Jack Gantos:
Dead End in Norvelt
A protagonist is the main character of the story. In this story Jack Gantos was the protagonist.
The Protagonist in the story is...
When I think of Mr. Gantos, I think of...
Mr. Gantos is the type of person that doesn't mind having fun, but with Mrs. Gantos as his wife, he knows when to be serious. He reminds me of Irving Zisman from the movie Bad Grandpa.
When I think of Mrs. Gantos, I think of...
The antagonist is the character that is against the protagonist or the protagonist is against them. In this story the antagonist is Mr. Spizz. He has multiple jobs in the town of Norvelt from a volunteer fireman, a member of the city council, a member of the Norvelt Association for the Public Good, and a rent-a-cop.
The Antagonist of the story is...
Mrs. Gantos is a considerate, sweet little lady, although she can be a bit of a control freak. She has her heart in the right place and her priorities straight. When I think of Mrs. Gantos, I think of Marge Simpson.
The conflict in Dead End in Norvelt is...
The conflict of a story is a struggle the main character deals with. The conflict of the story is when all the old women (the Norvelt originals) begin to die off. Everyone jumps to conclusions of how all the women are dying.
The setting of this story is in Norvelt, Pennsylvania in the summer of 1962. The town was founded by Eleanor Roosevelt. An African American woman long ago gave the town the name Norvelt in honor of Eleanor Roosevelt.
Eleanor Roosevelt
Dead End in Norvelt's Setting is...
Major Characters:
Jack Gantos (narrator, main character)
Miss Volker
Mrs. Gantos (mom)
Mr. Gantos (dad)
Mr. Spizz
Minor Characters:
Bunny Huffer
Mr. Huffer
The HELLS ANGELS
And all the people who died!
When I think of Jack, I think of...
When I think of Jack Gantos, I think of Junior Healy from the movie Problem Child. They both have a wise guy mentality and an uncensored tongue.
Dead End in Norvelt Characters
When I think of Miss Volker, I think of Sophia from the 80s TV show, The Golden Girls. They are both very old and aren't afraid to say what comes to mind. They both have one foot in the grave and the other in everyone else's business.
When I think of Miss Volker, I think of...
Thanks For Watching
When I think of Mr. Spizz, I think of...
Mr. Spizz is the penny-pinching, ruthless, pain in the neck of Norvelt that's in everyone's business. He will force the death of old women to get to his love, Miss Volker. When I think of Mr. Spizz, I think of Frank Barone in Everybody Loves Raymond. They both seem to be similar in their way of determination and uncensored speech.
Dead End in Norvelt is about...
The resolution of Dead End in Norvelt is...
Jack Gantos, an eleven year old boy, is enjoying his summer in his backyard. He is playing with his dad's old war stuff when he fires off a Japanese rifle. There was a bullet in the chamber and he fired it into the screen of the local drive-in theater. Since he is a nosebleeder, his mom panicked when she ran out of their house to see Jack drenched in blood that she thought was from a bullet wound. He is informed that a Norvelt original, community nurse, and an obituary typist, Miss Volker has arthritis and can no longer write the obituaries for the other Norvelt originals, so he gets assigned to the job. Gantos discovers that his enemy, Mr. Spizz is in love with and as a matter of fact is supposed to marry Miss Volker once all the Norvelt originals curl up and die. Jack gets grounded for listening to his father and cutting down his mother's cornfield that was supposed to feed the old people of Norvelt. The only thing he is still allowed to do is type obituaries for the newspaper. As everyone notices that all the female Norvelt originals are dying, they discover it is from poison. Miss Volker is accused multiple times for poisoning the ladies, but it turns out Mr. Spizz poisoned the women to marry Miss Volker sooner. He admitted it to Miss Volker as soon as all the originals died. Then, he stole her car and fled the town.
The falling action of the story is when Miss Volker is placed under house arrest as Mr. Spizz as her jailer. The resolution is when Mr. Spizz admits that he poisoned all those women to get to Miss Volker.
3 Major Events
- He gets grounded for the whole summer
- Miss Volker is placed under house arrest
- Everybody turns over and dies