The Birthmark

The Birthmark: Short story by Nathaniel HawthorneIn this story by Nathaniel Hawthorne, a brilliant scientist takes a break from his work to marry a woman of nearly perfect beauty. Her one “blemish” is a small hand-shaped birthmark on her left cheek. Much of the scientist’s work has involved (often unsuccessfully) trying to manipulate the laws of Nature. As he begins to obsess over the frightful birthmark, his wife agrees to allow him to remove it… even if it costs her life! The story’s message: the folly of pursuing human perfection; no one is flawless. Themes: perfection, obsession, hubris, religion, gender roles, submission/sacrifice, science vs. nature, mortality.

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Cheap at Half the Price

Cheap at Half the Price: Short story by Jeffrey ArcherThe questionable message of this story by Jeffrey Archer is expressed in the opening line: Women are naturally superior to men, and Consuela Rosenheim was no exception. The beautiful socialite is nearing the end of the third of the four or five marriages she is planning on to become independently wealthy. After searching for a birthday present, she has her heart set on a million pound diamond-and-ruby necklace. Knowing her husband’s weaknesses, she hatches a plan whereby the deluded man thinks he was clever enough to buy it for half the asking price. Themes include materialism, sexuality, manipulation, deception, infidelity.

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Wicked Girl

Wicked Girl: Short story by Isabel AllendeIn this story by Isabel Allende a solitary, prepubescent eleven-year-old tries to sexually arouse her mother’s secret lover. At first the soundly sleeping man responds but, when he wakes and realizes who it is, he violently casts her aside. After she is sent to a convent, the profoundly affected man develops an unhealthy attraction towards young girls. When they meet again fifteen years later, he begs forgiveness for having rejected her in the hope this will cure his poisoned mind. She is speechless, not remembering the event. Themes include solitariness/disconnection, sexuality, obsession, the power of passion, escape, resilience.

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Looking for a Rain-God

Looking for a Rain-God: Short story by Bessie HeadThis story by Botswanan writer Bessie Head deals with one of the world’s most terrible crimes. It takes place in Botswana’s “lonely lands” where families usually live a poor but contented life in harmony with nature. Every year, when village headmen proclaim the beginning of the cropping season, farming families relocate from the villages to their ploughing lands. We follow a family who, having endured six years of crippling drought, reach a point in the seventh year where they feel they must make a devastating decision: to all perish from starvation or sacrifice their children to a rain-god.

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The Paper Menagerie

The Paper Menagerie: Short story by Ken LiuThe central message of this poignant story from Ken Liu is in these lines: You know what the Chinese think is the saddest feeling in the world? It’s for a child to finally grow the desire to take care of his parents, only to realize that they were long gone. An American high schooler rejects his heritage and distances himself from his poorly educated, non-English speaking mother. After her death, he finds something that changes his outlook and brings back the magical world she had created for him as a child. Themes: struggle, cultural assimilation, identity, resentment, motherly love, imagination.

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Doc’s Story

Doc's Story: Short story by John Edgar WidemanIn this story by John Edgar Wideman, a young man recovering from a break-up with his girlfriend is inspired by a story about “Doc”, a former academic and college basketballer who lost his eyesight. Doc could still shoot baskets from the foul line, and once held his own in a full game. This causes him to wonder whether, if he had told Doc’s story to his former girlfriend (If a blind man could play basketball surely we . . .), he could have saved their relationship. Themes include relationships, storytelling, race, depression, overcoming challenges, inspiration, hope.

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The Wreath

The Wreath: Short story by Luigi PirandelloIn this moving story by Luigi Pirandello, a middle-aged doctor is disturbed to learn that his much younger wife, who still has feelings for a former lover who died before they married, has gone behind his back and secretly ordered a wreath for the anniversary of his death. At first angry and ready to “take her back to her father’s house,” he calms down and finally accompanies her to the cemetery. Touched by his gesture, she looks at him as she had never looked at him before. Themes include the beauty of nature, love, mourning, deceit, understanding and compassion.

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The Son

The Son: Short story by Horacio QuirogaIn this emotionally charged story by Horacio Quiroga, a thirteen-year-old boy goes hunting in woods near his home. He is well aware of the dangers associated with hunting alone, and competent in the use of a gun. The boy’s father, who is not well and suffers from hallucinations, becomes concerned when he does not return at the agreed time. Fearing the worst, he begins a frantic search, growing increasingly anxious until finding, or thinking he finds, the boy safe and unharmed. Themes include parental love, isolation, nature and survival, trust, anxiety, fear, illusion, death.

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