saves his friends. He also risks his life to save Alby and Minho even though he does not know them very well.
Another fact that strengthens the idea that Thomas is a brave person can be seen when he saves Dave. Dave is also a Glader, but he never has a conversation
with Thomas. The Griever holding Dave
—a kid Thomas had never spoken to—was rolling along on its spikes toward the West Door, churching and whirring.
The other Grievers had already gathered in the courtyard and followed their companion toward the Maze. Without hesitating knowing the others
would think he was trying to commit suicide, Thomas sprinted in their direction until he found himself in the middle of the pack of creatures.
Having been taken by surprise, the Grievers hesitated Dashner, 2009:294.
Thomas surprises the Gladers once more with his decision to save Dave. Through
his reaction to saves Dave from the Grievers, it shows that Thomas is a brave person. Based on the quotation above, it can be seen that Thomas does not know
about Dave very well. He is willing to risk his life in order to save Dave even though Thomas never speaks with him.
4. Selfless
Selfless characteristic of Thomas can be seen when he wants to get stung by the Grievers in order to get his memories back and also find out a way to exit
the Maze. According to Hornby, the meaning of selfless is thinking more of the needs and welfare of others than of one‘s own Hornby, 2007: 1066. In the story,
nobody wants to get stung by the Grievers because they still want to be alive. However, Thomas acts differently from the others because he sacrifices himself to
save Dave from the Grievers in purpose the hope of that he could be stung by the Grievers.
Three of the Grievers swarmed on him at once, their long pincers and claspers and needles flying in from all directions. Thomas flailed his arms
and legs, knocking away the horrible metallic arms as he kicked at the pulsating blubber of the Grievers‘ bodies—he only wanted to be stung, not
take like Dave. Their relentless attack intensified, and Thomas felt pain erupt over every inch of his body
—needle pricks that told him he‘d succeeded. Screaming, he kicked an pushed and thrashed, throwing his
body in a roll, trying to get away from them. Struggling, bursting with adrenaline, he finally found an open spot to get his feet under him and ran
with all his power Dashner, 2007: 295.
Thomas does not care about his own, he is willing to endure extreme pain. Even
though he already knows the consequence, he still accepts the possibility of going insane, like some of the previous kids who got stung.
Another situation to prove Thomas‘ selfless characteristic can be seen when Thomas has an idea to escape from the Maze. After Thomas has been stung
by the Grievers and been cured, he told all of the Gladers that they should go to Grievers hole. Thomas believes that inside Grievers hole there is a computer and
if they could enter the code which they get previously to the computer and they might be able to open the door and exit the Maze. However, nobody wants to go
inside the Grievers hole because it might be really dangerous and they could be killed by the Grievers. Then, Thomas shows his selfless characteristic by
volunteering himself in order to go inside the Grievers hole. The room went silent until the Blood House Keeper barker a loud laugh.
―Excuse me?‖ Winston asked. ―So your suggestion is that we throw some poor kid to the wolves so the rest of us can escape? This is your brilliant
suggestion?‖ Thomas refused to admit how bad the sounded, but an idea hit him. ―Yes,
Winston, I‘m glad you‘re so good at paying attention.‖ He ignored the glare that got him. ―And it seems obvious who the poor kid should be.‖
―Oh, yeah?‖ Winston asked. ―Who?‖ Thomas folded his arms. ―Me‖ Dashner, 2009:314.
All of the Gladers think that Thomas‘ decision of sacrifice himself to enter the Grievers hole is a stupid idea. As a normal people, it is common that nobody
wants to put himself or herself into a dangerous situation especially enter the Griever hole. However, Thomas shows different thing in this story.
But it didn‘t matter what Newt said. What anyone said. Thomas bore the responsibility anyway
—and it was growing heavier the more he thought about it. ―I just … feel like I need to save everyone. To redeem myself‖
Dashner, 2007: 316.
Thomas feels that it is his fault because he helps the Creator design the Maze, so that he is willing to enter to Grievers Hole. He wants to save everybody and exit
the Maze so that they could return to their family. All of quotations above show his selfless characteristic because he is
willing to risk his life, so that all of the Gladers could exit the Maze safely. He does not care about his own safety.
B. The Conflicts Faced by Thomas
