Sullivan Backhouse Character Analysis

Frank’s close friend in the IDB, Sullivan is completely paralyzed and lives in an iron lung. While Sullivan is the son of an affluent and powerful Australian family and Frank is a poor refugee, the two boys are immediately drawn to each other. Sullivan is remarkably cheerful despite his situation and retains his passion for reading and composing poetry. It’s Sullivan who awakens Frank’s love for poetry and makes him realize he wants to be a poet. Sullivan’s death from fever is a big blow to Frank; as an adult, he publishes a memoir about his friend and some poetry fragments he had transcribed, showing Sullivan’s lasting influence on Frank’s character and art.