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Who Is The Protagonist In All The King's Men

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The protagonist of this novel is Jack Burden, not Willie Stark. The title All the King’s Men is not only about the King but about the king’s Men in particular. The King is Willie Stark because he is referred to as “the Boss”. Willie also suffers a fall at the end of the novel which relates to the end of his reign as king. Willie’s men are those who work for him, most notable being Jack. Another reason Jack is the protagonist, not Willie, is because Jack survives the novel as opposed to Willie who dies. Furthermore Jack is both the narrator and the first speaker in All the King’s Men. Willie is a foil to Jack because of their different philosophies of life. Jack is a “brass-bound idealist” who believes that the truth is always good (30).

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