Notes for Vlerkdans

Character overview of Vlerkdans:\ \ Author name: Barrie Hough\ \ **Hannes Bezuidenhout**:\ Hannes is the protagonist. The story being told is his life story. Hannes is also the narrator. He is a first-person narrator. It makes the story more personal. His nickname is Wolfie. One of the girls in hi...

Character overview of Vlerkdans:\ \ Author name: Barrie Hough\ \ **Hannes Bezuidenhout**:\ Hannes is the protagonist. The story being told is his life story. Hannes is also the narrator. He is a first-person narrator. It makes the story more personal. His nickname is Wolfie. One of the girls in his class gave him this nickname because his eyebrows grew together (unibrow). Hannes and Anton meet at the gym. Anton was the only person who helped Hannes with his exercises.\ \ Hannes initially felt perfect for Anton, but later realized his body\'s weaker changes. He dislikes his mother\'s models and doesn\'t want to use them. Anton persuades Hannes to wear an earring, making him feel like an artist. However, when Hannes removes the earring, he realizes he\'s a true artist, not requiring external elements to look and feel. Hannes and Anton\'s friendship was positive, fostering growth and development. Hannes supported Anton, even when he knew he had AIDS. Anton helped Hannes gain self-confidence and develop his artistic talent. Hannes paints Anton as the Phoenix, capturing Anton\'s memory. Anton\'s mother wants to buy the painting, but Hannes refuses, stating it\'s too precious for sale. **Anton Swart:\ **Anton is Hannes\' best friend. He is strong, muscular and lithely built at the beginning of the story. He lives for dancing and is in a ballet school. His father supported him in his passion for ballet and took him out of school when Anton was bullied because he was a\ ballet dancer.\ His father set up a dance studio for him in his bedroom. Just before his father passed away, they made plans to go see all the big ballet performances overseas. His father was much older than his mother and felt more like a grandfather to him. His father and mother met when she handled a case for his father. His father is a very successful lawyer. She is a cold person and Anton did not have a good and warm relationship with her.\ **\ **Hannes\'s dancing partner Anton got HIV from contaminated needles. Anton was hospitalized after collapsing during a tournament. Anton\'s dancing partner, Linda, declined to participate. Due to his AIDS diagnosis, which ultimately led to his death, Anton was unable to travel, dance, or even perform with the New York City Ballet. In addition, he battled relationships and the fear of passing away before performing the Phoenix Dance. His team also won but because of aids, he\'d be unable to dance in New York\ \ Family, friends, many dancers, Gog, Uiltjie, Keith and Erika attended Anton\'s cremation service. Anton\'s inner conflict: Anton is not ready to die at the age of eighteen. He still wants to dance. He feels that everyone hates and rejects him because he has AIDS.\ \ **Hannes's Inner conflict:\ **Anton, Hannes\' best friend, is dying, leaving Hannes feeling powerless. He lives in his mother\'s shadow, feeling inferior. Hannes\' father and mother\'s relationship is unsatisfactory, and Anton is uncertain about his sexuality. Hannes feels depressed and morbid as Anton is dying, highlighting the inner conflict of Anton **Outer Conflict from Hannes:\ **Hannes faced an external conflict with his father, who he felt was prejudiced due to his thought that Anton had AIDS due to homosexual practices. Hannes accused his father of being aloof and never being there for him, but ultimately, they made peace and their relationship improved. And he added how if he were gay, it\'s due to the absence of his father **\ **