Sadly, elements of this story by Witi Ihimaera play out every day in cities across the world. Major themes include domestic violence, fear, isolation, desperation and sibling love. When a young boy flees home to escape his insecure mother’s abusive boyfriend, his seven-year-old sister follows. Within a few hours, they encounter several of the dangers that being alone on the streets at night have to offer. The city is portrayed as an endless stream of lost souls, each struggling to survive or reach an unknown destination. The two children join them. Other themes: drug and alcohol abuse, dependency, irresponsibility, hope. More…
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Subha
A central theme of this story by Rabindranath Tagore is the tendency to dehumanize those with disabilities. A deaf Indian girl is ostracized by her mother and most in her village. As she grows up, she finds solace in nature and love for her family’s two cows. Her father, shamed and faced with the possibility of the family becoming outcastes if she doesn’t marry, tricks a man from a distant village into an arranged marriage. Miserable and far from home, the poor girl’s fate is uncertain. Other themes include tradition, innocence, isolation and loneliness, peace in nature, shame, fear, misery. More…
The Birds
This 1952 horror story by Daphne du Maurier follows a family who, along with all of Britain, come under sustained attacks by flocks of crazed birds. Seen as an analogy of the terror caused by World War Two blitz bombing and concerns about the developing Cold War, the story carries even more ominous implications for today. Consider the suggestion that climate change (shifts in the Arctic air stream) may have upset the natural order, and the death and worldwide disorder a small virus (Covid) recently caused. Themes: the vulnerability of mankind to war/natural forces, human/government complacence/ineptitiude, isolation, family, survival, self-reliance. More…
Amnesty
A major theme of this story by Nadine Gordimer, and the reason it is still relevant today, is the need for grass roots involvement in the struggle for justice. A young South African woman whose unionist husband is imprisoned for five years comes to appreciate the need for people at all levels to join hands in resisting oppression. Although the exploitation of poorly educated indigenous laborers depicted in the story has greatly diminished, injustice in many other forms is still rampant throughout the world. Other themes: racism, the right to protest, the importance of learning, love, loneliness, dedication, change. More…
The Japanese Quince
The message of this story by John Galsworthy can be summarized in the English idiom “stop and smell the roses”. The protagonist and his doppelganger neighbor are so caught up in their daily routines that they not only fail to notice the beauty around them, but also lead solitary, unfulfilled lives alienated from those outside their immediate circle. The titular quince, with its refreshing fragrance and colorful blossoms, symbolizes rebirth. The blackbird’s song represents the potential joy of life that eludes them. Themes: the beauty of nature, work/life balance, alienation, lack of fulfillment/inner emptiness, appearance, social anxiety. More…