Student Question

In the story "Charles," why do children play with Charles despite being told not to?

Quick answer:

In "Charles," children play with Charles despite being told not to because they are intrigued by his rebellious behavior. Laurie, the narrator, describes how Charles often gets in trouble, and the children stay to watch him serve his punishment, which suggests they find his antics entertaining or admire his defiance. This curiosity and allure of misbehavior draw them to Charles, even if they are advised otherwise.

Expert Answers

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Shirley Jackson is best known for her shocking short story "The Lottery"; however, one of her most delightful tales is "Charles."  It is the story of a little terror in the kindergarten class named Charles.  Laurie, a fellow kindergartner, comes home and tells his parents--with great glee--all about how awful Charles has been in class each day.  Laurie's parents are afraid their son is picking up bad habits from Charles, so his mother addresses the issue with the kindergarten teacher at the PTA meeting--only to discover that Charles is actually Laurie's alter-ego.  The bad boy was Laurie.

The incident to which you refer is found about a third of the way through the story; Laurie is recounting his day to his father:

“Charles yelled so in school they sent a boy in from first grade to tell the teacher she had to make Charles keep quiet, and so Charles had to stay after school. And so all the children stayed to watch him.

 “What did he do?” I asked.

“He just sat there,” Laurie said, climbing into his chair at the table. “Hi, Pop, y’old dust mop.”

In short, the answer to your question is that the rest of the kids stayed simply to watch him.  Not very exciting, especially since their rebellious hero simply sat there and served out his punishment--this time. 

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