Question

I reluctantly moved to the bed. I knew Grandpa wouldn't want to have Mom undress him, but I didn't want to, either. He was so skinny and frail that his coat slipped off easily. When I loosened his tie and opened his shirt collar, I felt a small leather pouch that hung from a thong around his neck. I left it alone and moved to remove his boots.

—"The Medicine Bag,”
Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve

What type of conflict does this passage reveal?

character vs. character
character vs. nature
character vs. self
character vs. society

Answer 1

character vs. self

The narrator is conflicted internally — torn between respecting Grandpa’s wishes (not to be undressed by Mom) and their own reluctance to do it themselves. This is an internal moral/emotional struggle, not an external fight with another person, nature, or society.