Jack Character Analysis in Native Speaker

Jack is a Greek immigrant who works alongside Henry at Glimmer & Company. He serves as something of a mentor for Henry, since he’s been a spy for a very long time and is thus very knowledgeable about the trade. In fact, he no longer works undercover like the rest of his colleagues, having informed Dennis Hoagland that he didn’t want to do so anymore. However, because Jack is such a valuable asset, Hoagland has forced him to stay on as a consultant of sorts, asking him to oversee the other operatives, all the while dangling the promise of full retirement as a way of keeping Jack invested in the job. The reason Hoagland sees Jack as so valuable is because of Jack’s past as an operative for the CIA in Greece, where he was often in dangerous situations, meaning that he’s quite experienced—and that he has seen and done some very violent things. Nonetheless, Henry likes Jack and frequently asks him for relationship advice, since Jack had a long, happy marriage until his wife died of cancer. Despite their close relationship, though, it becomes increasingly clear over the course of the novel that Jack will remain loyal to Hoagland by pressuring Henry to do various things he doesn’t want to do. Jack doesn’t like making things difficult for Henry in this way, but he’ll do seemingly anything to make sure he’ll be able to retire soon. He thus pressures Henry into stealing the list of people who contribute to John Kwang’s “money club,” which is the vital information that Glimmer & Company has apparently been hired to obtain.

Jack Character Timeline in Native Speaker

The timeline below shows where the character Jack appears in Native Speaker. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

At work, Henry asks his older colleague, Jack, to tell him about life in the Mediterranean, hoping to get a better sense of... (full context)

...who have come to the United States. Each operative concentrates on different groups of people: Jack focuses on the Mediterranean and the Middle East, two other coworkers focus on Central America... (full context)

Eventually, Hoagland sent Jack to take Henry off the Luzan case. Now, Henry knows, Hoagland is monitoring him because... (full context)

Henry goes to the company’s office in Westchester because he wants to see Jack. He and Lelia used to visit Jack’s house in a wealthy neighborhood north of the... (full context)

In the office, Henry sits with Jack and eats olives while talking about Lelia. Jack advises him to give her space, saying... (full context)

Henry thinks about how easy Jack is with his emotions. He can imagine Jack’s Greek parents and their willingness to burst... (full context)

Henry and Jack talk about work politics, and Henry mentions that Lelia doesn’t trust Hoagland. She does, however,... (full context)

As Jack talks, he cleans olive pits off a picture of a woman he once seduced as... (full context)

Henry and Jack move into the privacy of the office’s microfiche room to look at various press snippets... (full context)

Kwang is a formidable opponent because he’s so likable. Jack thinks Henry might look like Kwang in 15 years or so. At this point, the... (full context)

It’s clear to Henry that Jack has already done quite a bit of research on Kwang. Jack shares that Kwang is... (full context)

...way, since he had something to do. He could always escape and spend time with Jack. (full context)

...gone there to sleep after big arguments with Lelia. Now, he goes there and finds Jack on one of the sagging couches. They make small talk, with Jack asking how things... (full context)

Jack talks about how Henry has clearly chosen a life of relative solitude—he could be at... (full context)

Eventually, it becomes clear that Jack didn’t come to see Henry just to chat. He has a message from Hoagland, which... (full context)

Jack points out that Henry didn’t even send back word about the incident outside the church... (full context)

Jack thinks Henry should have left the firm after what happened with Luzan. He’s not in... (full context)

...Henry stepped out of Luzan’s office for some water, her came face to face with Jack and another person from work. Jack told him it was time to go, and the... (full context)

...doing at work. The question surprises him, but he soon learns that she talked to Jack recently. He told her that Henry is getting hung up on his current case—actually, he... (full context)

...he doesn’t have anything damning. If that’s the case, Lelia insists, then Henry should call Jack right now and tell him there’s nothing to report. But Henry knows doing that wouldn’t... (full context)

...bomb went off. As soon as he can, Henry slips away and tries to contact Jack, but he can’t reach him. Finally, he calls Jack at the office and Hoagland picks... (full context)

Henry wants to know what happened, worried that Hoagland and Jack had something to do with the bombing. But Jack insists that this isn’t the case—there... (full context)

After talking to Jack, Henry returns to the office, where Sherrie tells him that Kwang’s entire operation—the whole team—will... (full context)

Henry meets Jack at a diner one night. Jack is sick with the flu, but Hoagland insisted that... (full context)

Jack says that Hoagland is pleased with Henry once again. The reports he has been writing,... (full context)

Even though he has already said that Hoagland is pleased with Henry’s work, Jack now reveals that their boss thinks Henry could be including a bit more information in... (full context)

Hoagland wants one last thing, Jack says. He wants Henry’s full report, of course, but he also wants a copy of... (full context)

...him when he finally stops working for Hoagland. However, Henry has already made Hoagland and Jack agree not to involve Lelia if anything goes wrong with the Kwang case. Plus, Hoagland... (full context)

...office for the final time. As soon as he got onto the street, he encountered Jack, who said he’d give him a ride. On the way, Jack admitted that he knew... (full context)