In the novel My Absolute Darling, Turtle Alveston is a character readers can love and hate at the same time. Turtle’s level of complexity as a character makes readers view her as a true breathing and living individual in the real world. The experience that Turtle lives through are the worst type of abuse a person can go through while still remaining resilient and determined to overcome her difficult obstacles. The characterization of Turtle may not be easy to understand; however, readers cannot blame her actions as it is her only manner of survival since all the odds are against her when she verbally attacks a fellow classmate. Turtle’s hatred and indifference towards the exterior world manifests in a manner which she views as her only protection …show more content…
The author conveys a clear image with words that translates the suffering of the character in a bright light to readers. The sentences are well constructed that even though they might not stop with periods in between, Tallent is able to get away with only using commas in his long sentences with the placement of the words. Turtle’s struggle with her inner monologue is interesting to analyze due to the fact that comes off as an authentic human emotion as she fights with herself over the words she has spoken to her classmate. The phrase, “that’s not me, that’s not who I am,” shows readers the instant regret she feels once her words are out in the open. The inner struggle through the use of language also demonstrates that Turtle is not very aware of the power she holds as a person. The redeeming qualities that Turtle does possess are not truly acknowledged by her, as all she thinks about is how stupid she is when making small mistakes. Martin’s mental abuse on Turtle has her believing that she will never amount to anything important and this causes her to be distant and maintain hate that manifests in small bursts like her, “what do you know about it, sugar tits?” comment to Rilke. The author evokes a tone of voice full of empathy towards both girls because at the end of that interaction both suffer from some kind of