Machines Like Me

Charlie's acute attention to Adam's awakening body, paired with his slow release of personal history, intertwines his developing character with that of Adam's. His desire to model Adam's personality after his own, therefore, provides an organic means for the author to teach the reader about who Charlie is, why he has purchased Adam, what his life in the narrative present looks like, and what his coming desires and interests will be. Adam acts as a mechanism by which the author can establish the novel's stake, build the narrative world, and initiate tension between the characters.