Leonard Mead Character Analysis in The Pedestrian

The story “The Pedestrian” by Ray Bradbury tells of Leonard Mead, who, in the year 2053, walks in the middle of the night. He is then sent to a psychiatric center for no reason. Leonard Mead is characterized as being different and alive while everyone else is in a daze. This makes him a target because he is not fitting in with the crowd.

The first instance we can see Leonard mead being different is when it explains what he does at night. Bradbury writes “sometimes he would walk for hours and miles and return only at midnight to his house and on his he would see the cottages and homes with their dark windows, and it was unequal to walking through a graveyard where only the faintest glimmers of firefly light appeared in flicks behind windows”. This helps us see that Leonard is Alive in the sense that he walks all night to feel like he is alive. It also shows that he is unlike the other people because while everyone is asleep in their dark home Leonard is walking around  seeing the distant flickers of firefly lights     

The second instance we can see this is when Bradbury writes "What are you doing out?"

"Walking," said Leonard Mead."Walking!" "Just walking," he said simply, but his face felt cold. "Walking, just walking, walking?" "Yes, sir." "Walking where? For what?" "Walking for air. Walking to see." Leonard is alive because one of the definitions of alive is to be alert and active. Right here he is alive. He is walking to feel the cool crisp air on his face to feel alive in a world that is not.