Although this story from Cynthia Rylant touches on romantic feelings, it is more about how an act of friendship helps a socially challenged young man develop the courage to face the world. Jack, a group home carer, takes a special interest in one of its residents (Ernie). Thanks to Jack, Ernie finds peace and purpose growing flowers. As they grow, so does Ernie’s self-confidence. When Ernie decides to anonymously share his flowers with a woman he is attracted to, he unknowingly creates positive change in the lives of two people he doesn’t even know. Themes: isolation, beauty, friendship, love, sharing. More…
The Fly
Katherine Mansfield‘s The Fly is about death, grief and aging. Two old men handle their sons’ wartime deaths differently. Six years have passed. Mr Woodifield, in poor health physically and mentally, has come to terms with the loss of his son. “The boss”, healthy and successful, still grieves… but not for his son. He laments the sacrifices he made in preparing the boy to take over his business, and shows his true character by torturing a fly. This leaves him feeling wretched and frightened. Could the fly’s struggles have reminded him that even the strongest (himself included) eventually die? More…
The Outsider
H. P. Lovecraft was a pioneer of cosmic horror, a sub-genre in which gothic settings and “other-worldly” elements replace shock and gore. A feature of his writing is nightmare-like plot twists that defy logic or reason. Here, a man grows up alone in a decaying castle set among frightening woods. When he climbs the crumbling castle tower to look further afield, he finds a stone slab that leads to an earth-like world above the clouds. He is excited to encounter other people, but soon learns a frightening truth. Themes include alternative reality, isolation and loneliness, social rejection, alienation, self-discovery. More…
Off
In this story by Aimee Bender a conceited, deliberately overdressed woman attends a party with the stated objective of kissing three men of different hair color. Her character is defined in an anecdote about how she once named her Great Dane “Off” to play with the minds of other women at a dog park. The independently wealthy woman is highly insecure, struggling to fit in and form meaningful relationships. This results in bitterness and vindictiveness towards other women, and a demeaning climax as she tries to win kiss number three. Themes include self-admiration, loneliness, insecurity, jealousy and bitterness, hope. More…
Signs and Symbols
Vladimir Nabokov once indicated that Signs and Symbols contains a second story hidden behind various textual clues. The frame story, which involves an elderly couple’s dilemma about how to deal with their institutionalized mentally ill son, is a moving piece of dramatic prose in its own right. The supposed inner story has been the subject of much speculation. So far, nobody has convincingly decoded it. Perhaps there is none, Nabokov’s intention being to encourage readers to pay more attention to the signs and symbols in their own lives. Themes include mental illness, alienation, misfortune, suffering, poverty, death, parental love, hope. More…