A Prayer for Owen Meany

The titular character, Owen Meany, shapes the novel’s plot. From a young age, Owen is different. Not only does he hail from a family lineage that is looked down upon by select members of the Gravesend community, but his physically small size and strange voice set him apart. Both of these traits are frequently emphasized throughout the novel and become not only defining features of Owen but shape the development of his character. His small size, for instance, is initially a kind of novelty as his peers make a game of passing him around above their heads and as John’s cousins make a game of hiding Owen. The exact sound of his voice is not described in the novel, but that it is unusual is agreed upon by all who meet and interact with Owen. Some, like Geraldine, are disturbed by his voice, but she proves to be the anomaly. In short, Owen’s otherness does not hinder him but instead draws others to him. Further, he is witty, quirky, humorous, and fiercely loyal to those who show him kindness—especially John and the rest of the Wheelwrights and Rev. Merrill.

As he ages, Owen becomes certain that his physical differences are just one piece of evidence that God has specially chosen him. When he is approximately 11, his parents reveal to him that they never engaged in intercourse prior to his birth. They insist that Owen—like Jesus Christ—is the result of a virgin birth. Thus, Owen becomes a Christ-figure, evident most strongly through his sacrificing of himself to save the lives of both his best friend, John, and several orphaned refugee children. Owen is a firm believer in signs and symbolism, certain that the death of Tabby Wheelwright was the result of God acting through Owen and that the reoccurring dream he has is predicting his death, which will one day come to fruition. Likewise, an important defining feature of Owen’s character is his unshakable faith in a Christian God.

Throughout the novel, Owen’s relentless “tunnel vision” where his passions and goals are concerned is emphasized. At Gravesend Academy, he is a stellar student, achieving such excellence that he is admitted to both Harvard and Yale Universities. At times, his dedication and unrelenting passion proves tiresome to John. By the end of the novel, however, it is clear that Owen’s goals are not casual obsessions, but necessary to ensuring that his destiny is fulfilled.

Owen is mourned by everyone whom he has known, including fellow members of the armed forces, schoolmates, and members of the Gravesend community. His sacrifice of his life, which allows John to live, coupled with their lifelong friendship, means that Owen’s absence is a constant in John’s life.

John’s mother, despite her untimely death when John is young, plays an important role in the novel. She is characterized as cheerful, kind, loving, and beautiful. John is keenly aware that his mother is attractive, as is Owen, who not only holds her in high regard, but has a childhood crush on her. Tabby is a talented singer and seamstress and is content with her simple life in Gravesend. Her unwillingness to reveal the identity of John’s father is a key element in the novel’s conflict, leaving John to lifelong speculation about his identity.

Indeed, Tabby is defined by secrets. Throughout most of John’s life, she travels by train to Boston for weekly singing lessons. This is a part of her life that she reveals very little about, which causes John to speculate that Tabby’s voice teacher may be his father. Years later, however, Owen uncovers Tabby’s secret life as a performer at a nightclub where she sang under the name “The Lady in Red.” This seductive alter-ego is characterized by the signature red dress Tabby wears, one she insists she intended to return to the store from which she tried it on. Shrouded in secrets, Tabby’s accidental death seems to ensure that John will never learn his father’s identity.

Tabby is an unfailing supporter of Owen, adamant that he will one day attend the prestigious Gravesend Academy and waving away his insistence that his family cannot afford it. Indeed, Owen feels an indebtedness to both Tabby and Harriet—who, in becoming Owen’s benefactor, carries out Tabby’s wishes—throughout his time at Gravesend. 

Dan is John’s stepfather and is a kind and consistent presence throughout John’s life. He immediately wins both John and Owen’s trust when they are children by gifting John the stuffed armadillo. This strange present is never explained but suggests that Dan has a gift for making connections with others. Quiet and unassuming, he bends to fit into life in Gravesend, content to teach at Gravesend Academy and to direct community theater despite the lackluster talent he must often work with. His commitment to and love for Tabby is evidenced through his unfailing support of John after Tabby’s death. Though John longs to know the identity of his biological father, by adulthood John realizes that Dan has truly been his father nearly all of John’s life. Indeed, Dan proves a consistent and reliable presence into John’s adulthood; despite John’s lack of desire to relocate back to the United States, he never fails to visit Dan biannually. Further, Dan is a staunch supporter of Owen Meany, defending him when the headmaster seeks to expel Owen. Like John and others around them, Dan recognizes Owen’s greatness and honors it.

John’s first cousin, Hester, is presented as a fierce and bold personality beginning at a young age. She is brash and outlandish, roughhousing violently with her brothers in a way that belies the norms for a young girl of 1950s America. From the beginning, too, Hester is presented as being highly sexual. Though her brothers’ moniker of “Hester the Molester” is merely a means to torment her, as they age, John regards a degree of truthfulness in this nickname. Throughout his adolescence, he fears he is sexually attracted to Hester, the result, most likely, of her boldness. Indeed, Hester does not shy away from bawdy jokes or innuendo. As they age, Owen takes a special interest in Hester, and eventually the two become a couple. Though her brothers continue to make bawdy jokes about a possible sexual relationship between Hester and Owen as young teenagers, with time their relationship develops into a meaningful one. Hester’s use of insults and physical violence is her manner of expressing emotion—though she loves and cares for Owen deeply, she conveys this, instead, through anger at his commitment to fight in the Vietnam conflict. This—and the eventual death of Owen—are so upsetting to Hester that she makes good on her threat to not attend Owen’s funeral. To John and to others, it is clear that Hester loves Owen deeply and that they play a significant role in one another’s lives.

During her teenage and college years, Hester jumps from waitress job to waitress job with no real sense of purpose. The Vietnam conflict, ironically, provides a purpose as Hester becomes a vehement protestor of the United States’ involvement. This conviction becomes her life’s work as, in her adulthood, she gains renown as a rock singer who performs under the moniker “Hester the Molester” and continues to speak out against the lasting damage fraught by the United States.

John’s grandmother is the Wheelwright family matriarch and a pillar of her community. Known and respected by all of Gravesend, Harriet takes pride in her heritage as a descendant of John Adams. She is characterized as proper and rather egotistical in her insistence that she be regarded as a kind of local dignitary. In this way, she is presented in a humorous yet endearing light. She is insistent, too, on things being done the way they have always been done, evidenced by her reliance on her maid, Lydia, whom Harriet keeps employed even when Lydia can no longer perform her duties. Harriett is a source of security and consistency in John’s life, serving as his second mother, for all intents and purposes, when he was young, then as his substitute mother upon Tabby’s death. Likewise, her wealth is partially responsible for ensuring that John, despite his lackluster academic performance, is able to attend the prestigious Gravesend Academy.

As a Wheelwright, she is “above” the Meanys, and it is common knowledge that the two families do not associate. However, Owen Meany proves the exception to this, as he and Harriet develop a special bond. Her admiration of Owen and her staunch belief in his intelligence lead Harriet to funding Owen’s education—a gift she gives selflessly. Indeed, she and Owen become lifelong friends, sharing an appreciation for late night television movies and performances by Liberace.