This story, hailed as one of Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis’s best, involves a seemingly innocent but sexually charged conversation between a seventeen-year-old boy and the thirty-year-old wife of his landlord. The boy is staying up to attend midnight mass, the woman’s husband is away for the night with his mistress, and the woman, who has not slept, appears in her nightgown. Interpretation of the conversation is made all the more difficult because it is related by the boy many years afterwards. Themes include coming of age (sexual stirrings) and ambiguity (as to what might be implied or is unsaid). More…
The People Could Fly
Reinterpreted folktales that include events from recorded history play an important part in cultural renewal by helping later generations relate to their heritage. This African-American example from Virginia Hamilton packs a lot into just 1200 words. Its major themes are slavery, cruelty, suffering, Free-dom, and hope. Freedom comes when Toby’s magic words rekindle the forgotten ability of some slaves to fly. For readers not into the supernatural, flying could also be a metaphor for running away or even death. Hope comes in Toby’s call to those left behind to wait for their chance to run. More…
The Hit Man
T. C. Boyle’s The Hit Man is a clever satire of the short story genre. Written in short paragraphs under sub-headings, the story contains all the necessary elements of a short story. What makes it unusual is that Boyle is able to provide a meaningful account of his protagonist’s entire life (boyhood, adolescence, courtship, death of parents, ‘career’, marriage, family, retirement, death… and even dislike of peas!) in less than 1,200 words. He also manages to deal with some serious issues (bullying, schoolyard violence, judicial system failure, gratuitous murder, glamorized crime and death) along the way. More…
Shopping
This story is about motherly love taken too far. Joyce Carol Oates uses a trip to the mall to explore the relationship between a lonely, divorced mother and her 17-year-old daughter. At one point, the mother wants to ask her daughter: Why are you unhappy? Why do you hate me? Later, the mother stares at her with hatred. The girl is blossoming into independent womanhood. She has been the sole focus of her mother’s life, and the mother is having trouble “letting go”. Themes include helicopter parenting, loneliness, alcoholism and identity. More…
Mitya’s Love
This story by Ivan Bunin portrays the depths of love, and how insecurity and jealousy can destroy it. The story opens with a young Russian man (Mitya) so hopelessly in love with a woman that his jealousy stifles their relationship. They decide to separate for a short period to test their feelings, and he returns to his family estate in the countryside. The separation is torture as she fails to respond to his increasingly desperate letters, and when a “Dear Mikya” note finally arrives, things don’t end well. Themes include passion, sexuality, unrequited love, insecurity, jealousy, obsession, temptation, despair, death. More…