In this story by Oscar Wilde, two old college friends discuss a mysterious woman one of them had fallen in love with. The relationship ended when she refused to reveal the secret behind her apparent paranoia about being contacted at home and a clandestine visit to a boarding house. The major themes of the story are love and trust, as evidenced by the narrator’s initial comment: women are meant to be loved, not be understood and his friend’s retort: I cannot love where I cannot trust. Other themes include the allure of mystery, obsession, insecurity, jealousy, privacy, escape. More…
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In the Kindergarten
In this story by Ha Jin, a Chinese kindergarten student (Shaona) comes up with an unusual response to her teacher’s lies about herbs their class has been collecting. Major themes are (for Shaona) loneliness, uncertainty, alienation, adaption (for Shen) poverty, hunger, deception, betrayal. Shen may be a symbol of the Chinese authorities, her ‘poverty’ being a metaphor for greed. With no respect for the rules, she accumulates wealth (purslanes) through corruption and the toil of her charges. Shaona identifies several of Shen’s character traits, and puts two of them (bribery and deceit) to use in dealing with the class bully. More…
The Celebrated Jumping Frog
The humorous frame story of this unlikely tale by Samuel Clemens (aka Mark Twain) satirizes the way late nineteenth-century American “Easterners” looked down on their supposedly less sophisticated Western compatriots. In the inner story, a man named Jim loves gambling so much that he will bet on almost anything. He finds a frog he believes can leap further than any other in Calaveras County, and learns an expensive lesson when a passing stranger bets against his frog and wins easily. Themes include regional stereotypes, storytelling (tall-tales), gambling consequences (there’s no such thing as a sure bet), trickery and deception. More…
The Intoxicated Years
This story by Mariana Enriquez is set during one of Argentina’s worst economic crises. As their parents struggle for economic survival and fight their own demons, three late-teenaged girls are given almost total freedom. With no respect for adults or their conventional peers, the thoroughly dislikeable trio pursue a hedonistic, drug and alcohol fueled lifestyle. The socially detached girls pledge a bond of “sisterhood”. When a punk rocker causes one of them to distance herself, the others exact violent retribution. Themes include alienation, social isolation, alternative culture, drug dealing and abuse, betrayal, revenge. More…
Seibei and His Gourds (The Artist)
This story from Shiga Naoya uses situational irony to highlight the importance of encouraging people to pursue their artistic passions. Seibei has a fascination with decorative gourds. He spends all his free time buying natural pods and turning them into the polished decorative pieces. When this causes problems at school, Seibei’s teacher shames his parents into forbidding the hobby and destroying his gourd collection. Unbeknown to all, this may have cost Seibei a lucrative, satisfying career. The disheartened boy complies, but soon takes up another artistic interest. Themes: (Seibei) art, passion, talent, obedience, resilience; (his parents) narrow-mindedness. More…