Josh is non-descript in my perception: a mere mirror of his father. He seems so one-dimensional that his only purpose is for incidental dramatic effect.
What's so sad is that while this is true to a word in a literary sense, it's also true in a real sense. His character is based on real people I've encountered, people who seem just as one-dimensional in real life because they only present one side of themselves for the world, and it's seldom a flattering one. Does anyone else know people like that?
I certainly do, and wouldn't it be nice if they only existed for incidental dramatic effect in real life? Some people are purely a product of their environment...no independent thinking, no desire to veer off the course set by genetics or the bubble they grew up in. No desire for change. No need to better themselves. They don't see an issue with how they think (or don't), or what their circumstance is, whether it's good or bad. They're content to be whatever generations past dictate they are. I feel this is exactly who and what Josh represents.
Yes! You nailed it.