August 12 2013 Daisy Miller Characters

Daisy Miller:

Daisy Miller is the one of the main characters in this story. Her real name is Annie P. Miller, but she goes by the name “Daisy.” Although the book doesn’t include her point of view, she plays an effective and unique role. According to Winterbourne, she is a younger woman who “flirts” often with other men. She falls in love with him in Vevay, France, but unluckily Winterbourne has to leave. They believe that their love will last forever, but Daisy falls in love with another man. According to the book, Daisy felt betrayed which made her forget about him. She eventually dies of malaria, but later on her mother reveals that she had cared what Winterbourne thought of her.

Winterbourne:

Winterbourne is the main character in that the story is based on his point of view. He has spent most of his life in Geneva, despite the fact that he is an American. While he spends his time in Vevay, he meets a pair of siblings, Randolph and Daisy Miller. Winterbourne starts to slowly fall in love with Daisy, a woman younger than him by thinking how beautiful she is. However, he tries to deny himself by considering her just an “American flirt,” which doesn’t help at all. They spend some time together, but Winterbourne has to leave. Daisy begs him to come to Rome as soon as possible in order for them to meet again. As Winterbourne goes to Rome, he finds a totally different Daisy. Instead of welcoming him, she has moved on to an Italian boyfriend, Mr. Giovanelli. Feeling betrayed, Winterbourne tries to forget Daisy.

After he learns of Daisy’s death and how she felt towards him, guilt begins to overcome him. He returns to Geneva and his ordinary life, thinking about Daisy Miller from time to time.

Randolph Miller:

I believe that Randolph was an important character in this story. Even though he didn’t appear as much as the other characters, it was he who introduced his sister Daisy to Winterbourne. It all began when he asked Winterbourne for some sugar, his request eventually leading to a conversation.

My Opinion:

While reading Daisy Miller, I realized that each and every character had an impact, whether or not they had a major or minor role. I wondered if the story would have been the same if it had been told in both Daisy and Winterbourne’s point of view. It could have included what had happened to Daisy before Winterbourne went to Rome. If so, the story would have been much clearer since you could have experienced both points of view. Overall, the majority of Daisy Miller’s characters play important roles.