We Were The Mulvaneys Character Analysis

Every author who writes a novel, portrays their characters using his or her own unique characteristics to form their personality and the role they play. In the novel “We were the Mulvaneys” by Joyce Oates, The Mulvaney family is portrayed as a picture-perfect, successful family living on a farm in Upstate, New York. However, throughout this novel, the characteristics of one character during a horrific incident ruined this family’s trust and respect towards each other. Marianne Mulvaney, who is the only daughter in the family, is characterized as a good-natured, popular, beautiful, Christian. On the night of her prom, Marianne gets raped and fails to press charges against the boy who sexually assaulted her, blaming everything on herself. This incident was the beginning of the family falling apart. I chose this character because the whole aspect of the story revolves around her and her decisions. I dislike that Marianne did not do the right thing in regards to pressing legal charges against the boy, which lead to difficulties in her family. Marianne Mulvaney, although honest and uncritical, made poor decisions that reflected upon her being absurd.
Growing up,
When introducing the character of Marianne, it states “Sweet good-natured Marianne who was Button, who was Chickadee, who was everybody’s darling. Never judged her mother, or anyone” (Oates, pg. 28) Corinne Mulvaney was a loving women who was a great influence to all her children. She was sometimes humiliating, as it states that her huge, staring eyes were an embarrassment to her family. Corinne was known to be a very religious women, sometimes too religious, which caused her children to tease her about it. But never Marianne. Being uncritical, Marianne followed the footsteps of her mother, and never judged her unlike the others. I can relate to this trait of Marianne’s because I am never judgmental towards