In the novel The Wave by Morton Rhue (the pen name of Todd Strasser), a history teacher conducts an experiment to understand the influence of Germany Nazi on his people. However, the students turn against each other and terrorize those who are not part of the Wave. Robert Billings is a vital character who develops significantly over the course of the novel and in a way that calls attention to the disturbing nature of Rhue's message. In a dramatic change, he goes from class loser to blind follower of the Wave as the school loses all independence and uniqueness. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Robert Billings is undoubtedly portrayed as the class loser in the novel and Rhue describes him as a "...stocky boy with shirt tails perpetually going out and his hair always in disarray, as if he never takes the trouble of combing them." He is illustrated as a strong-willed individual who is shy and has no reason to feel anything. He says, "I don't care... there's no point in trying anyway." He appears as a lost cause, a boy who cannot hope to live up to his brother's standards since his brother was a popular and very successful student. At the beginning of the novel, Robert has no purpose, finds himself isolated, leaving him with no reason to commit to anything. As The Wave begins to develop. Robert was the first student to take it seriously. Mr. Ross begins The Wave by asking everyone to get up straight from their desks before answering the question succinctly. With this, “Robert practiced the movement again and again.” Showing the audience Robert's sudden determination to appear as a strong figure. His character undergoes a sudden development when he quickly discovers that the Wave is his salvation from isolation. His escape from being a nobody. The Wave was giving him a purpose, a reason to get up in the morning and as readers we can understand that everyone is looking for a purpose in their life. Robert is even higher in the social hierarchy as a result of The Wave, demonstrated when he receives an "X" on his card, meaning he is a monitor for The Wave. He also becomes a bodyguard for Mr. Ross. Over the course of the novel, Robert quickly becomes dangerously fanatical as the wave intensifies and Laurie tries to stop it. Robert clearly needs the Wave and claims that Laurie is a threat to his safety. He says "Laurie Saunders can't say things like that...she needs to be stopped." Readers see that Robert is indoctrinated by his chronic desire to belong and this illustrates one of the main ideas of the novel. The idea that people fear isolation and are willing to do anything to fit in and be accepted. Through Robert Billings, we can see the author's purpose to warn us that there are very real and powerful social hierarchies that people are obsessed with being at the top of, and that we must be cautious about following them without question. We see Robert's development take a sudden turn when he completely collapses after The Wave is essentially abolished. At the end of the novel, Robert is alone and crying. Rhue writes that "he was the only one in danger of losing everything." Which is perfectly true. We see that Robert has dedicated all his willpower to keeping the Wave alive and now that the Wave is gone, he has lost all purpose and lost the chance to become a strong and significant figure. He was the same, even though before he was the loser of the class and we realize that he was blinded by the fact that he was finally considered normal and perhaps even.