Maestro Paul Is Conceited and Insensitive

"Paul is an unpleasant character, conceited and insensitive to everything but himself" is this how you see Paul?

Maestro, written by Peter Goldsworthy, follows the life of Paul Crabbe, a vain and egotistical fifteen-year-old boy living in the hot tropics of Darwin Paul narrates us through a series of memoirs of his adolescence and young adulthood recounting hid decisions and actions. Paul is first portrayed as a spoilt and over-confident, although talented, piano enthusiast who takes no responsibility for his own unwise decisions, constantly blaming others. This flaw in his personality ultimately leads him to betray the few people that care for him. However, through his lessons with Eduard Keller Pauls "schnapps soaked" traumatized piano tutor, a shift in personality is evident within Paul and this ultimately leads him to acknowledge his former dislikeable traits.

Of Paul's flaws the most apparent would be his growing ego. Paul is shown to us as a gifted pianist whose world is filled with music. Due to Paul's family constantly moving houses and towns, Paul transforms into a "shy loner" becoming an outcast from his peers. Paul's ego affects how he interacts with his peers at school, slamming his pen down to notify everyone that he has finished his test effortlessly. Paul is used to the praise and attention from his family and friends, with the vast majority of them being adults. But of this praise, the voices with the most influence are those of his parents. Paul's parents live their dreams through Paul as they "lost so much time in the war, and after the war there was no time for music". They choose to fuel Paul's ego, frequently reminding him that "[Keller] has had no-one as good [him] before". Through their over exaggerated praise, Paul is led to believe that he better than everyone else; more talented. When Bennie Reid asks to play a duet with Paul, Paul declines rudely as he believes he's too superior for his "inept fiddle-scrapings". It's these examples that show the trust magnitude of Paul's ego.

As the novel progresses another dislikeable trait of Paul's comes to light, Paul's insensitive nature. Paul's personality leaves little room for sensitivity and this becomes evident mid-adolescence. Paul is seen as a rude young boy who "knows so much for [his] age, and so little", blatantly ignoring the feelings and emotions of those who care most for him, those of which include his high school acquaintance Bennie Reid. Bennie Reid befriended Paul on their first day of school as they were "marooned alongside each other in a sea of hostile stares". But Paul's lack of sensitivity leads him to betray Bennie when he befriends Jimmy Papas and the rest of "rough stuff". Paul, being the selfish young boy us readers know him as, theoretically