Who is Steve Harmon?
On trial for involvement in a murder, is Steve Harmon, a 16 year old with African heritage. He is tried for being a lookout for a drugstore robbery that resulted in the murder of the store owner, Mr. Nesbitt. This particular trial is set in Manhattan in the novel written by Walter Dean Myers, Monster. Many people’s first impression of Steve is a typical teenager capable of making foolish decisions. However, some believe that Steve is a conscious young adult who is aware of his actions and is therefore guilty of murder involvement. But what is truly occurring inside Steve Harmon’s head? Maybe even he does not know if he is guilty or not. This aroused a question within the book, “Who is Steve Harmon?”
First, consider the …show more content…
Did O’Brien see him as a monster also? What do other people see when they look at him? He is a truthful person...right? Then why the question? On page 61, Steve mentions in his journal, “He said (Sunset) when he gets out (of prison), he will have the word monster tattooed on his forehead. I feel like I already have it tattooed on mine.” A page later, Steve mentions, “I want to look like a good person, I want to feel like a good person because I believe I am. But being here (jail) with these guys makes it hard to think about yourself as being different.” Although it was hard to separate himself from other prisoners, Steve wanted to honestly convince O’Brien that he was a righteous person. On page 93, Steve wrote, “I wanted to open my shirt and tell her to look into my heart to see who I really was, who the real Steve Harmon was. That was what I was thinking, about what was in my heart that made me, me. I’m just not a bad person. I know that in my heart, I am not a bad person.” So, in order for him to prove to it to himself, Steve created a movie, “I want to look at myself a thousand times to look at one true image.” Walter Dean Myers concluded the book by Steve asking himself one last question, “When Miss O’Brien looked at me, after we had won the case, what did she see that caused her to turn away? What did she
On trial for involvement in a murder, is Steve Harmon, a 16 year old with African heritage. He is tried for being a lookout for a drugstore robbery that resulted in the murder of the store owner, Mr. Nesbitt. This particular trial is set in Manhattan in the novel written by Walter Dean Myers, Monster. Many people’s first impression of Steve is a typical teenager capable of making foolish decisions. However, some believe that Steve is a conscious young adult who is aware of his actions and is therefore guilty of murder involvement. But what is truly occurring inside Steve Harmon’s head? Maybe even he does not know if he is guilty or not. This aroused a question within the book, “Who is Steve Harmon?”
First, consider the …show more content…
Did O’Brien see him as a monster also? What do other people see when they look at him? He is a truthful person...right? Then why the question? On page 61, Steve mentions in his journal, “He said (Sunset) when he gets out (of prison), he will have the word monster tattooed on his forehead. I feel like I already have it tattooed on mine.” A page later, Steve mentions, “I want to look like a good person, I want to feel like a good person because I believe I am. But being here (jail) with these guys makes it hard to think about yourself as being different.” Although it was hard to separate himself from other prisoners, Steve wanted to honestly convince O’Brien that he was a righteous person. On page 93, Steve wrote, “I wanted to open my shirt and tell her to look into my heart to see who I really was, who the real Steve Harmon was. That was what I was thinking, about what was in my heart that made me, me. I’m just not a bad person. I know that in my heart, I am not a bad person.” So, in order for him to prove to it to himself, Steve created a movie, “I want to look at myself a thousand times to look at one true image.” Walter Dean Myers concluded the book by Steve asking himself one last question, “When Miss O’Brien looked at me, after we had won the case, what did she see that caused her to turn away? What did she