Mitt Character Analysis in Native Speaker

Mitt was Henry and Lelia’s son, who died in a tragic accident at a birthday party when he was seven years old. His death puts an enormous strain on Henry and Lelia’s relationship, and it isn’t until Henry finally opens up about his own grief that they’re able to mend the tension between them.

Mitt Quotes in Native Speaker

The Native Speaker quotes below are all either spoken by Mitt or refer to Mitt . For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:

Identity and Multiculturalism Theme Icon

“Just think about it. You haven’t said his name more than four or five times since it happened. You haven’t said his name tonight. Maybe you’ve talked all this time with Jack about him, maybe you say his name in your sleep, but we’ve never really talked about it, we haven’t really come right out together and said it, really named what happened for what it was.”

[…]

“It was a terrible accident.”

“An accident?” she cried, nearly hollering. She covered her mouth. Her voice was breaking. “How can you say it was an accident? We haven’t treated it like one. Not for a second. Look at us. Sweetie, can’t you see, when your baby dies it’s never an accident. […]”

Related Characters: Lelia (speaker), Henry Park (speaker), Mitt

Page Number and Citation: 129

Explanation and Analysis:

When Lelia returns from Italy, she moves in with her and Henry’s mutual friend. After several weeks of giving her space, Henry finally makes contact with her, and she lets him come into the apartment so they can talk. Eventually, the conversation turns toward Mitt, as Lelia explains the primary reason she had to leave Henry was because she felt alone with her grief, since he never talks about Mitt’s death. She thinks it’s important to “name what happened,” but they’ve never really discussed the matter. Instead, Lelia has spent her time mourning in private while Henry puts on a Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur q

“If I had heard that one redheaded kid say even one funny word to Mitt! God! I would have punched his fucking lights out! I would have made him scream!” Her chest bucks, and she almost starts to cry, strangely, as if she’s frightened herself with a memory that isn’t true.

Related Characters: Lelia (speaker), Mitt

Page Number and Citation: 243

Explanation and Analysis:

As Henry and Lelia discuss the racist terms that many Asians encounter in the United States, Lelia makes it clear that she would have been enraged if she ever found out that a neighborhood bully used a slur to refer to Mitt. She becomes suddenly animated, as if the idea of this hypothetical situation has completely overtaken her and made it impossible for her to think about anything else. The fact that this thought so thoroughly overwhelms her without any warning is a good reminder for Henry that strong feelings of grief often lurk just beneath the surface of his Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi a

And I think she’s saying it perfectly, just like she should. When you’re too careful you can’t say anything. You can’t imagine the play of the words in your head. You can’t hear them, and they all sound like they belong to somebody else.

Related Characters: Henry Park (speaker), Mitt , Eduardo

Page Number and Citation: 257

Explanation and Analysis:

After Eduardo dies in an explosion at the Kwang headquarters, Kwang’s team sends Henry to bring an envelope containing $10,000 to the young man’s family. He intends to simply deliver the money and leave, but Eduardo’s mother invites him in and starts showing him pictures of her son, speaking proudly about Eduardo and talking about how he was destined to do great things. Her first language is Spanish, and she’s not very good at English, but Henry gets the overall gist of what she’s saying. To that end, he’s struck by how willing she is to talk about her dead Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis c

Mitt Character Timeline in Native Speaker

The timeline below shows where the character Mitt appears in Native Speaker. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

Silence, Language, and Communication Theme Icon

...not to think about how he used to live there with Lelia and their son, Mitt. (full context)

...thinks about what it was like to live in his and Lelia’s large apartment when Mitt was still alive. Mitt used to run around and yell, and they would often bathe... (full context)

Henry’s father died a year and a half after Mitt’s death. He was a serious man who wouldn’t have understood the kind of vacation Lelia... (full context)

...foreign country, become a successful businessman, and would even have had enough money to help Mitt have a good life. In short, he made it possible for Henry to avoid the... (full context)

Years later, Henry and Lelia start spending the summers in Ardsley with Mitt, staying in a large room above Henry’s father’s garage. Lelia takes an interest in the... (full context)

Henry and Lelia’s son, Mitt, died at the age of seven. He had a close relationship with Henry’s father, who... (full context)

...he acquiesced to their parents and quickly accepted their apologies. When the same happened to Mitt, though, Henry’s father lost his temper and started yelling on the doorstep of one boy’s... (full context)

Despite the initial problems with the other children in Ardsley, Mitt soon became friends with everyone in the neighborhood. The accident happened at a birthday party—Henry... (full context)

After Mitt’s death, Henry would stay up late. When he’d finally go to bed, he would pull... (full context)

Mitt used to play with a tape recorder from Henry’s work. He liked saying things and... (full context)

Henry tells Lelia that he has listened to the tapes of Mitt. She herself hasn’t listened to them for a while, since doing so always means she... (full context)

Lelia and Henry start drinking. They’re still talking about Mitt, but in roundabout ways. Lelia feels bad about how she treated the people in her... (full context)

...life. But she isn’t so sure. She’s disoriented by the fact that Henry never says Mitt’s name and never talks about what happened. He says that what happened to Mitt was... (full context)

...lost her mind with anger if any of the neighborhood kids in Ardsley had called Mitt a “gook.” She erupts into fury, but then she chokes back a cry, suddenly unable... (full context)

...to do exactly that when they first had a child, but the end result was Mitt, and he was so wonderful that Henry could never regret his initial reasons for having... (full context)

Mitt Character Analysis

Mitt Quotes in Native Speaker

Chapter 7 Quotes

Chapter 15 Quotes

Chapter 16 Quotes

Mitt Character Timeline in Native Speaker