Sue Monk Kidd, the author of The Invention of Wings, portrays Sarah Grimké, Hetty Handful Grimké, and, eventually, Nina Grimké as the protagonists and Mary Grimké as the main antagonist. However, although the novel switches between the points of view of Sarah Grimké and Hetty Grimké, the plot is focused on Hetty, making her the main protagonist or character.
In part one, Hetty is given to Sarah as a present, her “very own waiting maid.” This demonstrates Handful being the protagonist by showing how her life was bought before birth and is being given away just as easily. Soon after the incident of Sarah's party, she continues arguing with Mary Grimké, her mother, attempting to persuade her to not force her to have a maid. She states, "let me