Everyone goes through problems throughout their lives but overall, can grow from the challenges and problems they face. The Serpent King takes us through the lives of Dill, Travis, and Lydia as they go through many adversities but it’s those adversities that makes them who they are today. The author uses controversial and sensitive topics to for the portrayal of the growth of these characters. In Zentner’s book, The Serpent King, the characters develop more growth and changes of overcoming challenges as they face various conflicts throughout the story.

The first main conflict of the story is Dill’s father gets arrested after the authorities found him producing child pornography. People getting arrested doesn’t just affect them, it affects their family and other people who are close to them as well. Dill goes through many challenges socially and economically after his father's arrest. In addition,“‘I see a man who seems to be doing fine in here while Mom and I work our a**** off to repay your debts’…..‘Watch your tongue. Our debts. Did you not eat at our table? Did you not live under our roof?’......‘Your debts. And now I am paying for your sins by watching the world move on without me. I can’t go to college like my friends because of you.’” (Zentner, 208) This explains that everything that Dill has went through lead to him finally realizing things he doubted about himself. He was able to open his eyes more about what opportunities he is missing because he is hiding himself from his weaknesses. People from today face a lot of what Dill was facing. Their parents are making them miss opportunities and they have hard times figuring themselves out. As they are trying to find themselves, the go through growth and change from the experience.

The second main conflict that would be presented is about abusive parents. Abusive parents are common in our society today, likewise, Travis, one of the main characters of The Serpent King, and his mother receive a lot of abuse from Travis’ father. It might seem like that he just wants the best for his son but that's not how people should achieve that. “Travis’s father unbuckled his belt and whipped it off with a swift motion, popping loose one of his belt loops. He raised his arm and scourged Travis’s back with a belt. Again. Again. Again. Again. Again. Again. Again………‘ I’m n-not...afraid of you...anymore. You’ll n-never...make me...hate myself...like you hate me.’” (Zentner, 227-228) This quote shows how Travis grew from the mental and physical abuse he got from his father. He grew a lot stronger from these experiences as he was finally able to stand up for himself. Most people from today wouldn’t have the guts to do what Travis did, as they would be too scared to do that. The author chose a sensitive topic as one of the main conflicts in this story. Having an abusive parent can be a lot, but because of the abuse, some learn to get stronger.

The last point that would be presented in this analysis is death. Everyone has to go through death at least once in their lifetime or they already have. And even though they get hurt, they grow and change from those experiences. For example, Dill and Lydia, after Travis’ death, faced a lot of emotional issues that they have never faced before. “He loathed the words, and he hadn’t actually spoken them aloud to anybody. As if they were some terrible incantation that made it more real. They felt like thorns on his tongue. ‘Travis is dead.’” (Zentner, 253) Travis dying is one of the main conflicts of this story that affected a lot of people, including Amelia, who was Travis’ online friend. Dill and Lydia also grew from this by opening their mind about thing they never thought they would do. Dill got a realization, after Travis’ death, that he needed to go to college. People never know when death might come and stab them in the back and kill them. That’s why they have to make the best out of their lives, this is exactly what the author is trying to convey in this book by making Dill and Lydia learn it for themselves.

In conclusion, The Serpent King, a book by Jeff Zentner, portrays the character’s development as they face multiple challenges throughout the plot. In this book, the three main characters face real life issues but learn to grow and change from those problems to make them who they are today. Many people from today’s world face a lot of these complications and many more not listed in this book. But they still have to learn to move on and grow from those experiences to make the best out of their lives. The Serpent King shows exactly that.