Marilynne Robinson: Character Analysis

Marilynne Robinson has written “the most complex thing we know of [is] the mind brain.” An important theme in Lila is that every human being is completely unique and complicated. Lila demonstrated that she is unique and complicated. She is very straightforward. Lila met Reverend Ames in front of the church after shopping. She told him that she did not plan on getting baptized and acted as if she is ignorant. Reverend Ames accepted her decision, but still gave the suggestion of baptism. He saw that Lila decorated his late wife’s grave with roses and wanted to repay her. But somehow, Lila said, “You ought to marry me” (Robinson 80). Then she wondered why she blurted out those words. In the next encounter with Reverend Ames, Lila said, “I want
However, Doll is the most heroic out of all the characters. She kidnapped Lila from dying in the streets. The old woman questioned Doll about kidnapping Lila, and Doll responded that “nobody going to come looking” (Robinson 8). Doll knew that no one else would take Lila, so she decided to kidnap and treat her as her own child. She cared for Lila by washing and feeding her. After bringing Lila to an old woman’s house, the old woman offered fresh milk and Doll “gave it to [Lila] in sips, holding her head in the crook of her arm” (Robinson 6). Doll resembled a mother, taking care of her sick child. When the old woman and Doll constantly checked up on Lila, Doll told her, “Now, don’t you go dying on me...you [are] going to die if you have to. I know. But I got you out of the rain” (Robinson 8). She allowed Lila to die, which is the same as letting go of loved ones. She did not want to give up on a sick child. Most parents would do the same towards their own child. When Lila saw Doll look beaten up, Doll said, “When [the man] and [I] went to it, I thought that would be the end of me for sure” (Robinson 136). She dealt with the consequences of kidnapping Lila, even though Lila’s family did not care for her in the first place. As a result, she gave Lila the cold shoulder when she visited her in the jail, so that Lila would not be involved in Doll’s
One positive aspect of Doll’s influence was that during Lila’s stay at the brothel, she wanted to steal Missy’s child since she overheard that Mrs. would get angry at Missy. She thought that “she could pick [the baby] up and walk out the door with it, for all they cared” (Robinson 201). In the brothel, the girls were supposed to entertain the gentlemen and having a child would be breaking the rules. Mack wasn’t around Missy after knowing that she had a child. Lila also thought that if she stole the baby, “the child would never be an orphan, because Lila would always be there looking after it, keeping it beside her” (Robinson 201). Overhearing the news made Lila remember how she was kidnapped by Doll, since she was left in the streets. Doll’s influence made Lila want to treat the child as if it was her own. Another positive aspect of Doll was that she grew up in poverty. She was able to empathize with Lila and take her in. However, Lila met a runaway boy and was able to relate to him and his situation. She offered to take him in, just like Doll. She said to the boy, “[Reverend Ames] [will] find some clothes for you and get you some breakfast” (Robinson 152). Lila tried to pass on the kindness that Doll gave her when she took care of her. Unfortunately, the runaway boy declined the offer, even though he trusted her. One negative aspect was that Doll influenced Lila’s fight-or-flight response towards men. Doll said, “Men just