Stanley Yelnats is the protagonist of the book. In the beginning, Stanley is a kid who doesn’t have friends because “he was overweight and the kids at his middle school often teased him about his size” (7). A lot of what happens to Stanley and his family is attributed to the family curse brought on by his great-great-grandfather, Elya Yelnats. Even though they are cursed with bad luck, Stanley and his family love and support each other and try to stay positive. Although Stanley lacks self-confidence, he is resilient. His resiliency helps him to survive the horrible conditions of Camp Green Lake.

At Camp Green Lake, Stanley starts to come of age. By digging the holes every day, he begins to feel proud of himself and build physical strength. After completing his first hole, “he knew it was nothing to be proud of, but he felt proud nonetheless” (40). This emphasizes the theme of Fate Versus Free Will. Stanley still struggles to make friends at camp because he “kept his mouth shut most of the time” and felt “afraid he might say the wrong thing” (84). Overall, Stanley avoids getting in trouble with the adults and with the other boys as much as possible.