The reason
we see Laurie interpreted as bothandis due to the role both play in terms of plot. The
protagonist is largely the main character who drives the action in the story; as such, every
decision or action the protagonist makes elicits a reaction from the other characters in the
story. The antagonist, of course, contends with the protagonist; this tug of war drives the
plot forward.
In the story, Laurie is the protagonist; like all little boys,
he has a little of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde in him. Interestingly, Dr. Jekyll is often viewed as
the protagonist in Louis Stevenson's story, while Mr. Hyde is definitely the antagonist.
Similarly, in 's story, it is Laurie who drives the action of the plot: it is he who has created
his alter ego, . Therefore, every infraction Charles commits is also, by relationship, Laurie's.
However, a part of Laurie also wants to feel good about himself, so he allows his alter ego to
take the fall for his less than admirable predilections. Through Charles, Laurie can indulge in
the kind of behavior his parents or teachers might find offensive. In the meantime, Laurie still
gets to be known as the good kid.
This is similar to the plot in Dr. Jekyll
and Mr. Hyde. While Dr. Jekyll goes about as a respectable doctor, engaging in philanthropic
work and attending to his religious duties, he can freely indulge in his cruel vices through his
alter ego, Mr. Hyde. Mr. Hyde gets the blame for everything, while Dr. Jekyll gets off
scot-free. Eventually, however, Dr. Jekyll finds himself unable to control even his
transformations into Mr. Hyde; in essence, Mr. Hyde comes to take over the transformation
process, and eventually, he 'kills' off Dr. Jekyll. Now, Mr. Hyde is the clear
antagonist.
You can see this process in Shirley Jackson's story as well. As
the story begins, we see how smug Laurie is: he's the good boy, while Charles is the bad apple
in class. He even begins to enjoy linking Charles' name to any negative incident at home; the
fact that his parents join him in his game accords him great satisfaction. It becomes an
empowering experience for Laurie. However, like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, you can see Laurie
struggles to 'control' Charles. This is why Charles alternates between being a helpful boy as
well as being a disruptive student in class. So, in essence, Laurie is both protagonist and
antagonist: the dual conflict between the good and the bad in Laurie drive the action of the
story.
Ominous hints of Charles' future, reminiscent of Mr. Hyde's, is
reflected in the incident when Charles gets a little girl to say a bad word twice in class. In
telling the story to his mother, Laurie happily asserts that nothing happens to Charles as a
consequence, while the little girl gets her mouth washed out with soap. However, Charles
eventually earns a similar punishment when he is himself caught saying the bad word three or
four times. Like Dr. Jekyll at the end of Stevenson's story, we are left wondering if Charles
will eventually succeed in appropriating Laurie's character for himself.
Laurie's parents, meanwhile, are supporting characters or
character foil provides a contrast to the protagonist; the character foil's role is to highlight
the importance of the major character. Laurie's parents play the role to perfection, as their
sole and overwhelming concern in the story centers on Laurie/Charles. They react to
Laurie/Charles rather than indulge in actions which drive the story.
I hope
this is helpful!
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