John Cheever’s Reunion is about a boy (Charlie) who reaches out to meet his estranged father, only to learn that the man is a rude, possibly alcoholic attention-seeker who delights in putting other people down. Before the meeting, Charlie was curious to see what his father was like: he was my father, my flesh and blood, my future and my doom. I knew that when I was grown I would be something like him. In cutting the reunion short, Charlie shows that he has the power to defy nature and avoid following in his father’s footsteps. More…
Brownies
The major theme of this story by ZZ Packer is how racial segregation breeds racial prejudice. At a summer camp, a Brownie troop from a black neighborhood decide to kick the asses of an all-white troop they see exiting a bus. A misunderstanding leads to a confrontation in the shower block, from which the black girls leave in shame. The story ends with the black narrator describing an interaction between her father and a white Mennonite family, and concluding that racism is something mean she cannot stop. Other themes include social class, resentment, anger, revenge, peer pressure.
Babycakes
Although written for a worthy cause (PETA, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), many readers find this satirical vignette by Neil Gaiman very disturbing. The story provides a modern take on Jonathan Swift’s infamous 1729 satirical essay A Modest Proposal, which advocated solving an Irish famine by having the very poor sell their babies to the rich: A young healthy child well nursed, is, at a year old, a most delicious nourishing and wholesome food, whether stewed, roasted, baked, or boiled… OMG! Themes include greed, animal cruelty, sustainability, hubris (the superiority of man). More…
The Sniper
Some argue that civil wars are the worst form of warfare because they can set friend against friend and family against family. This story by Liam O’Flaherty takes place during the Irish Civil War of 1922/23. After an IRA sniper with the cold gleam of the fanatic in his eyes kills an enemy sniper, he goes to see if he knew the man. It is tempting to feel sorry as he turns over the body. That is until you remember the unarmed woman he had just shot in cold blood. Themes include war, divisiveness, duty, survival, isolation, brutality, guilt. More…
Fairy Ointment
In this folktale, a strange looking little old man asks a nurse to come to his house to help his sick wife look after their baby boy. The man’s wife gives the nurse some ointment to put on the baby’s eyes. Being curious, the nurse puts some of it on one of her own eyes. The family seemed normal enough up to this point. However, the ointment helps her to learn their secret. The nurse pays a heavy price for her actions when the old man finds out what she has done. More…