Simmer, Falter, Wither Character Analysis

In the novel Spill, Simmer, Falter, Wither by Sara Baume, she talks about a strong and unbreakable friendship between an old anti-social man named Ray and his adopted dog who he calls One Eye. Both of them were all alone and had no one to love or be loved by, until they came across one another at the pound. After a short ride home and getting settled in they both become the best of friends and rely on each other for many reasons. The novel shares many similarities as well as differences which draw the two closer together and strengthens their inseparable bond throughout the story. One important point to look at is seclusion. Both Ray and One Eye are similar in this way because they both keep to themselves and have no one there for them except for each other. Ray lives in his deceased father’s

Ray on one hand has people completely avoid him when he’s walking by or taking mental notes of his license plate when he’s passing a park “when I pitch and clump and flail down the street , grown men step into the drain gully to avoid brushing against my invisible spacesuit” page 9. One Eye’s seclusion is a little different to Ray’s because he was abandoned by his previous owner and left at the pound. If it wasn’t for Ray finding an interest in One Eye, he would have been put down “Another day, y’know, and he’d a been put down” page 6. Another important point to look at is fear. Both Ray and One Eye fear the world because they don’t know what it’s like to socialize. When Ray first adopts One Eye, he is very timid around Ray as if he’s waiting for him to beat him “I see how you watch me closely, startled at the slightest of sudden shifts. I see you’re still frightened, even though I haven’t even raised my voice” page 18. Ray adopted One Eye because he has no friends or family and isn’t really open to going out to make new friends “I’m still afraid of almost every single form of social situation” page