Paul Character Analysis

Cheryl’s ex-husband and best friend. Though Cheryl and Paul are divorced by the time she sets out on the PCT, they still have a deep affection for one another. Their marriage—full of love and seemingly perfect from the outside—suffered a terrible blow when Cheryl’s mother died, leaving Cheryl feeling like a part of her was “dead” to Paul, whose happy, cohesive family made her jealous and angry. Cheryl began cheating on Paul serially and indiscriminately, hiding her infidelities from him for over a year before at last confessing the truth and embarking on a separation. Though Cheryl and Paul still loved one another, Cheryl knew she had to move on from the scorched earth she’d created in their relationship. Hiking the PCT is motivated by Cheryl’s desire to heal her grief in the wake of her mother’s death—but it’s also born of a need to understand why she did the things she did to Paul and to atone for them. Paul is glimpsed mostly through flashbacks and phone conversations, but it is evident that he is a large-hearted man who loves and understands Cheryl, and who doesn’t fault her for the depths of her grief or her actions in the wake of it.