The Significance of Thomas' Character in The Maze Runner

Thomas: The Game Changer

Can one person really change everything? Well, in books they can. In the non-fiction novel by James Dashner, The Maze Runner, there are multiple boys stuck in a place called ‘The Glade’, they have no memory of who they are and who they once were, all they can remember is their name. They arrive there in a box and the whole place is surrounded by a maze that may be their only way out. The boys have learned to fend for themselves by creating their own form of government by electing a ruler and giving everyone jobs so everyone was treated equally. There are separated into groups, like the sloppers or the runners. The runners are the people who are to to go out into the maze every day to try and find a way out. They risk their own lives every day by entering those walls. Every morning the walls to the maze open, and every night they close. There are weird things that go on behind those walls at night. Like, slug-like creatures called Grievers who are blood-thirsty animals. Their mission is to stop anyone from solving the maze and getting out. They were designed by W.I.C.K.E.D., the people who sent them there. But when the first girl to ever arrive in the Glade comes with a note, everything will change. Thomas, the main character proves himself to be brave, clever, and extremely curious. He has a very important role in the novel, he is the only one who can get them out. Will his courageousness get the boys out or will they be stuck there forever?

It is apparent in the book The Maze Runner that the protagonist Thomas, has a brave heart. He is the one of the only boys who has the guts to go into the maze. Others are frightened of the maze and won’t even go near it. Thomas is determined to get out and won’t stop until he has succeeded. There are many cases of Thomas being brave in the book, like when Alby, the Glade’s ruler shows Thomas a Griever before he goes off into the maze. It doesn’t affect Thomas at all; he isn’t afraid of them. Though they could kill him in an instant, he won’t hold back. Being brave could mean freedom for all the boys in the Glade. There also was a time when two of the other Gladers went out into the maze and they didn’t come back for a while. They arrived back at the Glade while the doors were closing, and as they began to shut Thomas ran out to try and save them. The doors closed after him and he was stuck in there for one night, and nobody has ever survived a night in the maze. His bravery gave others hope and made others angry. Thomas did break a rule, which is never go into the maze unless you’re a runner. After he became one the first people to survive a night in the maze he was punished. All he said was “I didn’t do anything wrong. All I know is I saw two people struggling to get inside these walls and they couldn’t make it. To ignore that because of some stupid rule seemed selfish, cowardly, and … well, stupid. If you want to throw me in jail for trying to save someone’s life, then go ahead. Next time I promise Ill point at them and laugh, they go eat some of Frypan’s dinner” (Dashner, 166). Thomas didn’t regret anything he did or said because he knew it was the right thing to do. True bravery is being able to set aside our own needs or well-being for the needs of others.

There aren’t many clever decisions made in many books because someone always ends up injured or dead. Well, in The Maze Runner, Thomas makes very many clever choices that could save someone’s life. He has ideas that no others boys in the Glade have ever thought of. Well, some good decisions can have pros and cons, like when Thomas purposely stung himself with a Griever’s needle. He realized that by doing this he was able to remember things from his past. They call it the ‘Changing’ when you get stung, it is painful but you start to regain your memory. After Thomas began the changing he found out that before he was placed in the Glade, he worked for W.I.C.K.E.D. and he was one of the people who placed all the other boys there. He is able to piece together something to try and get them out of the maze with some of the regained memories. His clever ideas could mean getting the boys out of the maze. Another one of Thomas’s ideas was when he used the maps that the runners have been drawing for such a long time to create a password. He puts certain ones together and they begin to spell out words. Those words could mean freedom for all the boys, which it did. He eventually was able to use it on a door to escape the maze. Being clever is a great trait to have, especially when you are trapped and there is only one way out.

One of the many traits of Thomas is his curiosity. Thomas is always seeking answers and won’t stop until he figures it out. There are many instances of Thomas’s curiosity, like when he first arrives in the Glade and sees the maze he won’t stop asking questions about it. No one will answer his questions because they don’t believe he is ready. At one point he begins to walk to the maze about to go through the doors until someone stops him. He has no knowledge of what is in there but is determined to find out. Also, with Thomas’s curiosity of the maze he finally figures out who is able to enter the maze, the runners. He really wants to know what is in there so he begins to always ask if he can become one, and the answer is always no. From the start, Thomas wanted to be a runner. Which eventually lead up to him running into the maze to help people, but a part of him running in there was his curiosity of what goes beyond those walls. Curiosity could be a both good and bad trait, it could be annoying at times, but it could also make you a keener person. Having a strong desire to learn or know something can cause you to strive in life.

To conclude, people like Thomas are the kind of people we need in life. He is a fearless and curious problem-solver and you could go far in life with qualities like that. There are times especially like when you are in a predicament like Thomas is, that being smart can help you get out of your dilemma. Thomas’s traits of being heroic, crafty, and inquisitive gives him a perfect spot in a book like The Maze Runner. It is full of suspense and difficulties that you have to find a way out of. While the boys of the Glade were trying to find a way to survive before Thomas arrived, little did they know that they would one day come upon a boy like Thomas? He saved the lives of many and has the title of a hero in this book. He has countless amounts of great qualities, and he will always be an amazing person to have around.