Characters & analysis

Rhea and Rhoda Kunkel:

Rhea and Rhonda are eleven-year-old identical twins.  The two protagonists of the short story are always known as Rhea and Rhonda, never Rhonda and Rhea.  Although they are separate characters, Rhea and Rhonda take on one role within the short story.  The girls were not shy; they had loud voices and they "basked in their power."  The twins had bright orange hair and extremely pale skin with freckles on their face and deep green eyes.  Rhea and Rhonda had a hard time becoming serious and sitting still.  They were always giggling.  The story opens as the two girls are laying in their caskets.  They looked as perfect as plastic.  The girls were murdered by Roger Whipple the summer before entering seventh grade.  It is not evident weather the death related to the fact that the girls had stolen money from their grandmother (karma) or if death was coming for them and no matter what they would have died.

Roger Whipple:

Throughout the story, Roger was made to seem suspicious.  Roger worked for his fathers ice company called Whipple's Ice.  He had a sweet face with big hands, feet, and thighs.  His shoulders were round and he was strong.  Roger was a shy, clean boy with good manners but had always been a little strange.  Kids always seemed to tease him and to harass him, just as Rhea and Rhonda would.  Roger was taken into custody for killing the twins.  He claimed he did not remember anything happening but he cried profusely because the only thing he remembered was the girls being there.  He was not charged with murder because he was diagnosed as a psychiatric patient.  Years later, he died in the state psychiatric hospital and was buried in the same cemetery behind the First Methodist church where Rhea and Rhonda were buried as well.