In the short story, "Charles" by Shirley Jackson, a number of things can be inferred from the character's actions and interactions with others, such as that with each story Laurie tells about Charles, the mother and father should have been questioning how they raised their own child.
At the beginning, the mother is reluctant to see her boy Laurie go off to school, just like many mothers who wonder what effect school will have on...
In the short story, "Charles" by Shirley Jackson, a number of things can be inferred from the character's actions and interactions with others, such as that with each story Laurie tells about Charles, the mother and father should have been questioning how they raised their own child.
At the beginning, the mother is reluctant to see her boy Laurie go off to school, just like many mothers who wonder what effect school will have on their children. Laurie comes home every day with stories of what 'Charles' has done that day, from throwing things at other children, arguing with the teacher, refusing to do what the teacher wants, to even hitting other children.
With each of these stories, his parents should begin to wonder about their own child. These stories all sound like the invention of a child having trouble in school. Yet the parents simply accept the explanations he offers. No one questions him about his own behavior.
One inference you can draw from the smart-mouth questions Laurie asks like, "Isn't anybody here?" after slamming the door, and from his greeting to his father, "Hi, Pop, y'old dust mop," is that Laurie's behavior indicates a boy who has been unquestioningly allowed to do as he pleases in his early life at home.
When the parents talk to Laurie when he comes home late from school with the explanation that all of the class stayed to watch Charles be punished, alarm bells should have been ringing for them as no school allows such a thing. Yet again, the parents blindly and unquestioningly accept the explanation.
From this blind acceptance we can infer that these are loving but unaware parents. When they find out at the end of the story that there is no Charles in the kindergarten, that Laurie is the one having all the trouble adjusting, the parents as well as the reader are surprised.
I believe that Shirley Jackson wants us to infer that the parents of this world might need to be more questioning and aware of their children's behaviors, might need to observe more closely, might need to make children responsible from a young age, and most of all, must be involved in evaluating how their children are growing up. If parents simply allow their children to grow up without guidance, as illustrated by Charles, the world will be in trouble.
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