end, the protagonist has changed his perspective. He no longer enjoys living life the way he did, having seen what the bad experience had to offer. His opinion on nature changes from earlier in the day. He assesses the damage to his mother’s vehicle. The protagonist had earlier rebelled against morals and standards, but he now wants to return to normalcy. At the