Maurice Swift

Maurice Swift is the central character in the novel, operating in opposition to all others, thereby functioning as the antagonist throughout. Maurice, like all the other novelists in the book, desires to be a famous writer, well regarded and at the top of the literary world. His biggest goal is to win "the Prize," which although never stated as such, could possibly be The Man Booker Prize of the Nobel Prize in Literature. Maurice is unfortunately, however, a full blown psychopath, willing to achieve his goal by any means possible. He shows no qualms at stealing the written work of others and even when he causes great emotional suffering, shows no remorse for his actions. He easily justifies his behavior claiming that stories can be found anywhere and as such do not really belong to any one person (342).

Throughout the novel, Maurice is depicted as charming, yet...