Sherman McCoy and Larry Kramer may be called the protagonist and antagonist of this story, only for the fact that Sherman and Larry are against each other in this book. Although they might seem like enemies, they both share very similar qualities about themselves. In this book The Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolf, they are both involved in the Henry Lamb case, in fact that is when they first find out about each other. Not only does McCoy and Kramer share many distinct qualities about themselves but they also contradict each other in this book. This leads to tension among these two people.
Sherman and Kramer are both in their 30s, live in New York, and are well-educated. Sherman McCoy and Larry Kramer are also both married to a gorgeous wife and have one child. They are obsessed over sex, money, and social ranking which engulfs their life. They both are unfaithful to their wives because Sherman has an affair with Maria Ruskin and Kramer has an affair with "The Lady with the Brown Lipstick" - Shelly Thomas. Kramer and McCoy are similar in the fact that they both are self-obsessed with themselves. Sherman refers to himself as "Master of the Universe" at one point in the book because he believes everything revolves around him. They both pride themselves over their physical features, Sherman with his chin and Kramer with his muscular body. He is greedy, always wants more, and is never satisfied with what he has. And that goes the same way for Kramer.…show more content… Sherman lives in a luxurious apartment while
Kramer lives in a tiny apartment that can barely fit him. Larry Kramer also struggles financially and is barely making ends meet. He also has a low self-esteem of himself and is worried/nervous about his identity as a Jew. Sherman, on the other hand, is