In Miguel Street, George was as scary as "bigfoot" in the eyes of the young narrator. There were several reasons why. First, George left the door open for speculation because, in the words of the narrator, he "never became one of the gang in Miguel Street." This means a lot, since every male in Miguel Street forges a role in their community by becoming a part of the "pack." This is how the narrator is able to differentiate so well from Man-man, to Popo, to Hat, and so forth.

George is quite distinguishable, even if he is not a part of the Miguel Street crew. He kept cows, muttered to himself, had a harsh look, and beat everyone in his family. He was violent toward his wife and two children: his daughter, Dolly, and his son, Elias.

He beat them all. And when the boy Elias grew too big, George beat his daughter and his wife more than ever.

He was not only violent but increasingly violent. Moreover, his violence turned his family into vulnerable beings.

The blows didn’t appear to do the mother any good. She just grew thinner and thinner; but the daughter, Dolly, thrived on it. She grew fatter and fatter, and giggled more and more every year.

Dolly was not "giggling" because she was happy or found anything funny. Her giggling was clearly traumatic, and she lived with it until adulthood. Elias, George's son, was the only one who was spared, not from George's rod but from the nuisance of having to deal with him. Elias never spoke to his father.

Meanwhile, George's wife shows up dead one day. Her death was caused by a beating from George. Everyone knows about it, and this adds to the reasons why the narrator finds George to be such a scary person.