Analyzing the character of Bird - Essay Example

At his present age of twenty eight years he still uses his nick name given to him in his adolescence. Carelessness and attitude to run away from challenging situations can clearly be witnessed by observing Bird’s behavior on the birth of his first child. Leaving his wife alone in the hospital to sweat he escapes into his years old desire of visiting Africa and imagines himself out of the hospital and into the market. Instead of returning back to the hospital to get to know of the status of the child’s birth he merely makes a phone call from a public phone to inquire about the status at the hospital.

This behavior seems quite ironic. This is the time of a woman’s life when she needs her husband the most. This is when she needs all the encouragement and support to get motivated to assist the birth of the child. Just by knowing the fact that her husband is around, the man whose baby she is about to give birth to, is enough moral support for her. But Bird just didn’t care. He opted for the easiest option available to him and ran out of the entire situation leaving his wife at the disposal of the doctors and his parents in law.

Not very enthusiastic about fatherhood, Bird has been demonstrated as a person who runs away from all kinds of responsibilities. H feels that once he becomes a father he would be devoid of all his freedom, would be locked up in a cage with its door closed. The years that would come after his child’s birth would refrain him from going to Africa – The land of his dreams! Severely struggling between duty and desire Bird is really disappointed with life when the much awaited birth of his child does take place.

Unfortunately the new born is a defective child. This further pulls the morale of the already dejected father into dungeons. At this point in his life as well the only person he thinks about is himself. This can easily be conveyed via author Kenzaburo’s (1968) following words in which he depicts Bird’s instant reaction upon the news of his child’s abnormal birth, “Bird scuttled back to the bedroom, like a crab making for a ledge. He shut his eyes tight and tried to submerge himself in the warmth of his bed, as if by denying reality he could instantly banish it.

But nothing changed. Bird shook in head in resignation.”(15) Reacting selflessly at the hospital and without meeting his wife he leaves her behind in the maternity home he ventures on into his own world running away from the hard hitting facts of life. Some earlier instances of his life, narrated by himself, show that he has considered himself to be in distress ever since he has tied himself in the bond of marriage. He narrates this feeling of his with the similitude of a person being held in a cage with the door of the cage being left open.

The fist escape he opts for right after his marriage is that he gets himself drunk continuously for four months. The only thing he did was that he got drunk and listened to music. This was all at the expense of a lifetime relationship that he had just stepped into, a responsibility that he faced in the face of a wife who was dependent on him and on top of it all at the expense of his education. Yes, Bird was studying when he ventured on this carelessness spree. Setting aside all future prospects of establishing himself in the society Bird risked his