Greg is a high school student in his senior year. At the start of the novel, Greg’s main ambition in life is to make it through high school without joining any particular group of students while still being on friendly terms with everyone. In order to accomplish this, Greg had to avoid becoming close friends with anyone at his high school. This was his way of avoiding being bullied and bringing attention to himself. Greg’s experience with Rachel really shifted his outlook on life and overall made him more thankful for being alive. Greg’s low self-esteem and mentality of how to deal with high school makes Greg a realistic character.
