Eye Ball :: Literary Analysis, Spiegelman

What would you expect to be the mindset of a misfit kid who isn’t really that popular who is playing baseball with the other kids because he wants to fit in with them instead of being himself? There is such a boy in a first person short story that was written by a worldly-renowned author. In â€Å"Eye Ball,† Spiegelman uses characterization to develop the theme of be yourself and don’t try to fit in with others at the expense of showing your true self. Spiegelman’s use of the little misfit boy as a round character reflects the theme because he realizes that he doesn’t fit in so well with all the other boys. Being a kid with Amblyopia, or â€Å"lazy eye†, he already knew that he was at a disadvantage and he points out his condition when he is saying â€Å"since I’m virtually blind in my left eye† and when he said â€Å"Amblyopia, a â€Å"lazy eye,† made my whole world 2D† (130). He still tries to play baseball with the other boys, but he quickly finds out that he isn’t that good at it. Identification can be made with the out-of-place feeling that the little boy most have felt. Now he is most likely feeling down because he did poorly when he was up at bat. Most out of place people â€Å"must escape into fantasy and/or develop a rarefied sense of humor to survive† (130). The usual â€Å"boy in 1950s America, baseball was not optional and to be inept assured a place in the social hierarchy even lower than a girl’s† (130). This shows that there was a current stereotype of how little boys should be and he tried to be stereotypical with all of the other little boys. Spiegelman’s use of the little misfit boy as a dynamic character reflects the theme because he learns to be himself and not try to be something that he isn’t. He realizes that he is out of place when the boys placed him and he â€Å"was inevitably relegated to right field, far out of harm’s way† (130). While in the outfield he thought that his boredom took out his â€Å"anxiety that a ball might come† (130). He already knew before he went with the boys, that playing baseball with them wasn’t going to go smooth so he â€Å"often kept some comic book handy† (130). While he is thinking, he finally realizes that his true comfort is in comics and not sports.