Bernard Malamud was raised in the mid-1900s, a time when baseball played a huge role in the lives of many Americans. Americans loved baseball because it gave them the opportunity to stop working and just relax while cheering on their favorite team. It was a time when people played baseball purely for the love of the game and the thrill of hearing fans cheer them on. Today, however, baseball is much more corrupt and many athletes only participate because of their own greed and selfishness. This strong desire for money comes from some major players of the past, such as Babe Ruth and Joe DiMaggio, who were exceptional athletes and became very confident in their abilities. They became so confident that they started demanding more money than other players. Roy Hobbs, the protagonist of Bernard Malamud's The Natural, is a fictional baseball player based on these legends. His ability to play the game is almost superhuman in that he is able to lead a team to victory almost single-handedly. However, Roy is only here to make a name for himself and break records. He would rather build a reputation as the best player in the game than win games for his team. In the introduction to the novel, written by Kevin Baker, he is described as: "Greedy, ruthless, and preoccupied with earning the money he believes his talent entitles him to earn" (Baker, xii). Roy Hobbs is a prime example of a man whose pride and self-confidence ultimately led to his downfall. Roy Hobbs is a very confident baseball player who is so sure of his abilities that he almost gives up any chance of playing in the majors. His confidence is evident throughout the novel, at different times and in various situations. For example, when Po... middle of paper ...... needs help from anyone, and he quickly becomes a superstar in the eyes of many baseball fans. Roy Hobbs was an extremely greedy and vain man. However, when examined closely, he also had a caring and caring side. In the story, Roy does everything in his power to save a young boy dying in the hospital. His efforts are demonstrated when Malamud says, “He thought of him from time to time and was eager to do something for him” (Malamud, 136). Roy doesn't want him to die, so he does his best and ends up hitting a home run for the boy. However, Roy's greed eventually takes over and he is forced to live with the consequences. At the end, when a young boy asks him if he really gave up the game, he can only cry in response. Thus, his downfall was caused by his major flaws: greed, selfishness and overconfidence..