A dying king is told that his only hope for a cure is a magical feather from an ogre known to kill any human it sees. When no one else volunteers to face the creature, one of his most loyal attendants steps forward. The story from here shares elements found in several other European and Eastern folktales: during the journey, he encounters people who request him to ask the ogre for solutions to problems they have been experiencing. Two of the solutions will change his and the ogre’s life. Themes include good vs. evil, loyalty, helping others, courage and bravery. More…
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Jacklighting
In this story by Ann Beattie, a troubled couple who have travelled from New York to Virginia each year to visit a free-spirited friend and his brother on his birthday, make the trip once more on the birthday following his death. The trip is ostensibly to comfort the friend’s brother. Ironically, although each of them clearly loved the dead man and is in need of closure, they suppress their feelings and do not even talk about him. Themes include friendship, the burdens and unpredictability of life and death, death as relief from suffering, grief and mourning. More…
Here We Are
This story by Dorothy Parker comprises a dialog between a young newlywed couple traveling by train to their honeymoon destination. It is clear that both are nervous, and that their relationship has hitherto been platonic. The bride appears particularly insecure, and challenges several things her new husband says as indications that he doesn’t care for her, her family, and her taste in fashion. She is looking for affirmation of his love, which he provides, and deflecting thoughts of what they both know will happen that evening. Themes include marriage, innocence, communication, insecurity, jealousy, embarrassment, sex. More…
The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas
This philosophical narrative by Ursula Le Guin describes life in the seemingly utopian city of Omelas. We learn that almost everyone in the city lives in complete happiness. There is no organized system of rule, few laws, sexual freedom, no crime, no violence, and nobody living in want. Sadly, there is a blight on this “paradise”. For happiness to prevail, a single child must live in absolute misery, locked up alone in an underground cell. Themes: morality and moral compromise (the price of happiness), victimization, complicity (collective knowledge = shared responsibility), guilt, courage (the ones who “walk away”). More…
The Man from Mars
In this story by Margaret Atwood a “big-boned”, athletic Canadian university student becomes anxious but gains self-esteem when a creepy-looking “Oriental” student begins to stalk her. The stalking, which largely takes place in plain sight, becomes a game of cat-and-mouse. Other men who have previously shown little interest in her take notice. Wondering what he sees in her, they begin to ask her out. She is not his only victim. When he is deported to his war-torn country, she becomes obsessed with trying to discover his fate. Themes include otherness (alienation and loneliness), beauty standards and self-image, stereotyping, obsession, fear. More…