Student Question
What motivates Stargirl in the novel Stargirl?
Quick answer:
Stargirl's primary motivation in the novel is love and altruism. She empathizes deeply with everyone and acts out of a genuine desire to spread happiness, as seen in her singing "Happy Birthday" to everyone and cheering for all teams. However, her attempt to change herself is motivated by her affection for Leo, whose opinion matters greatly to her. She transforms to connect with him and the student body.
The answer to this question could go two different directions. If the question is a broad question that is asking about Stargirl's overall motivation about life in general, then I believe that her motivation is simply love. She loves everybody equally, and she is fantastic with empathy. It's why she sings happy birthday to everybody and why she cheers for both teams regardless of who is winning or losing. Stargirl wants what is best for everybody, and that is based purely on altruism and love.
If this question is asking about what motivated Stargirl to try and transform herself, then the answer has to be Leo. Stargirl admits that Leo's opinion of her matters, and she is quite hurt when he tells her that she is disconnected to the rest of the student body. She changes herself for Leo.
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