In this story by Peter Taylor, an aged woman looks back at a traumatic period in her youth that may have shaped her life and led to spinsterhood. Her mother’s religious condemnation of alcohol sets the scene for the story. The subsequent loss of her mother following a still-birth, growing up in a (drinking) male-dominated household, and her phobia about the town drunk at a critical period in her life (as she enters puberty) leave her isolated and in fear of the masculine world. Themes include family dynamics, personal growth, isolation and loneliness, fear, cruelty, sexual conflict. More…
The Fence
This story from Hamsad Rangkuti is an allegory of the biblical concept do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Many people are uncomfortable interacting with those who are different or less fortunate. Their solution is to establish social boundaries (fences) that block concerns about them from their lives. The story’s message is two-fold. First, no fence offers complete protection. Second, as exemplified by the vagrant gang, the mere existence of such a fence can bring about the result it is intended to prevent. Themes: (the mother) fear, lack of compassion, selfishness; (the father) kindness, sharing, faith. More…
My Oedipus Complex
The term Oedipus Complex has its roots in psychology and Greek Mythology. In this coming of age story by Frank O’Connor, a five-year-old boy’s ordered life and close attachment to his mother are disrupted, firstly by his father’s return from World War 1, and later by the birth of a baby brother. During the war, the boy’s father is a mysterious, occasional visitor to be prayed for. On his return, his father becomes a fierce rival for his mother’s attentions and later, a fellow victim of the newborn’s demands. Themes include childhood innocence and imagination, mother/father-son relationships, jealousy, anger, understanding. More…
A Clean Well-Lighted Place
This story by Ernest Hemingway takes place in a cafe. Two waiters (one young, the other middle-aged) talk about an old man sitting alone at one of the tables. A line from each waiter exemplifies three major themes. From the young waiter: I wouldn’t want to be that old. An old man is a nasty thing. (attitudes towards the aged). From the older waiter: It [life] was all a nothing and a man was a nothing too. (emptiness and despair). Other themes include aging and death, gender stereotyping, and the fact that money doesn’t buy happiness. More…
The Master Thief
This Norwegian folktale is about a young man whose poor father sends him out into the world to earn a living. He joins a group of robbers, and is so good at stealing that he becomes their leader. The Master Thief returns home a rich man and decides to marry the Governor’s daughter. In order to marry the girl, he must prove how good a thief he is. This story goes against the English idiom: Crime doesn’t pay. The moral seems to be that crime does pay… but only if you are very good at it! More…