Adulthood In Fforde's Shades Of Grey

Adulthood is not something that comes to one immediately. For some, maturity can come later in life than expected. This happens to be the case for Eddie Russet, the protagonist of the book, Shades of Grey, by Jasper Fforde, who still acts like a child as a young adult. In this story, which takes place over three days, Eddie takes a huge leap towards manhood. Throughout the novel, Eddie, matures through his relationships with Travis, Tommo, and Jane. By the end of the book, Eddie is almost a different person from whom he is at the start. First of all, Eddie shows maturity through his relationship with Travis Canary. Eddie meets and befriends Travis, a Yellow who is escaping Reboot, on the train ride to East Carmine. Later on in the novel, Travis runs away during night, at first Eddie goes after him, worrying about what might happen to him since no one is supposed to be able to see in the dark.

Tommo, a Red, befriends Eddie after the Russets arrive at East Carmine. Through Tommo’s actions in the novel, it is clear that he is not the best person for Eddie to be around. He persuades Eddie to steal Lincoln, a powerful swatch that is illegal to obtain because of its dangerous effects, from his father’s swatch safe. Tommo is also involved in other risky business, referred to as “youknow,” that Eddie does not feel comfortable getting involved in (92). Near the end of the novel, Tommo helps Courtland Gamboge, the soon-to-be Yellow prefect, attempt to lock Eddie in a flak tower, trying to leave Eddie behind during the expedition to High Saffron. Because of this, Eddie knows that he cannot trust Tommo, but he decides not to completely cut Tommo off as he states, “... I needed Tommo on my side. He could never know what I was up to, but his skills at wily artifice might be an asset” (376). Because of Tommo, Eddie realizes that he cannot trust everyone he