the soloist 7-12

Camille Franchine
May 18, 2009
Mr. Fiorini
English 3
Becoming Attached

Chapters seven through twelve of this book shows a progression in how much Steve is starting to care about Nathaniel. The connection between the two goes beyond work for the newspaper. Although he is not completely missing out on time with his family, Steve is beginning to spend all of his time either with Nathaniel, or worrying about Nathaniel.
Steve began to really care when he spent the night with Nathaniel on the street. He wanted to go to see what was so great about where he lived that he didn’t want to go to lamp, however this action pulled the trigger and got Steve completely hooked on Nathaniel. He then starts to book him shows and Nathaniel starts to get a little famous.
Nathaniel, however, doesn’t like his fame. He doesn’t like all of the attention. He prefers to play on the street on his own time. He doesn’t like to get all dressed up. He doesn’t like to be watched so closely or analyzed while playing. He also doesn’t want any medical help for his condition. He tries to avoid talking to doctors.
Steve grows worried when the city decides to “help” homeless people, especially ones with mental conditions. He knows that the people will try to help Nathaniel but he also knows that Nathaniel will not want to be helped and will put up a fight. He doesn’t want this to happen and grows worried. He also adds suspense to the book.
Steve wonders why he is so intrigued by Nathaniel. I think that it’s because although Nathaniel has a mental condition and is simple minded, he’s still very independent and an excellent musician. He’s not really close to anybody and subconsciously, Steve wants to be the one person that Nathaniel opens up to and really trusts. Steve has probably never met a person like Nathaniel and wants to learn as much as he can about him, like the way he thinks and feels about just about everything and how he sees the world. He also may feel obligated to stay with him since he took him this far already and he doesn’t want to give up now. Either way, Nathaniel is a very interesting character.