What was Hugo's role in the story?

    In the first couple of chapters of Black Swan Green, I thought Hugo was going to be much bigger part of the story, but even though he only shows up briefly, he ends up having a signficant impact on how Jason sees himself and what he thinks he wants to become. 

    Jason introduces Hugo in a way that makes him seem almost perfect, saying that "Hugo would be a cursed name for most kids but on Hugo it's a halo...Luck loves Hugo," (Mitchell 41). This shows not only how much he admires Hugo, but also hints at his jealousy, since everything seems to come easily to Hugo while Jason is constantly held back by Hangman and his stammer. At first, it feels like Hugo is going to be this model of confidence for Jason, someone he can learn from to become more popular and more sure of himself. Jason notices how easily Hugo speaks in situations where he would normally stay quiet, like when Julia is explaining her career choice and Hugo casually says, “Well said, Julia.” That moment stands out because it shows how naturally Hugo is able to handle situations like this and speak his mind without hesitation. Early on, Jason sees him as someone who has everything figured out, someone who is popular, confident, and completely in control in a way Jason feels like he will never be.

    What surprised me the most about Hugo is that he wasn’t just some shallow popular kid. He wasn’t like Wilcox at all. When Jason realizes Hugo likes poetry, he is able to talk about Ted Hughes and war poets like Wilfred Owen and Rupert Brooke, and he even brings up George Orwell and books like 1984 and Animal Farm. He says, “But George Orwell’s the man,” which shows how passionate and confident he is in his opinions, not just trying to sound impressive but actually meaning it. He also tells Jason, “If you don’t read his journalism… you can’t say you know Orwell” (Mitchell 55), which shows how knowledgeable he is. This changes Jason’s idea of what “cool” is. Before, he thought being popular meant being a bully or dominant, but Hugo shows him there is another kind of confidence, where you don’t need to put other people down to seem important. It also makes Hugo feel a bit more out of reach for Jason, because he has this ease not just socially but intellectually too. While it is never confirmed, I think Hugo probably would have understood Jason in the same way Julia does later in the novel, where people start to see past how Jason appears on the surface instead of just judging him for his stammer or awkwardness. I also wonder if Hugo every knew Eliot Bouliverad was Jason. I feel like he would be supportive of Jason's poetry. 

    Hugo was also the first person to introduce Jason to what it takes to act more like a “popular kid,” like smoking. Jason tries it but fails and ends up throwing up, but even then Hugo handles it in a calm way and doesn’t embarrass him the way someone like Wilcox would. That matters because it shows Hugo’s confidence isn’t about putting people down or making them feel small. Instead, he makes Jason feel safer even in moments where he is clearly failing. He isn’t aggressive or mocking, so Jason still looks up to him even when things go wrong. There is a sense that Hugo is guiding him in a quiet, almost indirect way, even if Jason can’t fully keep up with him or match what he is doing. I do think Hugo wants the best for Jason. 

    By the end, I realized Hugo’s role isn’t to turn Jason into a better version of himself but to show him what he is not. Hugo represents this ideal version of confidence that Jason thinks he needs, but it doesn’t actually fit him. At first Jason really believes that if he could just be more like Hugo, everything about popularity and confidence would make sense, but the more he sees of him, the more obvious it becomes that Hugo’s kind of ease is something Jason can’t just copy. It also brings out Jason’s jealousy, because Hugo makes everything look effortless in a way that Jason can’t relate to. Jason starts to resent that a bit, especially when he feels like if he didn’t have his stammer, he might already be like Hugo, which makes Hugo feel less like a goal and more like a reminder of what he struggles with.