This story by Juan Rulfo describes the devastating impact of an unexpected flood on a post-revolutionary Mexican farming family and, in doing so, highlights the limited life choices available to children of the rural poor. Told in the form of a narrative by a boy, we learn that in addition to losing their entire crop, his family lost a precious cow intended to provide “capital” to prevent his twelve-year-old sister from following their older sisters into prostitution. His mother questions God; his father accepts their fate. Themes include family, poverty/social injustice, the unpredictability and power of nature, helplessness, fatalism, prostitution.
The Good Deed
In this story by Pearl S. Buck, an elderly Chinese woman brought to America by her son has difficulty adjusting to her new environment. With no English and a distaste for American ways she feels isolated, with no purpose in life. Things change when she meets a kind-hearted but “ugly” friend of her daughter-in-law who is worried about becoming Sheng nü (a left-over woman). Despite the language barrier and her inability to get around, she sets out to find her a husband. Themes include identity, tradition, cultural adaption, alienation and isolation, loneliness, respect, the nature of beauty, compassion, kindness. More…
Drying Out
Drying Out is from Cynthia Rylant’s book Every Living Thing, which contains several stories aimed at school-aged children about how animals can change people’s lives. In this story, the expression ‘Drying Out’ has nothing to do with water. Rather, it is an idiom which means for someone who is dependent on alcohol to stop drinking. The main character (protagonist) is a returned soldier whose life is ruined when he starts drinking too much after his wife leaves him. He is sent to a special hospital where some unlikely friends who visit every morning help him to overcome his problem. More…
The Pursuer
This story is said to be Julio Cortázar’s first attempt at realism. Although the subject of the story (prodigious jazz musician Johnny Parker) is fictional, the events closely follow the personal life and last months of jazz legend Charlie Parker. Told through the eyes of Johnny’s close friend and biographer, the story not only pays tribute Parker’s extraordinary talent, but also lays bare the demons (mental health problems, heroin addiction, and alcohol abuse) that led to his death at thirty-four. Themes include friendship, mental illness, substance abuse, pursuit in art and life, the nature of time and reality. More…
The Crooked Man
Set 500 years in the future, this story by Charles Beaumont envisions a dystopian world where homosexuality is the norm, heterosexuality is not only frowned upon but illegal, and children are tube-born and machine-nursed. Although the male protagonist is strongly attracted to a young woman, both struggle to deal with physical contact due to their social conditioning. As they cannot show affection in public, she disguises herself and they meet in a sleazy “men only” bar. In the end, she gets what she came for and his concerns are resolved. Themes include oppression, prejudice, sexual orientation, depravity.