Character Analysis

Matthew Homes

The 19 year old protagonist of the novel, is a schizophrenic artist, son, and grandson. Suffering from the guilt of his down-syndrome brother, Simon's, untimely death. The novel is told from Matthews point of view beginning with a vacation with his family ten years earlier. With his dark sense of humor the reader follows Matthew on his descent  into schizophrenia. Matthew is staying at a psychiatric day ward and with his regular medicine injections he is slowly spiraling into his uneasy mental state and struggling with the mental health system.

'''Mr. Homes In the beginning of this novel, Mr. Homes is a very engaging, loving parent. He plays with his kids often and has a very nice personality. He has a very close relationship to Matthew and refers to him as “mon ami.” They share a special handshake and Mr. Homes is a stereotypical parent until his son tragically dies. This devastating event changes Mr. Homes into a reserved, quiet father and his relationship with Matthew struggles as Matthew becomes distant and troublesome. However, when Matthew leaves the mental hospital near the end of the book, he goes back to his flat and sees a note written on the wall. His father had written “We’ll beat this thing mon ami. We’ll beat this thing together” (Filer 211). This quote from the book is significant because it shows that despite what happens, Mr. Homes remains supportive of his son. Mr. Homes remains a very sincere father. '''

'''Annabelle Annabelle is arguable one of the most interesting characters in The Shock of the Fall. She first appears in the beginning of the novel as a small girl trying to cope with the death of her mother. Matthew confronts her when she is burying her doll and later that day, Simon dies after falling from the cliff. The image of the doll stays with Matthew for many years as he thinks back to that dreadful day. Annabelle appears again at the end of the novel when Matthew travels back to Ocean Cove to make peace with himself. Right as he is about to possibly take his own life, Annabelle calls out to him and saves him. In this novel, Annabelle is very important because she represents a loss of innocence because she encountered loss even before Matthew and was there when Simon died. At the end of the book she gives Matthew good advice on how to get over the loss of his brother. Nanny Noo  Nanny Noo is one of the few stable characters in the book. She is always there for Matthew whenever he needs to talk. The issues that Matthew is facing with his disease are not new to Nanny Noo since she had to deal with her brother who suffers the same mental disorder. No matter how rude Matthew can be to her, she always comes back and wants to help him. When Matthew moves out of the house, Nanny Noo becomes more of a parent role for him since his parents rarely come to see him. She also comes to Matthew’s flat to smoke which is one of the things she and Matthew share in common. Nanny Noo is very supportive of Matthew throughout the novel and can be credited with getting Matthew mental help and putting on the path to recovery. She was the one who found is project meant to bring Simon back and understood what Matthew was going through.

Susan Homes

Susan Holmes is the grieving mother of schizophrenic Matthew and deceased Simon. Shattered by the death of her son, she carries the grief with her throughout the novel.

Simon Homes

Simon Holmes is an older brother and son with Down syndrome. At such an early and unexpected age, Simon dies from "the shock of the fall" (as made known in the beginnings of the novel) on a family camping trip. Although not physically alive during the novel, he plays a pivotal role in Matthew's life. 

"Jacob Greening"

Jacob is Matthew's best and only friend, it is clear that he is on drugs and he gets Matthew into smoking and drugs. His mother is disabled and he and Matthew take care of here. When Jacob and Matthew were 17 they moved into a flat together but Jacob moved out after a couple of months because the care workers didnt know how to take care of his mum enough and Matthew was getting to much for him.