Character Study

In Richard Ford's novel, The Sportswriter, he develops some of the characters in a rather unique manner. The most prominent characters in the book are Frank Bascombe, his ex-wife, his son that passed away, his two other children, and his current girlfriend, Vicki Arcenault.

Frank Bascombe is a sportswriter who comes from a rather troubled past. He married a woman, to whom he only refers to as X, and together they had three children. The first child, Ralph, died, from a rare disease. This troubled him greatly and Bascombe endured a great amount of emotional pain through this ordeal. His two other children, however, are alive and healthy. Eventually, Frank Bascombe divorced his wife, X, and found a new lover. This new lover, Vicki Arcenault, brought joy to a somewhat depressed Bascombe.

The characters I have introduced, however, have much greater significance than the brief introduction I have given. Frank Bascombe represents a large percentage of Americans who are struggling with depression and unemployment. Richard Ford uses Bascombe to encourage struggling Americans to keep fighting and eventually something good will happen.

Bascombe's ex-wife, X, is a rather interesting character. Instead of calling her by her actual name, she is only referred to as X. "I am no longer married to X" (Ford 1). This shows Bascombe's uncaring attitude towards his ex-wife. He has moved on to a new stage in his life, and doesn't appear to care much for his ex-wife anymore.

Bascombe's son who passed away represents one of the many obstacles a person can face in his life. Ford is trying to show that there will always be setbacks in life, but one must try his or her best to fight through adversity. Ford uses Bascombe's other two healthy children to show that there will always be something to be happy about.