My Journey with Literature & Beloved Characters

Stories shape us. They introduce us to characters who feel real people we understand, admire, or even struggle to accept. Some characters stay with me long after I finish reading. They are flawed, complex, and deeply human. Each of these characters has shaped the way I see the world, challenged my thinking, and made me question my own beliefs. They matter to me not because they are perfect, but because they are flawed, complex, and deeply human. Here’s why they continue to stay with me:

Vladimir (Waiting for Godot) – The One Who Waits for Nothing

Vladimir and Estragon wait endlessly for Godot, who never arrives. They pass time with meaningless conversations, jokes, and small routines, but deep down, they are lost. There is no certainty, no answers, no resolution.

I relate to Vladimir because his endless waiting mirrors our own search for meaning. Life sometimes feels like an unanswered question, a long wait with no clear destination. Yet, like Vladimir, we keep going. He reminds me that even in uncertainty, we find ways to survive.

Saleem Sinai (Midnight’s Children) – A Fragmented Identity

Saleem is born at the exact moment India gains independence, tying his fate to the nation’s. His identity is constantly breaking, shifting, and rewriting itself. He is never fully in control of his own story, just as history is shaped by forces beyond our control.

His fragmented identity makes me think about how we change over time, how memory reshapes us, and how we are never just one thing. His journey is both personal and historical, making him unforgettable.

Jay Gatsby (The Great Gatsby) – The Beautiful Yet Tragic Dreamer 

Gatsby is the embodiment of hope and illusion. He spends his life chasing an impossible dream believing that the past can be recreated. He builds his fortune, throws lavish parties, and waits for Daisy to return. But in the end, dreams do not always align with reality.

Gatsby represents the tragic beauty of dreams. His unwavering belief in the green light his vision of a perfect future reminds me of how we often idealize things that are never meant to be. His story is both inspiring and heartbreaking, making me reflect on how much we should chase the past and when we should let go.

Jude (Jude the Obscure) – The Victim of a Cruel Society 

Jude dreams of education and freedom, but society crushes him at every turn. His aspirations are dismissed, his love is condemned, and in the end, he is broken by a world that does not welcome outsiders. His story is painful because it is real.

Jude's tragedy is a reminder that individualism has no place in a rigid society. He is intelligent, ambitious, and kind, yet he is rejected over and over again. His pain resonates with me because it speaks to anyone who has ever felt out of place, unheard, or undeserving of happiness simply because they don’t fit into the mold society expects them to.

Masuji Ono (An Artist of the Floating World) – The Weight of Regret

Masuji Ono, once a proud artist who supported nationalism, spends his old age questioning his past choices. His regret is quiet but heavy, as he wonders if he contributed to something terrible.

His story forces me to think about how history judges us and how we judge ourselves. He is a reminder that beliefs change, that we grow, and that looking back can be just as painful as looking forward.

Antoinette (Wide Sargasso Sea) – The Woman Who Refused to Be Silenced

Antoinette is called "mad," but she refuses to let others define her. Mr. Rochester tries to erase her identity, to strip her of her past, but she never fully surrenders. Even at the end, she takes control in the only way she can by setting fire to everything.

She is my personal favorite because she is realistic and rebellious. She refuses to be rewritten by others, reminding me that no one gets to define us except ourselves.

Gregor Samsa (Metamorphosis) – The Tragedy of Being Unseen 

Gregor wakes up as a monstrous insect, but what truly destroys him is not his transformation it is how his family stops seeing him as a person. Once he can no longer work and contribute, he becomes a burden, a thing to be discarded.

Gregor’s story speaks to anyone who has ever felt unnoticed, unimportant, or abandoned. He is a metaphor for the way society treats those who no longer serve a purpose whether they are sick, elderly, or struggling. His loneliness lingers long after the book ends.

Ammu (The God of Small Things) – The Woman Who Loved Beyond Boundaries 

Ammu’s story is filled with longing, love, and rejection. She dares to love outside her caste, and society makes her pay the price. But what makes her unforgettable is not just her own suffering it is the suffering she sees in her children. She wants love, acceptance, and a future for her family, yet she is treated as an outsider in her own home.

Ammu’s pain is universal the pain of being denied love because of rules that should not exist. Her story makes me question: Who decides whom we can love? Who has the right to judge us? Her life is unfair, yet it is one that so many women still live.

Yōzō Ōba (No Longer Human) – The Man Who Couldn’t Fit In 

Yōzō struggles with his identity. He wears masks, performs happiness, and hides his despair. But deep inside, he feels disconnected from the world. His loneliness and self-destruction are painful to witness, yet so deeply human.

Yōzō represents the feeling of being an outsider in your own life. His story is raw and honest about depression, alienation, and the masks we wear. He is one of the most hauntingly real characters I have ever encountered.

Paul Roberts (The Only Story) – The Fragility of Memory

Paul’s love story is not just about love it is about memory. As he tells his story, the version changes. The past shifts, reshapes, and slips away.

His journey made me question: Do we remember things as they truly were, or as we want them to be? His story proves that memories are fluid, and the way we tell our stories shapes who we are.

These characters matter to me because they are raw, complex, and painfully human. They remind me of hope, regret, love, loss, and the search for meaning. They are not just figures in books they are reflections of real struggles, emotions, and questions that all of us carry within.

I extend my heartfelt appreciation to ChatGPT for assisting me in structuring my thoughts, refining my ideas, and enhancing the clarity of my expression. Its insights have helped me articulate my literary experiences in a way that feels both personal and impactful. While every reflection and interpretation in this is deeply my own, ChatGPT has played a crucial role in shaping the coherence and depth of my analysis.