47 pages • 1 hour read
Tristan BancksTwo Wolves
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2014A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Character Analysis
Ben Silver
Thirteen-year-old Ben Silver is the protagonist of Two Wolves. Ben is a precocious and brave Australian boy, though he suffers from low self-esteem due to criticism from his domineering father, Ray. Ben’s father thinks that he is weak, unmanly, and sensitive, and throughout the novel, he mocks Ben for being scared or anxious in difficult circumstances. Ben has internalized many of his father’s critiques, such as that he is “slightly overweight” (5), and he constantly doubts his ability to take care of himself and his little sister. Ben’s character arc hinges on his acceptance or rejection of his father’s disapproval, and his growth is rooted in learning how and when to confront his father, eventually besting him in a physical altercation.
Despite his father’s criticisms, Ben is shown to be strong, resourceful, and moral. Additionally, he is creative, working on writing and a stop-motion picture without anyone guiding him. Ben has a strong attachment to his sister, Olive, despite their age gap and Ben’s annoyance at her attitude, and much of the second half of the novel is devoted to his efforts to protect Olive in the woods. He also has a strong and loving relationship with his mother despite his disappointment at her continued acquiescence to his father’s demands. His goal in life is to become a police detective, and he often takes on that role within his family, tracking down secrets and clues and trying to find hidden truths.
Olive Silver
Olive Silver is seven years old and serves as Ben’s foil through Two Wolves. Olive is a bright and rebellious child who is confident in ways Ben isn’t. Olive is shown to be mouthy, aggressive, witty, and rambunctious, constantly getting herself into trouble by saying the wrong things or being stubborn. Olive is also creative; after reading The Hobbit, she refused to speak for three weeks unless she was called Gandalf. Before the beginning of the book, Olive is frequently bullied by Ben, but as the novel continues, her brother learns to treat her with kindness and respect. Due to the siblings’ age gap, Ben frequently needs to keep Olive calm and happy as his parent’s panic deepens, and the two of them eventually form a unit in opposition to their parents.
Olive is shown to dislike her and Ben’s father, Ray. In the first chapter, the narrator states that Olive hasn’t spoken to her father for over a week because he punished her for referring to him as Maugrim, the evil wolf from C. S. Lewis’s The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. While Ben is shown to be meek and passive toward their father, Olive frequently stands up to him, with their father often reacting with frustration and annoyance. In the woods, Olive comes to trust her big brother and learns to rely on him to protect her. At the end, the siblings are significantly closer after their shared experience of surviving on their own.
April Silver
April Silver is Ben and Olive’s mother in Two Wolves. She is 10 years younger than her husband, Ray, and is described as being tall with brown hair and the features of a model. April works with her husband at the family’s wrecking company and is shown to be an unwilling participant in his scheme to steal money. Through most the novel, April is Ray’s accomplice, helping him flee the house, hide the money, and figure out a way out of the country. However, toward the end, April realizes what her husband is doing, and she surrenders to the police along with her children in order to keep them safe. This makes her a dynamic character.
April feels guilty about what is happening to her children. Unlike her husband, she doesn’t treat Ben badly, but she also doesn’t stand up for him against her husband, which is a source of Ben’s consternation. This reflects the way domestic abuse often manifests, with one parent as the aggressor and the other afraid of intervening. Ben blames his mother for not standing up for him but comes to have greater sympathy toward her by the end of the novel.
Ray Silver
Ben and Olive’s father, Ray, is the antagonist of Two Wolves and is a flat character, remaining a thief and a bully even as his family members evolve. Ray is described as “skinny and serious” (12) and someone who has changed jobs frequently, first working as a mechanic, then a salesman, and now owns a car-wrecking business. Ray has a sleeve of tattoos and wears sunglasses and dirty baseball caps. Ray’s theft and subsequent flight is the novel’s inciting incident, and much of the tension throughout stems from Ben’s attempts to figure out exactly what his father has done. Ray is obsessed with masculinity, seeing his son as girlish and weak for having emotions. He relentlessly criticizes and mocks his family and wants to be in control and give orders. The climax of the novel is a direct physical and emotional confrontation between Ray and Ben, demonstrating the centrality of their relationship to the narrative arc.
Ray comes from a criminal background. The cabin that the family hides in during their escape was used originally by Ray’s criminal father, and Ray’s brother, Uncle Chris, helps them escape the city. This suggests that Ray’s more unsavory behaviors like stealing and abusing his family are learned, passed down from father to son. Ben worries about this; when he discovers his grandfather’s criminal past, he wonders whether he’ll ever be able to escape the criminality in his genes and become the detective that he desires to be. However, Ben’s actions in the final chapters show that one’s path is not set in stone, and people can choose whether to perpetuate harmful cycles or create healthier relationships and behavior patterns.
