Squeaky and Gretchen: Personalities and Character (Raymond's Run by Toni Cade Book Review)

What is Squeaky and Gretchen's character, and how is it reflected throughout the story? In "Raymond's Run," the author Toni Cade Bambara establishes these characters named Squeaky and Gretchen; Squeaky, who is ten years old, starts to be perceived as a swift runner who can be exceptionally watchful but can have a bright perspective. Gretchen is known as the same age as Squeaky, has short legs and freckles that Squeaky expresses. However, Gretchen can act suborn and momentous when it comes to running and manifest that she is right. However, even though Squeaky and Gretchen's personality could be unalike at the beginning of "Raymond's Run," they realize that they are more alike during the May Day 50-yard dash race than they thought when it comes to their character. Plus, the theme that I will express with be; "Friendship can be found in unexpected places."   

When readers first get to a sense of Squeaky's character, readers can tell by the context of the story that Squeaky can be very constant when it comes to her perspectives, but she can also be very defensive comes to someone is messing with her peers. For example, when Squeaky threatens to terrorize the girls and Gretchen because they were uncivil to Raymond, her character can bring the audience to a point where they think that she can be impolite sometimes. For example, Squeaky says to Gretchen, "Ventriloquist-dummy routine." (184); Which also can show evidence that she can be impolite. However, even though that Squeaky wanted to terrorize the girls. She was doing it to shelter the ones that she loves. Gretchen, however. It was interim with her lips that makes her so demanding. She is making it appear that Gretchen wants to dare Squeaky in the May Day race to show that Gretchen is a fast runner. However, Gretchen is doing it for a purpose that might not sound as challenging as you think. Squeaky describes her as a "Freckle-face self." (184). It means that she is trying to act stable because she wants to beat Squeaky in the 50-yard dash to show that she can be a fine runner. 

However, even though both girls may seem similar because they want to win the 50-yard dash, they are more different than you think because of their personality that withstands with their character. They are different in terms of their personality and character. Their character has a different position in terms of attitude and resolution because they believe that different things are like when Squeaky is self-assured about her aspect as a runner. However, Squeaky can sometimes show some negativity with her character because she sometimes haunts people to hurt them, like when Squeaky munched that she would terrorize Gretchen and her friends if they do not stop teasing her brother Raymond. Now, let us talk about Gretchen's character; Gretchen is not the most optimistic because later at the end of the story, Squeaky felt that Gretchen felt weightier about the Mayday race than she did. In the first place, Gretchen did not want to pressurize Squeaky like she is going to hurt his brother and anything. She is only trying to get Squeaky's attention to take part with her in the mayday race. 

When the mayday race comes in a blink of an eye, Squeaky is at the mayday race along with Gretchen and other kids around her age. In this race, we start to grasp Gretchen's full resolution and conflict and Squeaky's personality/character that makes it exciting that something tremendous will happen that will benefit their similar character/personality that readers will start to comprehend. Before the race has started, Squeaky notices how consequential Gretchen is in terms of taking part in the Mayday race and refers to this in the text; "I see Gretchen standing at the start line, kicking her legs out like a pro." (189); this shows evidence of how Gretchen's character was at the beginning when Gretchen wanted to dare Squeaky in the May Races 50 Yard Dash. This evidence also can show how much Gretchen cares about the Mayday race and how much she wants to manifest to Squeaky that she is a great runner; when the gun bullet sprouts in the air, Squeaky, Gretchen, and others start to run like the light, from start to finish. Once they were both at the finish line, the man announced that Squeaky was the May Day race winner. You might think that Gretchen would be very disheartened in losing this race after how much determination she has put in. Surprisingly, she says this that shows how authoritarian their character/personality is; "It is about as real a smile as girls can do for each other, considering we do not practice real smiling every day, you know, cause maybe we too busy being flowers or fairies or strawberries instead of something honest and worthy of respect…you know…like being people." (192).

In my opinion, Squeaky and Gretchen have something in common that is extraordinary because even though their character is dissimilar in terms of attitude though, they both have a passion for running, which makes them unique. Throughout the story, Squeaky and Gretchen's character had issues when they disliked each other and had different beliefs in their running aspect. However, in the end, they realized that they are more alike than people thought that bright's up the main idea in the text. Plus, the theme that makes this fictional story so remarkable; "Friendship can be found in unexpected places." It can show that even though Squeaky and Gretchen were not as close or kind with their character or personality at the beginning of the story. After the May Day 50-yard dash race, the characters have perceived that they are more alike with their character than they thought :).