"With the Guest"

A character review of Daru from Albert Camus' "With the Guest".
2002, 840 words, 0 source(s).

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We have had the opportunity in the last month to read many short story selections, giving us examples of many different things. When asked to pick a character to analyze it was a tough decision but I would have to go with the story that most interested me to choose my character. This story would be "With the Guest", written by Albert Camus. With the main character of this story is Daru. In the following paragraphs I will analyze the type of character he is. Daru is a most unique character because there is some much that we learn about him and there are different aspects to him. We learn about the type of character he is both directly and indirectly. Balducci appears to be a friend of Daru's and we learn directly that he regards him highly and holds respect for him. We see that when Daru tells Balducci that he will not turn the prisoner in (pg 205), that Daru has morals and he does not feel he should violate them. Daru seems to be a man who is well off, compared to the poverty around him (pg 203). We know indirectly that Daru is very trusting, sometimes when maybe he should not be. He lets the Arab sleep in the same room with him untied, even though there is a chance that the Arab could try to do Daru harm. When Daru lets the Arab eat at the same table as him, we see that he does not think himself to be superior to the prisoner (pg-207). Near the end of the story we can tell that Daru is a generous man. He gives the Arab food and money and the choice for freedom or for prison. Overall we could say that Daru is a kind man which could be considered very rare for that day and age (considering his nationality also). Daru is dramatized, consistent, motivated, and plausible. He is dramatized because the author shows him speaking, doing different things, and the author also shows Daru expressing the ways he feels through his words and actions. He is also considered a consistent character. With the author shows this by his refusal to turn the Arab in, and the conflict he goes through when he starts the journey (pg-210), and his ultimate decision to have the Arab make his own decision on which path he should take (pg-211). Daru is also a motivated character. He abides by what he thinks is right not really caring what the consequences could be. Letting the Arab make his own decision was probably hard for Daru, but he felt he could not make the decision because either way he would suffer the consequences. With the decision that he made was the only one that he felt he had the power to make, how could he take the live of a man into his own hands when it should not be up to him to decide! Daru is a very plausible character. His inner turmoil is much like that which many people have. He dealt with the conflict the best way that he could, much the same way someone else in his shoes would do. He has all of the characteristics that a real person would and that makes the story all the more effective. There is no way for Daru's character to be considered flat, he is to complex. Daru is a round character because he touches on many aspects and not just one or two. Many of his characteristics are that which should be admired. Daru touches many aspects of life in the story and also touches many aspects to us. We have the problem of poverty, as Daru faces everyday with the children he teaches. Though Daru could be summed up as a good man, who does good and believes in good, there is much more to him than that. We can tell by his actions and his feeling that there really is more. Daru is a round character and by that lives as a rounded character. There is just to much about him to be otherwise. Daru can be considered to be a dynamic character. He does not change much but a little is still noticeable. When Balducci brings the prisoner to Daru, Daru refuses to turn the Arab in. In the end Daru starts on the journey to the prison thinking, even though this disagrees with him, that maybe it was just to turn this man in, he then cannot bring himself to do it. This shows that his coincidence ultimately overpowered what maybe he should have done. When the Arab heads toward the prison, Daru has to question himself as to why. Because of the choice Daru made, he still has to suffer as if he were the one who turned the Arab in (suffering both by himself and by the other Arabs). All in all, I would have to say that Daru was a most convincing character. He displayed many aspects and was easily analyzed.