The term secret sharer in this Joseph Conrad adventure could apply to both the protagonist (a young ship’s captain preparing for his first sea command) and his fugitive cabin guest. The similarities between them in terms of age, appearance and background suggest that Conrad is using the guest as a foil to highlight the captain’s strengths and weaknesses. Unlike the guest, the captain is unsure of himself and does not project the self-confidence and authority needed to gain the respect of his older, more experienced officers. Themes include leadership, isolation, identity, duality, self-awareness, self-mastery, and the power of the sea. More…
Holiday
In this disturbing story from Katherine Porter, a young woman suffering undisclosed “troubles” decides she needs a holiday. On the recommendation of a friend, she visits the farm of a German immigrant family. During her stay, she feels a special connection with a “crippled, badly deformed” serving girl. Later, she is concerned to learn that the girl is the parent’s older daughter who, because of her disabilities, has been consigned to a life of drudgery and is largely ignored by the otherwise loving family. Themes: family, gender roles, the beauty and power of nature, alienation, suffering, life and death, humanity. More…
The Metaphor
In this coming-of-age story by Budge Wilson, a seventh-grade girl flourishes under a flamboyant English teacher. Inspired by the teacher, she learns to endure problems at home by writing metaphors. Four years later, she has the same teacher in high school. The unruly tenth graders constantly humiliate the poor woman, who has difficulty coping. Rather than acknowledge their past or offer thanks for her help in seventh grade, the girl ignores her. When the teacher dies in a tragic after-school accident, the devastated teen copes with her guilt by writing a metaphor. Themes include identity, peer pressure, guilt, self-realization. More…
The Sphinx without a Secret
In this story by Oscar Wilde, two old college friends discuss a mysterious woman one of them had fallen in love with. The relationship ended when she refused to reveal the secret behind her apparent paranoia about being contacted at home and a clandestine visit to a boarding house. The major themes of the story are love and trust, as evidenced by the narrator’s initial comment: women are meant to be loved, not be understood and his friend’s retort: I cannot love where I cannot trust. Other themes include the allure of mystery, obsession, insecurity, jealousy, privacy, escape. More…
An Uncomfortable Bed
In this story by Guy de Moupassant, a man on a hunting holiday stays in a large country house with a group of friends. They, and the protagonist, enjoy playing practical jokes on one another. When he arrives, the others seem much more jovial than usual. He is suspicious and, when they all go to bed, takes great care to make sure his room contains no traps. He doesn’t find any, but his friends still have a good laugh at his expense the next day. Themes include camaraderie, appearances vs. reality, suspicion, paranoia, embarrassment. More…