Homer H. Hickam Sr./ Homer's Dad

The fourth character entry is going to Homer H. Hickam Sr.

I’ll refer to Homer’s dad as Clyde as which Elsie referred to him in the book. To start off with Clyde was a Hard working Coal Miner. Clyde was always busy working in the mine not giving a lot of his unfocused attention to his family but rather to all the other worries of the mine. Clyde would be considered as a “Hard Man” which means that he doesn’t have a lot of emotion and that he does what he has to so that his family is provided for. Homer’s main feeling towards his father was that he wasn’t loved by his father. Clyde lived through the Great Depression and went through a lot going through that. Clyde was always so proud of Homer’s older brother Sonny for his football accomplishments, yet when the football got suspended Homer didn’t see his father a lot anymore compared to what he used to. Usually, Clyde was up really early before any of his family and up later after everyone else went to bed. Although throughout the story he didn’t spend a lot of time with Homer, Clyde was tolerant with his rocket building.

Homer’s dad played a big role when it came to the success and the determination that Homer had. Homer’s success was reliant on his dad because a lot of his supplies were from the coal mine although most of the time Homer stole a lot of his Father’s supplies but every once in a while he would ask his father to keep good terms between them for Homer’s mother's sake. When it comes to Homer’s determination he acquires his determination from the ambition to be loved by his father, the reason for this is that throughout all of his life there was a lack of love from his father and through making rockets Homer feels that this might give him that chance for his father to be proud of him for something that he succeeded at. Finally, towards the end of the book there is a time that Clyde was brought to tears which Homer never saw in his life and Clyde told Homer that he loved him and was proud of him.