Stanley, the protagonist of Holes, is a dynamic character. He changes during the course of the novel due to the influence and effect of his experiences and actions. As the novel begins, Stanley has low self-esteem. He is overweight and is accustomed to having bad luck. He attributes this bad luck to his “no-good-dirty-rotten-pig-stealing-great-great-grand-father,” who caused Madame Zeroni to put a curse on the Yelnats family. Stanley has no friends. He is a misfit in his class at school. Because he is larger in size than his classmates, teachers wrongly assume he can take care of himself when he is being mistreated, so they don’t intervene and Stanley is left to fend for himself. But Stanley is naive, innocent, and kindhearted, and he doesn’t know how to be mean. He loves and respects his parents; in fact, he was trying to help his father by taking the smelly sneakers that had “fallen from the sky” home to him (his father was trying to invent a use for old sneakers).
Stanley is perceptive. When he arrives at Camp Green Lake, he quickly understands what he needs to do to survive. He follows the rules without question and he needs X-Ray, the unofficial leader of the boys, to think he is a good guy. Stanley wins X-Ray’s approval by becoming enmeshed in the routine that is already established at Camp Green Lake. Stanley gives the gold lipstick tube to X-Ray to claim as his “find,” and he takes the blame for stealing Mr. Sir’s sunflower seeds, even though he didn’t do it. Stanley is smart. He tells X-Ray how to get more time off and begins to teach Zero how to read. He perseveres. Hopeful and optimistic, Stanley keeps going despite the obstacles that he faces.
While he is at Camp Green Lake, Stanley changes. His body begins to change as a result of the shoveling, and he is no longer fat. Stanley’s body is firm because his muscles have strengthened, and he realizes that he is the biggest boy in his tent. For the first time, Stanley is not ashamed to be the biggest. He is proud of himself and has gained self-confidence. Stanley makes friends and, when he is on the mountain with Zero, despite the ordeal he is going through, he likes himself and is happy. Stanley is a hero. He saves Zero’s life, discovers the buried “treasure,” and, because his plight draws attention to Camp Green Lake, the camp is closed down and no other boys will ever have to dig holes again. Stanley uses the money that he receives from the stocks that were in the suitcase to buy his parents a house and to build a laboratory in the basement for his father.
