A Prayer for Owen Meany

by

John Irving

Harry Hoyt Character Analysis

Another boy on John Wheelwright and Owen Meany’s Little League baseball team. He is two spots above Owen in the lineup, and he walks to allow Owen to come to bat in the game where Owen hits the ball that kills Tabitha Wheelwright. He later enlists in the Navy and dies of a snake bite he receives while peeing outside of a brothel in Vietnam. He comes to represent the unfortunate American soldiers who died needlessly in the war.
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Harry Hoyt Character Timeline in A Prayer for Owen Meany

The timeline below shows where the character Harry Hoyt appears in A Prayer for Owen Meany. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 1: The Foul Ball
Fate and Predestination Theme Icon
Christianity and Faith Theme Icon
Powerlessness Theme Icon
...to see who else was sitting there. There were two outs in the inning when Harry Hoyt walked and Buzzy Thurston hit a grounder that should have been an out. Owen... (full context)
Chapter 3: The Angel
Fate and Predestination Theme Icon
Christianity and Faith Theme Icon
Powerlessness Theme Icon
...his team, which mostly disbanded after the tragic accident. Sitting with him was John’s teammate Harry Hoyt—the boy who had walked before Owen came to bat. Harry would enlist in the... (full context)
Fate and Predestination Theme Icon
Gender and Sexuality Theme Icon
Powerlessness Theme Icon
After Harry died, his mother became politically opposed to the war, and offered to help other local... (full context)
Chapter 8: The Finger 
Fate and Predestination Theme Icon
Powerlessness Theme Icon
...relentless guerilla conflict in sight, it was more like “DESTROY AND DESTROY.” John can’t imagine Harry Hoyt effectively searching and destroying “anything”; Owen remarks, “HAS IT OCCURRED TO YOU THAT VIETNAM... (full context)
Fate and Predestination Theme Icon
Christianity and Faith Theme Icon
Powerlessness Theme Icon
...for the Adjunct General’s Corps—not a combat branch. He tries to appeal the orders. Meanwhile, Harry Hoyt dies of a snake bite, and Mrs. Hoyt starts advertising free draft-counseling advice to... (full context)