Who is Steve Harmon?
We get different testimonials as to who other people see Steve as person– the prosecutor describes him as a monster, his teacher sees him as a gifted student and good-hearted person, etc. But the challenged task of this character is to determine for himself who he is. What indications are there?
He seems to accept the prosecutor’s characterization when he names his film, “Monster,” and again when he writes the word over and over on his pad, until his lawyer makes him stop and tells him, “You have to believe in yourself if we’re going to convince a jury that you’re innocent” (page 24). But she doesn’t seem to believe him, because she never states that he is innocent during her summation, only that he should be found “not guilty,” and she shrinks back from his attempt to hug her after his acquittal.
His brother Jerry admires him, and to Jerry, Steve says he would like to be Superman – but his motive is that as Superman, “I’d kick butt” (page 58). This sentence comes immediately after one in which he throws a rock and hits a tough guy, then runs away (page 42-43). Which is Steve’s true “secret identity” – the guy who runs away, or the butt-kicking Superman?
In his journal, Steve writes: “I want to look like a good person. I want to feel like I’m a good person because I believe I am. But being in here with these guys makes it hard to think about yourself as being different. We look about the same, and even though I’m younger than they are, it’s hard not to notice that we are all pretty young.” (page 62) Steve has to deal with some strong prejudiced men who may affect jurors and readers. The fact that so many young black men are or have been in prison, for instance, may predispose some observers to conclude that they are all “monsters”; as Ms. O’Brien says, “You’re young, you’re black, and you’re on trial. What else do they need to know?” (page 79) Steve is in danger, here and elsewhere, of accepting the negative man as his actual identity. At one point, he says that he feels like the word “Monster” has been stamped on his forehead.
Steve’s doubts about his self-identity are further strained when he realizes that his father is no longer sure of who he is. When Steve asks his father if he believes that Steve did nothing wrong, the father is unable to give him the reassurance he asks for, and instead tells him about his own wishes for Steve, followed of his failure ever to imagine visiting his son in prison (page 111-12).

Julia J.