The novel The Messenger by Markus Zusak is successful because it has loveable characters. The novel focuses on the character Ed and how he helps different people with their problems. By helping people Ed is seen as a loveable character by the reader. By evaluating different language techniques I will show how The Messenger is successful because of it’s loveable characters.
Throughout the novel, the reader has grown to love Ed due to his self-deprecating humour, exemplified when he makes fun of himself early in the novel by saying, “I list what I am. Taxi driver. Local deadbeat. Cornerstone of mediocrity. Sexual midget. Pathetic card player.” We also love him due to his unwillingness to give up on the people that he has been tasked with helping. Thus, at the end of the novel when we learn that Ed is in fact the message for us as readers, we are happy to take on board his message, as we are proud of Ed and want to apply what he has learned to our own lives. If Ed were not loveable, this final message for the reader would most likely be ignored, and the effect of the meta-fiction would only serve to make the reader feel disdain. The text is successful because we want to apply the lessons to our own lives, and we do this largely because of how much we love and relate to Ed.
Throughout the novel, the reader has grown to love Ed due to his self-deprecating humour, exemplified when he makes fun of himself early in the novel by saying, “I list what I am. Taxi driver. Local deadbeat. Cornerstone of mediocrity. Sexual midget. Pathetic card player.” We also love him due to his unwillingness to give up on the people that he has been tasked with helping. Thus, at the end of the novel when we learn that Ed is in fact the message for us as readers, we are happy to take on board his message, as we are proud of Ed and want to apply what he has learned to our own lives. If Ed were not loveable, this final message for the reader would most likely be ignored, and the effect...