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1. Friendly
Savannah is majoring in Special Education in the University of North Carolina. She is 21 years old and the only child in her family. She is from Lenoir
and she grows up on a ranch. She enters the story when she spends her summer coordinating a group from her college to build homes for Habitat for Humanity in
John’s hometown. Savannah in the beginning of the story is described as a friendly girl.
Savannah and her friends walk up the pier and meet John as a stranger for them. John greets them and Savannah answers John’s greeting friendly. John also
considers Savannah as a friendly person. John feels that the words she says are friendly. The author uses the other character’s thought to describe about
Savannah. It is shown in John’s thought after his conversation with Savannah. It can be seen in the quotation below.
“Hey,” I called out when they were close. Not very smooth, and I can’t say I expected anything in response.
“Hiya, stranger,” she answered with a smile. She motioned toward my board. “I’ll bet the waves were great today.”
Her comment caught me off guard, and I heard an unexpected kindness in her words. p. 29.
Using Murphy’s theory the author uses the description about how Savannah reacts. The readers can know the personality of character through
reaction by greeting John in the beach . Savannah’s greeting to John shows that
she is friendly. She says “hello” to John too, who is as a stranger she has just met. She also states
to John that the waves are great when she looks at John’s board. She can show familiarity at the first time she knows John. Savannah’s behavior
can make John thinks that she is a friendly girl.
21 Then, Savannah and her friend continue down to the end of the pier. They
talk to each other. Savannah does not talk too much, sometimes she just laughs. John just watches them from the distance. At this time, John also has impression
toward her as a friendly girl. Her voice can comfort him. From the quotation below,
it is clear that Savannah’s characteristic is a friendly girl. It is the same as John’s impression about Savannah through her voice. The author describes
Savannah through John’s thought. Again, I heard something friendly and understanding in her voice,
so mething akin to coming home, which I’ll admit made no sense at all. p.
30. While they are talking, one of her friend’s hands hits Savannah’s bag.
Suddenly, her bag tumbles over the edge. John who watches that event runs immediately toward the edge of the pier, and then he jumps into the waves to
retrieve her bag. John’s reasons why he jumps into the waves are because of Savannah’s smile and warmth of her laugh. Behaving in a pleasant, kind way
towards someone is a kind of friendly person. It can be described in the way she smiles and laughs show her characteristic of friendliness, as the way as John
’s thought
about her. It is also shown at the previous John’s impression of Savannah at the explanation above. Through those things, Savannah can give impact to
John. I suppose is should explain why I jumped into the waves to retrieve her
bag. It wasn’t that I thought she would view me as some sort of hero, or because I wanted to impress her, or even because I cared in the slightest
how much money she’d lost. It had to do with the genuineness of her smile and the warmth of her laugh. Even as I was plunging into the water, I
knew how ridiculous my reaction was. p. 33.
22 After that event, Savannah and John talk to each other. In only one day,
they have known each other well. She is seen as a friendly girl, because she can easily associate with other people. Especially is John whom she has just known.
She likes to talk and have friendship with other people. This quotation below shows about John
’s and Savannah’s friendship. They feel close each other, whereas they have just met.
I felt the same words could be used to describe her, and I wasn’t sure what to say.
“I can’t believe that I only met you yesterday,” she added. “It seems like I’ve known you much longer.”
Her hand felt warm and comfortable in mine. “I was thinking the same
thing.” p. 89. The relationship between Savannah and John becomes intimate after they know
each other. They often have dinner and hang-out together. From John’s description, it is obvious that Savannah is a friendly girl. John
visits Savannah’s house and meets her parents. John thinks that Savannah and her mother have same characteristics as stated in the quotation
“Savannah’s mom, Jill, is a lot like Savannah: friendly, open, and a lot s
harper than she first came across.” p. 187. The readers can find that Savannah is a friendly girl from John’s opinion.
2. Kind-hearted
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