Lucynell Crater Character Analysis in The Life You Save May Be Your Own

Lucynell lives with her mother, Mrs. Crater, on a remote farm in the south. She is deaf, mute, and has mental disabilities, but she is able to do work around the farm like sweeping and feeding the chickens. Lucynell is in her late twenties, although she seems younger. She’s described as looking like an angel or a baby doll, with pink-gold hair and very blue eyes. Lucynell is excited when Shiftlet arrives at the farm. She enjoys following him around as he works, and he teaches her to say the word “bird” for the first time. Eventually, her mother arranges for her to marry Shiftlet, though it seems unlikely that she understands or consents to this arrangement. Shiftlet then takes her on a road trip, supposedly a honeymoon, but ultimately abandons her as she’s sleeping in a roadside restaurant. Throughout the story, Lucynell is associated with innocence and holiness, and when Shiftlet abandons her, he is also abandoning God and virtue.

Lucynell Crater Quotes in The Life You Save May Be Your Own

The The Life You Save May Be Your Own quotes below are all either spoken by Lucynell Crater or refer to Lucynell Crater . 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:

He swung both his whole and his short arm up slowly so that they indicated an expanse of sky and his figure formed a crooked cross. The old woman watched him with her arms folded across her chest as if she were the owner of the sun, and the daughter watched, her head thrust forward and her fat helpless hands hanging at the wrists.

Related Characters: Tom Shiftlet, Mrs. Crater, Lucynell Crater

Page Number and Citation: 146

Explanation and Analysis:

He had patched the front and back steps, built a new hog pen, restored a fence, and taught Lucynell, who was completely deaf and had never said a word in her life, to say the word "bird." The big rosy-faced girl followed him everywhere, saying "Burrttddt ddbirrrttdt," and clapping her hands. The old woman watched from a distance, secretly pleased. She was ravenous for a son-in-law.

Related Characters: Lucynell Crater (speaker), Tom Shiftlet, Mrs. Crater

Page Number and Citation: 150

Explanation and Analysis:

The boy bent over her and stared at the long pink-gold hair and the half-shut sleeping eyes. Then he looked up and stared at Mr. Shiftlet. "She looks like an angel of Gawd," he murmured.

"Hitchhiker," Mr. Shiftlet explained. "I can't wait. I got to make Tuscaloosa."

The boy bent over again and very carefully touched his finger to a strand of the golden hair and Mr. Shiftlet left.

Related Characters: Tom Shiftlet (speaker), Waiter at the Hot Spot (speaker), Lucynell Crater

Page Number and Citation: 154

Explanation and Analysis:

Lucynell Crater Character Timeline in The Life You Save May Be Your Own

The timeline below shows where the character Lucynell Crater appears in The Life You Save May Be Your Own. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

An old woman and her daughter are sitting on their porch when a stranger, Mr. Shiftlet, approaches. Even from afar with... (full context)

...the yard, he casually puts down his toolbox and tips his hat as though the daughter weren’t at all “afflicted.” They can see that he’s a fairly young man. The old... (full context)

The daughter watches Shiftlet carefully, so he offers her a piece of gum. She takes it, but... (full context)

...asks more about Shiftlet, his eyes remain fixed on the car. She introduces herself as Lucynell Crater, which is also her daughter’s name. When she asks why he’s here, he’s mentally... (full context)

...and stares for a while as the flame of his match descends towards his skin. Lucynell, the daughter, begins making worried noises, and he blows it out. Slyly, he tells Mrs.... (full context)

...He says no, asking where a man could find an innocent woman rather than “trash.” Lucynell falls and begins to whimper. Shiftlet asks if she’s Mrs. Crater’s daughter, and Mrs. Crater... (full context)

...work, quickly making a difference. He patches up steps, fixes the fence, and even teaches Lucynell to say the word “bird,” the first word she’s ever spoken. Mrs. Crater watches him... (full context)

...In the evening he sits on the porch and talks while Mrs. Crater listens and Lucynell rocks back and forth. He says he’s working to improve the farm because he’s taken... (full context)

...world is that nobody takes any trouble, pointing out how he was able to teach Lucynell a word just by taking the time. Mrs. Crater asks Shiftlet to teach Lucynell another... (full context)

...make the car run. She agrees to give him the money. Then she points to Lucynell and tells him that if a man ever wanted to take Lucynell away she would... (full context)

...some gasoline. Later, Mrs. Crater hears a strange noise and rushes into the shed, thinking Lucynell is having a fit. Instead, she finds Lucynell crying out “Burrddttt!” in excitement because Shiftlet... (full context)

...woman who can’t talk, “can’t sass you back or use foul language,” and points to Lucynell, who is sitting cross-legged with both feet in her hands. Shiftlet admits that she wouldn’t... (full context)

...her. He says he was raised that way by his mother. Mrs. Crater protests that Lucynell doesn’t know the difference and points out that he’d be getting a permanent home and... (full context)

Shiftlet, Lucynell, and Mrs. Crater drive into town on Saturday. Shiftlet and Lucynell are married at the... (full context)

They get in the car. Mrs. Crater comments on how pretty Lucynell looks, like a baby doll. Lucynell has a “placid expression,” every so often changed by... (full context)

...the farm, where Shiftlet drops Mrs. Crater off. She cries as she says goodbye to Lucynell, saying she has never been parted from her daughter for even two days before while... (full context)

Shiftlet eventually looks at Lucynell, who is pulling cherries off her hat and throwing them out the window, and becomes... (full context)

Shiftlet orders Lucynell a plate of food and she immediately falls asleep in the empty restaurant. He tells... (full context)