Messenger

by

Lois Lowry

Mentor Character Analysis

Mentor is the local teacher in Village. At first, Mentor is a kind man who looks out for everyone in Village, especially children who have never been to school before. He's middle-aged, stooped, and balding, and he has a large red birthmark that covers half of his face. His daughter, Jean, tells Matty that Mentor loved literature and language, and believed that stories could teach people about how they should live their lives. Mentor begins to change in the weeks before the novel begins, however. Lonely because he lost his wife a number of years ago, Mentor begins attending Trade Mart to trade away his "deepest self" in order to become attractive and make Stocktender's widow love him. This turns Mentor into a cruel and selfish person, and he spearheads the movement to close Village to outsiders. He also manages the effort to build the wall, and does so in a cruel manner. By the time he becomes involved in building the wall, Mentor's birthmark is entirely gone. Mentor's transformation is extremely disturbing for Jean, especially when Mentor kicks Frolic for behaving in a way that's totally normal for a young puppy. Though the novel doesn't resolve whether or not Mentor succeeds in courting Stocktender's Widow, Matty's sacrifice to Forest returns Mentor to his stooped stature and immediately renews his love of books and poetry.

Mentor Quotes in Messenger

The Messenger quotes below are all either spoken by Mentor or refer to Mentor. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Selfishness vs. the Collective Good Theme Icon
).
Chapter One Quotes

But here in Village, marks and failings were not considered flaws at all. They were valued. The blind man had been given the true name Seer and was respected for the special vision that he had behind his ruined eyes.

Related Characters: Matty, Kira, Mentor, Seer
Page Number: 7
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Four Quotes

"It's not the fish or crops," he said. "They'll use that, of course. They argued dwindling food supply last time. It's..."

"Not enough housing?"

"More than that. I can't think of the word for it. Selfishness, I guess. It's creeping in."

Matty was startled. Village had been created out of the opposite: selflessness. He knew that from his studies and from hearing the history. Everyone did.

Related Characters: Matty (speaker), Seer (speaker), Mentor
Page Number: 38
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Seven Quotes

People nodded back or waved in reply, but there was none of the lighthearted banter that was an ordinary part of Village. There was an intentness to everyone, an odd seriousness, and a sense of worry—unusual in Village—pervaded the atmosphere.

No wonder Seer didn't want me to come, Matty thought as he approached. It doesn't feel right.

Related Characters: Matty (speaker), Mentor, Trademaster
Page Number: 63
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Eight Quotes

And now she was talking to him in a way that was not foolish and childlike, designed to entrance, but instead was human and pained and adult. He felt suddenly that he loved her, and it was a feeling he had never known before.

Related Characters: Matty, Mentor, Jean
Page Number: 76
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Nine Quotes

"But you're already here!" Matty reassured her. "You needn't worry! You're part of us now. They won't send you away, even if they close Village."

Related Characters: Matty (speaker), Mentor, The Woman, Vladik
Page Number: 87
Explanation and Analysis:

"It was so important to him, and he made it important to me: poetry, and language, and how we use it to remind ourselves of how our lives should be lived..."

Then her tone changed and became embittered. "Now he talks of nothing but Stocktender's window, and of closing Village to new ones. What has happened to my father?"

Related Characters: Jean (speaker), Matty, Mentor, Stocktender's Widow
Page Number: 90-91
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Ten Quotes

Some of those who had been among the most industrious, the kindest, the most stalwart citizens of Village now went to the platform and shouted out their wish that the border be closed so that "we" (Matty shuddered at the use of "we") would not have to share the resources anymore.

We need all the fish for ourselves.

Our school is not big enough to teach their children, too; only our own.

They can't even speak right. We can't understand them.

They have too many needs. We don't want to take care of them.

And finally: We've done it long enough.

Related Characters: Matty, Mentor
Page Number: 94
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Twenty-One Quotes

He saw Forest and understood what Seer had meant. It was an illusion. It was a tangled knot of fears and deceits and dark struggles for power that had disguised itself and almost destroyed everything. Now it was unfolding, like a flower coming into bloom, radiant with possibility.

Related Characters: Matty, Leader, Kira, Mentor, Seer
Related Symbols: Forest
Page Number: 185
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Messenger LitChart as a printable PDF.
Messenger PDF

Mentor Quotes in Messenger

The Messenger quotes below are all either spoken by Mentor or refer to Mentor. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Selfishness vs. the Collective Good Theme Icon
).
Chapter One Quotes

But here in Village, marks and failings were not considered flaws at all. They were valued. The blind man had been given the true name Seer and was respected for the special vision that he had behind his ruined eyes.

Related Characters: Matty, Kira, Mentor, Seer
Page Number: 7
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Four Quotes

"It's not the fish or crops," he said. "They'll use that, of course. They argued dwindling food supply last time. It's..."

"Not enough housing?"

"More than that. I can't think of the word for it. Selfishness, I guess. It's creeping in."

Matty was startled. Village had been created out of the opposite: selflessness. He knew that from his studies and from hearing the history. Everyone did.

Related Characters: Matty (speaker), Seer (speaker), Mentor
Page Number: 38
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Seven Quotes

People nodded back or waved in reply, but there was none of the lighthearted banter that was an ordinary part of Village. There was an intentness to everyone, an odd seriousness, and a sense of worry—unusual in Village—pervaded the atmosphere.

No wonder Seer didn't want me to come, Matty thought as he approached. It doesn't feel right.

Related Characters: Matty (speaker), Mentor, Trademaster
Page Number: 63
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Eight Quotes

And now she was talking to him in a way that was not foolish and childlike, designed to entrance, but instead was human and pained and adult. He felt suddenly that he loved her, and it was a feeling he had never known before.

Related Characters: Matty, Mentor, Jean
Page Number: 76
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Nine Quotes

"But you're already here!" Matty reassured her. "You needn't worry! You're part of us now. They won't send you away, even if they close Village."

Related Characters: Matty (speaker), Mentor, The Woman, Vladik
Page Number: 87
Explanation and Analysis:

"It was so important to him, and he made it important to me: poetry, and language, and how we use it to remind ourselves of how our lives should be lived..."

Then her tone changed and became embittered. "Now he talks of nothing but Stocktender's window, and of closing Village to new ones. What has happened to my father?"

Related Characters: Jean (speaker), Matty, Mentor, Stocktender's Widow
Page Number: 90-91
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Ten Quotes

Some of those who had been among the most industrious, the kindest, the most stalwart citizens of Village now went to the platform and shouted out their wish that the border be closed so that "we" (Matty shuddered at the use of "we") would not have to share the resources anymore.

We need all the fish for ourselves.

Our school is not big enough to teach their children, too; only our own.

They can't even speak right. We can't understand them.

They have too many needs. We don't want to take care of them.

And finally: We've done it long enough.

Related Characters: Matty, Mentor
Page Number: 94
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter Twenty-One Quotes

He saw Forest and understood what Seer had meant. It was an illusion. It was a tangled knot of fears and deceits and dark struggles for power that had disguised itself and almost destroyed everything. Now it was unfolding, like a flower coming into bloom, radiant with possibility.

Related Characters: Matty, Leader, Kira, Mentor, Seer
Related Symbols: Forest
Page Number: 185
Explanation and Analysis: