Character Purpose

Zeitoun: The protagonist, contractor and painter, during the aftermath of the storm he stayed behind and helped people who were stranded. He was arrested for looting, and was suspected of being Taliban. He is mistreated in prison by the guards because they think he is Taliban. His story is what the novel was written about.

Kathy: Is Zeitoun's wife, leaves New Orleans before the storm hits, and urges Zeitoun to do the same. She is southern born, but converted to Islamic, and is now devoted. She serves as a worried wife because there are weeks at a time where she hears nothing from Zeitoun and she believes that he is dead.

Ahmad: Is Zeitoun's brother. Zeitoun does not want Ahmed to learn of his time in prison because he is ashamed of what is done to him. Ahmed serves as a connection between the United States and Israel, relaying news about Zeitoun to the rest of their family.

Yuko: Yuko is Kathy's best friend. She serves as a sort of sanity to Kathy, and offers Kathy a place to stay after Kathy cannot take her overwhelming family anymore. Yuko is very kind, and plays an important role of offering Kathy a place to stay, a safe haven from insanity.

Nasser: Nasser is a friend of Zeitoun's. He acts as a sense of sanity for Zeitoun when they are in prison. He is put in prison because he has a big bag of money when the police enter his house, only because he does not trust American banks and keeps all of his life savings in cash. They also accuse Nasser of being a terrorist. When these men were in prison together they spent a good deal of time praying, despite the ugly looks from the guards.

Jerry: Jerry acts as a sort of antagonist to the men in the jail cell. He serves as a spy for the police, he is trying to find out if Nasser and Zeitoun are actually terrorists. He adds a sense of mystery into the novel.

Todd: Todd was in the jail cell with Zeitoun, Nasser and Ronnie. He served as a filler character, and his purpose was just to make the story make sense so Zeitoun wouldn't be alone in the jail cell.

Ronnie: Ronnie was also in the jail cell with the four other guys, Todd, Zeitoun, Nasser and Jerry. He helped to make the story make sense, he also tries to expose Jerry for the spy that he is, although Zeitoun does not believe him at first.