The Characters
Because The Bone People is narrated through the consciousnesses of the three major characters, the reader comes to be far clearer about their motivations than he may be about the events which they recall in fragmentary fashion. The central character, Kerewin Holmes, perceives herself as someone who knows what she wants: solitude, independence, and celibacy. Her Tower is a fortress. The things she possesses are important; people are not. It is significant that she could cut off relations with her family but had to bear away an ancestral coffee mill, to which she now talks. Her first response to Simon is distaste; her first impulse, to send him back into the rain from which he came. Clearly, however, she does not know herself as well as she thought. When she discovers that he has a splinter in his foot, she must help him, and from that time onward, first Simon’s helplessness and insistent love and then Joe’s hurt make it impossible for her to be the person she had thought herself to be.
Simon’s own fearful nature and delinquent reactions are related not only to his terrifying, drugged infancy but also to Joe’s present alternation of affection and abuse, which have convinced Simon that he himself is evil. When he attacks Joe during the final beating, which almost costs Simon his life, the boy is asserting his own refusal to accept the responsibility for Joe’s actions and thus stating a new independence.
The most complex character in The Bone People is probably Joe, the child abuser, who reveals himself to Kerewin much more fully than she ever reveals herself to him. Although the revolting nature of his actions would seem to make him a totally unsympathetic character, whatever his own abused and abandoned childhood may have been and however deeply the loss of his wife and child may have hurt him, it is clear that Joe does give Simon love. Unfortunately, Simon’s own behavior gives Joe an excuse to beat him, in the guise of disciplining him. Fearful of his own sexual feelings, Joe is more likely to strike the child than to stroke him. Yet like the most sympathetic parent, Joe worries about Simon’s nightmares, devotes sleepless nights to comforting him, and responds with sensitivity to the unexpected terrors which evidently arise from Simon’s unknown past experience. Joe’s mistreatment of Simon is not the sadistic display of power which is so often the motivation of a child abuser. Joe castigates himself both for his actions and for his whole failed life; what, he asks, can he give either Kerewin or Simon? Out of his own dislike of himself comes his violence toward Simon, his other self. It is ironic that only when Kerewin, the confident, finds that she, too, can err cruelly, only when Joe, the self-despising, finds that he can give something to others are the two brought together with Simon, who can forgive them both.
Characters Discussed
Kerewin Holmes
Kerewin Holmes, the protagonist, a painter. A large-boned woman in her thirties who likes to adorn herself with rings, she lives alone in a tower-house that she built for herself. In her desire to avoid human contact, she has cut herself off even from her own family. She is kind to Simon, however, when he appears in her Tower, and she later comes to love both him and Joe, his foster father. Through her involvement with them, she learns her own need for others. At the end of the novel, she marries Joe and establishes a real home for Simon.
Joseph...
(This entire section contains 633 words.)
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(Joe) Kakaukawa Gillayley
Joseph (Joe) Kakaukawa Gillayley (kah-kow-KAH-wa gihl-LAY-lee), a part-Maori factory worker. A dark-skinned, broad-shouldered man in his thirties, he has a deep, musical voice and an appealing smile. Since the death of his wife, Hana, Joe has indulged in alcohol and in brutality, regularly beating his foster son, even though he loves the boy. During the course of the novel, Joe exorcises his demons and commits himself to Maori traditions, as well as to making a new family with Kerewin and Simon.
Simon P. Gillayley
Simon P. Gillayley, a child of unknown parentage who was washed ashore from a shipwreck and adopted by Joe and his wife about three years before the time of the novel. A small, thin, sharp-featured boy of about six with a shock of blond hair, Simon cannot speak and communicates by gestures and by writing. His missing teeth and body scars are evidence of the beatings he has endured. Although he is an affectionate child, he is a compulsive thief, and he is given to fits of violence and vandalism. Despite Joe’s brutality, Simon loves him deeply. After the earthquake, he runs away from a foster home to find Joe. In Kerewin, for the first time he finds a real mother.
James Piripi
James Piripi (Piri) Tainui (pee-ree-PEE tay-ee-NEW-ee), Joseph’s cousin, a Maori. He is a thin, slight man with large, gentle brown eyes. It is he who picks up Simon from Kerewin’s Tower when the boy first appears there. He and his parents are deeply concerned about Joe’s abuse of Simon, but he hopes that the problem can be resolved within the family.
Marama Tainui
Marama Tainui (mah-RAH-mah), Piri’s mother. A kind, elderly woman, she has deep maternal feelings for both Joe and Simon. Aware that Joe is beating Simon, she takes the child whenever she can, and she continues to urge Joe to let Simon live with her and her husband, Wherahiko. Simon confides to Kerewin that he does not want to go to Marama because she cuddles him and weeps about his father, a reminder to Simon of the brutality that he wishes to keep secret. In the celebration that ends the book, Marama is seen surrounded by all of her grandchildren, who can sleep safely beside her. Thus, she represents the ideal of the close Maori family, an ideal that will be attained by Kerewin and Joe in their new relationship.
Tiakinga Meto Mira
Tiakinga Meto Mira (tee-ah-KEEN-gah MAY-toh MEE-rah), an elderly man who considers himself the keeper of the Maori faith. A brittle, shriveled man of seventy-nine, he has lived for sixty years in an isolated place by the sea, guarding the stone and the rotting canoe that mark the home of the old gods. Having inherited his charge from his grandmother, he has been waiting for his successor. When he rescues and nurses Joe after his suicide attempt, Mira realizes that Joe is that successor and passes his charge to him. Mira also tells of his encounter with Simon’s father, a heroin addict, who died there. Relieved of his responsibility for the sacred place, Mira dies and is buried by Joe.
Characters
Binny Daniels
Binny Daniels is an outsider who stays on the edges of the main events. He is an elderly man who entices young boys to his dilapidated shack, where he exploits them sexually. Simon approaches Binny when he needs money. Although Simon insists that Binny doesn't demand anything in return for the money, there are subtle suggestions that this might not be the case. Toward the story's end, Simon is the one who discovers Binny's dead body. This discovery unsettles Simon, leading him to destroy Kerewin's guitar and vandalize the shop windows.
Hana Gillayley
Hana, the late wife of Joe Gillayley, worked as a nurse and was the mother of one child who died from influenza. She was expecting a second child when she herself succumbed to the illness. Hana was the one who encouraged Joe to welcome Simon into their family.
Joe Gillayley
Joe Gillayley takes in Simon, who is found shipwrecked and nearly drowned. Joe is a sorrowful character who struggles to express his emotions properly. He has experienced significant losses, including his mother, father, pregnant wife, and son. The only person left in his life is Simon, an unusual boy who is mute and frequently gets into trouble. Joe believes that Simon's social difficulties are partly due to his own lack of parenting skills. Feeling like a failure, Joe often resorts to beating Simon when he becomes frustrated.
Joe expresses a desire for Kerewin to become part of his family, though it is uncertain if this stems from love. It seems more likely that Joe relies on Kerewin. She is stronger than Joe in several ways—mentally, physically, and emotionally. Despite Kerewin's own limitations, Joe's weaknesses are more debilitating. Like Kerewin, Joe uses alcohol to dull his pain and avoid confronting his issues. He encourages Kerewin to drink with him, as if this shared activity might bring them closer.
Joe has a greater Maori heritage than Kerewin. Through Joe's character, the author introduces aspects of Maori myths and spiritual beliefs. Joe undergoes a transformation during a mythical encounter with an old, traditional Maori man who has been waiting for Joe. Joe is imprisoned for assaulting Simon, but the old Maori man entrusts him with the duty of living in seclusion and safeguarding a sacred relic. This new responsibility offers Joe an opportunity to reflect on his life and future direction.
Simon Gillayley
Simon uses the Gillayley surname, although it is uncertain if Joe Gillayley legally adopted him. Joe discovered Simon on the beach after the boy was shipwrecked.
Simon is deeply wounded, both physically and emotionally. Although he is able to speak, he chooses to stay silent throughout the narrative, except for a brief moment when he discovers he can sing. Simon struggles significantly in his interactions with others and cannot find a sense of belonging. Kerewin seems to be the person who understands Simon the most. Simon is astonished by her attention and her ability to grasp what he means beyond his silence. She refrains from judging or punishing him, except when he pushes her beyond her limits.
Simon often provokes people to gain their attention and acts out to relieve emotional tension. He frequently angers Joe, seemingly hoping that after Joe physically disciplines him, Joe will show him affection again.
Simon is frustrated by his difficulty in communicating and endures a great deal of pain, both self-inflicted and from others. The only time he truly cries out is in his sleep.
Kerewin Holmes
Kerewin, the main character, resides in a tower on a remote piece of land and discourages visitors. She is an artist who has lost the ability to paint and sometimes drinks heavily to cope with her creative block.
Something happened that led her to cut ties with her family, leaving her emotionally closed off and averse to physical contact. She once studied Aikido and is skilled in this martial art, which she uses to retaliate against Joe after learning he has beaten Simon.
Like the other two principal characters, Kerewin is emotionally conflicted. She claims to dislike company but enjoys the presence of Joe and Simon. She insists she does not like being kissed, yet she is moved by Simon's affection for her. Her emotional turmoil manifests in the pain she endures during the latter part of the novel. Despite medical advice suggesting she might need surgery, the independent Kerewin insists on healing herself. She manages to overcome both her physical and emotional challenges. By the novel's conclusion, she seems to be the most content of the three characters, having regained her health, family, and even her guitar.
Kerewin describes herself as a "neuter," neither male nor female. This neutrality is reflected in her lack of commitment to Simon and Joe. She desires solitude but also deeply misses her family. Though she is an artist, she cannot paint, and while not a mother, her maternal instincts lead her to care for Simon.
Ben Tainui
There is little information about Ben Tainui, the eldest son of Wherahiko and Marama, other than that he has taken over the management and daily operations of the family farm since his parents are no longer able to do so.
Luce Tainui
Luce, the youngest son in the Tainui family, makes a brief appearance in the narrative. Joe dislikes him the most because Luce enjoys spreading negative news. It is Luce who informs Joe that Simon visited Binny Daniels. Then, Luce teases Joe by suggesting that Simon will grow up to be just like him.
Marama Tainui
Marama, Wherahiko's wife, often takes on the role of Simon's grandmother, caring for and even spoiling him, according to Joe. Although Marama loves deeply, she lacks physical strength. After suffering a stroke, she is hospitalized when Simon is admitted following Joe's final beating. Marama is seen as the perfect wife and mother.
Piri Tainui
Piri, the middle son of Wherahiko and Marama Tainui, is the most prominent of their three sons. He frequently looks after Simon when Joe is too drunk or exhausted by the end of the day. Piri is also the most outspoken among the Tainuis, urging Joe to stop harming Simon and threatening to take Simon away from him. Piri's wife has left him, leading to his excessive drinking.
Wherahiko Tainui
Wherahiko, Joe's uncle, and his wife, Marama, act as surrogate parents to Joe. They often look after Simon when Joe is busy working. Wherahiko tries to advise Joe on how to raise Simon. He also attempts to inform Kerewin about Joe's abuse of Simon, but at the last moment, Wherahiko decides to give Joe one more chance to tell Kerewin himself. Despite having suffered a heart attack, Wherahiko enjoys a happy life with his wife.
