Genre
Young Adult
Setting and Context
Set in a high school in Texas.
Narrator and Point of View
First-person narration from the perspective of Young Steward.
Tone and Mood
Tense, Poignant, Subtle, Dark
Protagonist and Antagonist
Simon Glass, Young Steward, and Rob act as both protagonists and antagonists in the narrative.
Major Conflict
The story begins with the confession that fellow students killed Simon Glass for a yet-to-be-known reason. Initially, the popular students hated and abused Simon. However, when Simon gains popularity with the help of Rob he uses his power to punish everyone including Rob himself.
Climax
It occurs when Rob starts to beat Glass with a baseball bat and Bob joins in.
Foreshadowing
Young Steward admits at the beginning of the story that the narrative ends with the killing of Simon Glass.
Understatement
N/A
Allusions
“Since most readers in my class considered Grisham, King, and Danielle Steel great literature, I took a second look.”
Imagery
“Lance leaned over and grabbed the exposed elastic band of Glass’s underwear. He stretched it out, then released. The band snapped against Simon’s crack just as the bell shrieked. As the crowd moved on, one or two of them took a swipe at Simon's pens, scattering them to the far ends of the Commons. Lance picked up the calculator's plastic back and flipped it with a backhanded Frisbee toss in a garbage can.”
Paradox
The titular character is a paradox since he is a contradiction of himself after his transformation.
Parallelism
The character arc of Simon Glass parallels his initial nerdy personality with his newfound confident and popular self.
Metonymy and Synecdoche
Tightey-whiteys is a metonymy for male underwear.
Personification
“A roll of fat escaped from between the bottom of the undershirt”
