The Truth as Told by Mason Buttle

The idea of writing your own story begins with the Dragon, a piece of voice-to-text software that allows Mason, who can’t read or write, to finally tell a story of his own. This power, which he did not have before, leads to more metaphorical ways that he “writes his own story;” he begins to create his own sense of self and differentiate his identity from the view that others have of him. This becomes particularly important when Mason is associated with the death of his best friend, and his reputation is inaccurate and muddled by fear and gossip.

Mason begins the novel with a strong sense of self, and a particularly strong idea about his limitations. He says, “I have been with my brain for twelve long years. I know how it puts things wrong” (2). Mason is embarrassed by some of his disabilities, especially his excessive sweating, but he is also accepting of them. However, Mason is not as good at standing up for himself. He learns this lesson early on from Annalissetta Yang, who tells him “I am capable. I can do things for myself. So if you help me when I don’t need help, you underestimate me” (60).