A major theme of this enigmatic story by Rudyard Kipling is the potential destructive power of love. Interestingly, we never meet the two central characters: Mrs. Bathurst, a New Zealand hotel keeper renowned for her kindness to needy sailors, and “Click” Vickery, a naval warrant officer who once had a serious affair with her. Vickery becomes so obsessed with a cinematograph clip in a traveling circus showing Mrs. Bathurst in London that he deserts his ship and follows the circus to the next town. Other themes include alienation, chance and accident, ambiguity, passion, death and guilt. More…
In the Family
This story from Cuban writer María Elena Llana uses a combination of humour and magical realty to highlight the potentially fatal consequences of pride. The victim (Clara), having excelled at university but never bothered to look for work, seems to think her formal education puts her above other family members. One evening, while “holding court” over dinner with her extended family (both living and dead) she learns the error of her ways. The next day she finds herself sitting on the other (dead family’s) side of the table. Themes: pride, acceptance of the unusual, the supernatural. More…
April in Paris
The central theme of this Ursula Le Guin story is the alienation and loneliness brought about by obsession with work and lack of companionship. A 15th century French scientist, frustrated with being unable to prove a theory he had developed, decides his work is a waste of time. He experiments with black magic and is surprised when his first spell is a success, allowing him to teleport kindred spirits from the past and future to join him. Those who come are so happy in his reality that they have no desire to return. Other themes: the occult, connection. More…
Flowers and Freckle Cream
The protagonist in this story by Elizabeth Ellis is a twelve-year-old girl. Although set in the American backwoods around seventy years ago, hundreds of millions of men, women and children today share her desire to change their complexion or body shape to one considered more attractive by their peers. Major themes of the story are being comfortable with how you look and, as symbolized by the flowers, beauty comes in many shapes and forms. Minor themes are thoughtlessness (the mother’s comment ”You can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.”) and the wisdom that comes with advancing age. More…
The Ant and The Grasshopper
This story by W. Somerset Maugham takes its name from a famous Aesop fable. The fable carries the message that hard work is rewarded, while laziness leads to disaster. The story presents a more balanced view of the world. Sometimes good things happen to lazy or even quite bad people, causing them to be better off than those who work hard every day. After years of hard work, Gordon Ramsay (the Ant) is rewarded with a comfortable retirement. He thinks it unfair when his brother Tom (the Grasshopper) ends up many times richer after a life of laziness and cheating others. More…