This story by Barbara Baynton paints a graphic picture of the isolation and dangers faced by women living in ‘outback’ Australia during the 19th century. A ‘swagman’ traveling the countryside looking for work visits a woman on a farm whose husband is away. She does not like the way he looks at her, and locks herself and her baby in their house. The man is about to break in when they hear a horse rider coming. The woman runs outside and calls for help. However, when the horse rider hears and then sees her, he races away in fright. More…
The Rocking-Horse Winner
This tragic story by D. H. Lawrence is about a boy whose parents seem more interested in their social position than their children. The only adults who have time for the boy are an uncle and the family’s young gardener, both of whom are passionate followers of horseracing. The boy desperately wants his mother’s love and approval. As she is constantly complaining about not having enough money, he comes up with an unusual approach to winning some by betting on the races. Themes include family/parental responsibility, materialism and appearances, greed, selfishness, “luck” vs. hard work. More…
Last Courtesies
This story by Ella Leffland contrasts the way the protagonist, a widow in her late fifties, handles life’s challenges with the approaches taken by her dignified, “old-fashioned” aunt and an eccentric, sometimes mentally unstable friend of her aunt who has appointed himself her “protector”. Unable to cope with noisy neighbors and daily problems following the death of her aunt and long-time companion, the woman suffers a nervous breakdown. After an argument with her “protector”, she falls prey to a vicious serial killer. Themes include alienation and isolation, eccentricity, judgement, passivity vs. assertiveness, rudeness vs. civility, fear, violence. More…
Do What You Can
Sometimes a short, simple children’s story can carry a powerful message for people of all ages. Adapted from an old fable by Carolyn Sherwin Bailey, this story is about a raindrop that sees a farmer in distress. His carefully tended crop of corn is beginning to wither and droop and, although the raindrop knows it cannot save the crop alone, it decides to bring the farmer a moment of happiness. Contrary to the raindrop’s expectation, this makes a big difference. The story shows how a single act of kindness can often motivate others to also do good. More…
Pigs is Pigs
This humorous story by Ellis Parker Butler illustrates how excessive bureaucracy can have dire consequences. A customer argues with a railway freight agent who claims that two guinea pigs he has been sent should be charged as common pigs (sixty cents) rather than pets (fifty cents). The customer leaves the pigs with the agent, planning to collect them after complaining to the freight company’s Head Office. By the time the matter is settled in the customer’s favour, the ten-cent dispute has almost brought the company to its knees. Themes include misinterpretation, stubbornness, bureaucracy gone awry. More…