What are some character traits of Freak in Freak the Mighty?
Freak the Mighty is an incredible book. It's incredible because it's so fun to read while at the same time wrestles with difficult and deep themes. The young adult genre is flush with books of all kinds, but one thing that young adult books all tend to stay away from is having the protagonist die. Freak the Mighty bucks that trend by having Kevin die. It's reminiscent of Leslie's death in Bridge to Terabithia because there is a moment when a reader is likely to consider the actual point of finishing the book. A great character and person has been taken away from the reader, and we feel that hurt deeply because we have grown to love that character so much.
Kevin is an amazing character and very easy to love. He is perpetually happy as well as perpetually hopeful. He's got a disease that is going to kill him...
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early in life, and Kevin is brilliant enough and well educated enough to know that there isn't anything that can save him. Despite his disease, Kevin is the character that has the attitude of carpe diem throughout the story. He is the guy seeking out life's adventures, and it doesn't matter if those adventures are real or imagined. Kevin is such a creative and imaginative character that he's constantly blurring the line between reality and imagination. He sees quests and damsels in distress everywhere, and he inspires Max to see that there is much more to life than wallowing in the down under. Kevin is filled with hope, and that hope infects readers and Max, and that is why we are so devastated when we lose him.
Who is Freak in Freak the Mighty?
In Freak the Mighty, Kevin is "Freak." He is a tiny child, born with a birth defect that has left him crippled. However, his mental abilities are much more advanced than other kids his age. He lives only with his mother because his father abandoned them when Freak (Kevin) was born. His imagination and his heart (literally and figuratively) are too big for his body. He is the opposite of Max in every way except for the fact that they both have issues with their fathers and they both are "pure of heart" (to quote an accolade of the knights Kevin always imagines himself to be).
"Freak the Mighty" can be considered a character in this novel. Although it is a combination of both Kevin and Max, "Freak the Mighty" represents their friendship but also a conceptual character. Max is the physical component and Kevin is the mental component.
What is Freak's appearance in Freak the Mighty?
The best place to look for direct characterization details regarding what Kevin looks like in Freak the Mighty is in chapters 1 and 2. Unfortunately, readers don't get a lot of details on exactly what Kevin looks like. Max is the story's narrator, so we see things from his perspective. Additionally, Max isn't a character that is usually great at explaining things at length or in detail. Consequently, his descriptions of Kevin's appearance are repetitive and fairly vague. Max will say that Kevin looks "weird" and "twisted" rather than fully explain his observation.
Chapter 1 has Max and Kevin in day care. Max tells us that Kevin looked small, but it wasn't that big of a deal, because everybody was small. We are told that Kevin had crutches at first and then a bit later leg braces. Kevin's attendance is sparse in day care, and the next physical description of Kevin occurs when Max is in third grade. Max tells readers that Kevin has yellow hair.
In chapter 2, Kevin and his mom move in next door to Max, and readers get a bit more detail on what Kevin looks like. We are told that Kevin looks like a "midget kid." His yellow hair is on a "normal-sized head"; however, the rest of Kevin's body is "shorter than a yardstick and kind of twisted up." The twisting prevents Kevin from standing up straight and causes his chest to be puffed out. From that point forward, readers get narration about the things Kevin wears and does, and those kinds of things help readers see who Kevin is rather than what he looks like.