The Pain Eater Character Traits

The evolution of Maddy Malone

In Beth Goobie’s The Pain Eater, the protagonist, Maddy Malone undergoes a traumatic event that dictates the rest of her life. Throughout the novel, she encounters numerous individuals who both positively and negatively influence her journey of personal growth. By bullying and raping Maddy, Ken drives her to change negatively. Leanne, her sister, supports her throughout times of hardship, and drives her to change positively, and August, a good friend who stands by Maddy’s side when no one else will, drives her to change positively. Maddy Malone evolves greatly, as Ken, one of the masked avengers, pushes her to change negatively and August and Leanne push her to change positively.

To begin, by harassing and raping

This is very meaningful because Maddy’s life changes for the worse after the incident. She isolates herself and stops talking to her friends and family. To deal with the aftermath of the rape, she becomes an entirely new person, even resorting to self-harm in the form of cigarette burns. Maddy also quits making art, which was always important to her. To add, Ken blames Maddy for the rape, which pushes her into a deeper state of depression. As Ken is reading his chapter of The Pain Eater Novel, it is evident that he has written Farang to mirror how he sees Maddy. He mentions a boy who, in a previous chapter, tried to help Maddy, but now, “what [the boy] sees is that [Farang] asks for what she gets” (183). While comparing Maddy to Farang, Ken explains that Farang asks to live a horrible life. He also mentions, while smirking, that Farang “gets around''. With all of his comparisons, Ken is implying to Maddy that she asked to be raped, and that she is

To start, Leanne makes Maddy feel valued by encouraging her to continue art. Art has always been Maddy’s favourite activity, but since the incident, she stopped pursuing it. This prompts Leanne to become worried about her: “I just don’t like to see you not taking art. You're happy when you're drawing” (23). When Leanne comprehends that Maddy is not acting like herself anymore, she confronts her about it, because she desires to see her sister happy again. Leanne wanting to do everything she can to help Maddy demonstrates how much her sister still appreciates her, even though she has been distant for the last couple of months. Additionally, Leanne wants to help Maddy, even if she is not aware of what is happening, which makes her feel loved. Leanne tells Maddy that “at the tournament this weekend, I heard some more…stuff. I couldn't believe… And I was pretty sure if I asked you straight out you wouldn't tell me what was going on… so I decided… I would check your phone” (221). Leanne has been hearing horrible things about Maddy, so she checks her phone to see the extent of the situation. Even if Maddy is still mad at her sister because of their fight, knowing that she still cares definitely makes Maddy feel better. By pressuring Maddy, Leanne eventually gets her to confess a couple of days later, which takes a lot of weight off Maddy’s shoulders. In addition, Leanne supports Maddy on the day she reads her