# The Fighting Sheeney — The Enormous Room character guide

> The Fighting Sheeney in The Enormous Room by E. E. Cummings.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Sheeney, The Sheeney, the Sheeney, The Young Pole, Bill The Hollander, Bill, The Hollander, neighbour Bill, the sobbing Young Pole, Bill the Hollander, Whereat Bill The Hollander

**First appearance:** 0005-iv-le-nouveau

## Snapshot

A pimp-turned-pugilist who institutes nightly boxing in the dormitory, flooring the patriotic Young Pole and cementing a La Santé friendship with The Trick Raincoat.

## Who they are

He takes the Young Pole down a peg in the nightly Boxe he organizes upon The Trick Raincoat's arrival, a small act of order imposed on a volatile room. His friendship with a fellow pimp gives the camp a social texture beyond nationality, and his fists become a kind of rough justice. He matters because he shows how prison hierarchies are rebuilt from old trades and old grudges.

## Relationships

### [Narrator](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_enormous_room_se/characters/narrator)

_rivalry_

The Fighting Sheeney is a belligerent and aggressive prisoner who frequently clashes with the narrator over petty disputes.

### [Narrator](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_enormous_room_se/characters/narrator)

_rivalry_

The Fighting Sheeney is a belligerent and aggressive prisoner who frequently clashes with the narrator over petty disputes.

## In the story

### [The Enormous Room](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_enormous_room_se/chapters/the-enormous-room)

A fellow prisoner, known for his combative nature and interactions within the room.

### [VII: An Approach to the Delectable Mountains](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_enormous_room_se/chapters/vii-an-approach-to-the-delectable-mountains)

Bullies others, gets into fights, and is treated for syphilis after an injection by Monsieur Richard.

### [IX: Zoo-Loo](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_enormous_room_se/chapters/ix-zoo-loo)

A vain, stupid boy with a peaches-and-cream complexion. Beaten by The Fighting Sheeney for his bravado, sent to cabinot, and emerges humbled.

### [IX: Zoo-Loo](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_enormous_room_se/chapters/ix-zoo-loo)

Brutally beats The Young Pole in a fight, is exonerated, and later tries to become the narrator's protector for money.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_enormous_room_se/characters/the_fighting_sheeney
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_enormous_room_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_enormous_room_se/characters