The Emperor’s New Clothes

The Emperor's New Clothes: children's story by from Hans Christian AndersenThe main theme of this famous children’s story from Hans Christian Andersen is, of course, vanity. Other themes include deceit, gullibility, honesty (fear of speaking up) and pride. The Emperor who puts appearance before the well-being of his people, and his courtiers who sense that something is amiss but don’t have the courage to report it, carry two important messages. We shouldn’t judge people by the clothes they wear, what brand of phone they carry etc., and children should be encouraged to speak up if safe to do so when they see something that is wrong.

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The Pearl

The Pearl: Short story by John SteinbeckThis novella from John Steinbeck describes a battle between good and evil and exposes the best and worst in human nature. Sadly, evil wins out. An uneducated Mexican-Indian pearl diver from a poor fishing community outside a Spanish town dreams of a better life for his family after discovering a pearl as large as a sea-gull’s egg on the ocean floor. After multiple instances of townspeople trying to manipulate and cheat him and later, to violently steal the pearl, his dream turns into a tragic nightmare. Themes: family/community, racism, colonialism, oppression, materialism, greed, corruption, fate.

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No Witchcraft for Sale

No Witchcraft for Sale: Short story by Doris LessingDoris Lessing’s years growing up on a Rhodesian farm add credibility to this story about a condescending white family’s relationship with their native cook who, it seems, doubles as a local medicine man. The closeness that exists between the cook and their young son evaporates as the boy ages and becomes aware of racial issues, but is rekindled when the cook uses “bush medicine” to save the boy’s eyesight. The parents’ gratitude turns to anger as the cook refuses to reveal the secret of the cure to a greedy scientist. Themes: racism, ancient wisdom, altruism vs. commercial exploitation, cultural conflict.

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Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?

Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?: Short story by Joyce Carol OatesThe plot of this award-winning story by Joyce Carol Oates in a nutshell: attractive, self-absorbed, rebellious teen under Why can’t you be like your big sister? pressure meets a predatory psychopath with, one imagines, predictable results. What sets the story apart is the way Oates, using dialogue alone, transforms a cautionary tale for young women into a psychological thriller that gradually develops into a horror story. Themes include search for identity, independence, sexuality and control, appearance vs. reality, malevolence, psychological manipulation and (if you believe Connie really sacrificed herself for her family), self-sacrifice.

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The Gioconda Smile

The Gioconda Smile: Short story by Aldous HuxleySuperficially Aldous Huxley’s Gioconda Smile is a straightforward story about a narcissistic womanizer who learns to his cost the meaning of the expression: Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. On another level, it is a wonderful satire of the lavish, hedonistic lifestyles of upper-middle-class 1920s British society. The protagonist’s apparent lack of conscience may be due to his admitted psychopathy (not only did he not feel sympathy for the poor, the weak, the diseased, and deformed; he actually hated them). This raises the question: did he really deserve his fate? Themes: vanity, philandering, class, passion, murder, rejection, betrayal.

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Pigeon Feathers

Pigeon Feathers: Short story by John UpdikeJohn Updike’s Pigeon Feathers is a web of conflicts and satire. The central conflict is thirteen-year-old David’s crisis of faith, which he ultimately resolves through an epiphany born out of bloody violence. David’s questioning leads to conflict with the family church minister, who dismisses his concerns by inanely equating Heaven to the “goodness” of Abraham Lincoln. Unresolved conflicts include country vs. city living, and the organic (the land has a soul) vs. chemical (the earth is nothing but chemicals) farming debate between David’s parents. Themes: environmentalism, aging and death, family, isolation, spirituality, science vs. religion, the wonder of nature, faith.

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Heart of Darkness

Heart of Darkness: Short story by Joseph ConradThis story by Joseph Conrad is told through the eyes of a riverboat captain sent into the heart of Africa to contact an enigmatic trading post manager employing questionable methods. It explores the concept of Darkness on several levels. At the highest, we have the ‘darkness’ of unexplored Africa, and the ‘darkness’ of European imperialism in seeking to subjugate its peoples and exploit its resources. On a more fundamental level, we have the potential ‘darkness’ (capacity for cruelty/evil) in the heart of every man. Themes include alienation and loneliness, power, moral and mental degeneration under colonialism, racism, cruelty, greed, exploitation.

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The Disk

The Disk: Short story by Jorge BorgesJorge Borges gives this story a timeless quality by setting it in medieval times and framing it like a fairy-tale. A traveler arrives at an isolated woodcutter’s hut claiming to be an exiled king descended from Odin, the Norse king of the gods. He supports this by showing the woodcutter what he claimss to be the disk of Odin, the only one-dimensional object in the universe. Ironically, the woodcutter answers: I do not worship Odin, I worship Christ… and then kills him to possess Odin’s disk. Theme: the desire to own something that holds power over the world around us.

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The Twelve Months

The Twelve Months: Slavic folktale from Josef BaudisAlthough this folktale has been called the “Slavic Cinderella”, for me it doesn’t quite get there. We have a young girl persecuted by family and a magical element (the gods of the twelve months of the year) that helps her, but here the comparison ends. There is no ball or special event, no beautiful clothes, and no handsome prince. She falls in love with a kind man and the two spend a blissful life of drudgery taking care of her family farm. As nice as it seems, this is not what most people would call a ‘fairytale’ ending!

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The Garden of Stubborn Cats

The Garden of Stubborn Cats: Short story by Italo CalvinoIn this Italo Calvino fantasy, a bored man spends his lunch breaks following a neighbourhood cat on its afternoon rounds through his rapidly growing the city. Thanks to the cat, he discovers a secret world within the city known only to its feline inhabitants. The story takes a grim turn when the cat steals a fish and leads the man to an overgrown garden that provides the last sanctuary for stray cats in the city. When progress tries to claim it, the cats and other animal residents fight back. Themes: social class, the negative aspects of progress, adaptivity, rebellion.

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