Charles By Shirley Jackson

230 Words1 Pages
In literature, as in life, things aren't always how they appear and expectations often differ from reality. In the short story, Charles, by Shirley Jackson, kindergarten student Laurie returns home each day to tell his parents stories about another student that misbehaves every day in school. Laurie tells his parents that the other student’s name is Charles. Each day he tells a new story about what Charles did in school adding suspense to the story. The irony of the situation can be understood by the reader as Laurie's mother narrates the stories of misbehaving Charles.
It’s ironic that Laurie's parents are nervous about Charles being a bad influence on Laurie and the reason why he is not behaving at home. Laurie made Charles up and