Blog Entry Four Searching For Love

In the short stories “The Lady with the Pet Dog”, by Anton Chekhov and “The Horse Dealer’s Daughter”, by D.H. Lawrence we are sent on two separate journeys of finding love. In Chekhov’s story we are introduced to Dmitritch Gurov. Gurov is a self-proclaimed ladies man. He is married, yet finds himself no longer in love with his wife. He seems proud of the fact that he has cheated countless on times on his wife. Although he no longer loves her he feels trapped because he cannot live without women, yet he feels an inner hatred for them. “It seemed to him that he had been so schooled by bitter experience that he might call them what he liked, and yet he could not get on for two days together without ‘the lower race’ “ (Chekhov).  Gurov uses women to fill the void he has within, and toys with their emotions. He meets a young lady by the name of Anna Sergeyevena, who at first he wants solely because she will meet his sexual and emotional needs, but upon spending time with her he realizes that his feelings for her are growing stronger. Sergeyevena is a married woman who also finds herself no longer in love with her husband. At first their interactions are innocent, but overtime their encounters are becoming more intimate and eventually find themselves having an affair. When Sergeyevena leaves, Gurov begins to realize that he is in love with her, and that she is all he thinks about. “When he shut his eyes he saw her as though she was; and he imagines himself finer than he had been in Yalta”. Gurov began with the intentions of using her and then doing away with her, but he had fallen in love. I believe the message being told is to never lose hope in trying to find love. Gurov had lost all hope in his marriage, but when he met Sergeyevena he was able to find love again.

In D.H. Lawrence short story “The Horse Dealer’s Daughter”, we are introduced to Mabel and Jack. Mabel is a young woman, stricken with grief after the death of her father, and Jack is a doctor. In the beginning of the story, I was under the impression that Mabel and Jack hated each other.  As the story progresses it becomes evident that Jack has romantic feelings Mabel, “He followed her minutely as she moved direct and intent. Like something transmitted rather than stirring in voluntary activity.” (Lawrence) Jack watches her and saves her when she jumps into the pond, in an attempt to kill herself. After spending time alone, they begin to reveal their true feelings for one another, “You love me?” she said, rather faltering. (Lawrence) “Yes.” The word cost him a painful effort. Not because it wasn’t true, but because it was too newly true, the saying seemed to tear open again his newly-torn heart.” Mabel and Jack have are both lonely and in pain, and have found love and comfort in one another.

The statement both authors are attempting  to make about love is, it is never too late to find love .In Chekhov’s story the characters have fallen out of love with their partners and have managed to find love with one another. In Lawrence’s short story the characters are alone, and find comfort and love in one another. Although the approach is different, the need is the same; all four character are in search of love.

Irony Blog Three

Irony is a technique that writers use to set up expectations in the readers mind. In the short story “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe, he uses both verbal and dramatic irony several times throughout the story to build suspense, and to foreshadow future events in the story for the reader. An example of irony in Poe’s short story would be the character Fortunato’s name. Fortunato’s name is Italian and the translation of his name stands for good fortune and luck. However, it is evident throughout the story that Fortunato is anything but fortunate or lucky. In reality, Fortunato is going to his death. Another example in the story where Poe used irony is when Montresor pretends to be concerned about the cough that Fortunato has. As both Montresor and Fortunato make their way deeper and deeper into the vaults, Montresor says, “We will go back. Your health is precious. You are rich, respected, admired, and beloved; you are happy as I once was. You are a man to be missed.” (Poe) Fortunato then replies to Montresor that he should not worry about his cough, “The cough is a mere nothing; it will not kill me. I will not die of a cough.” (Poe). Montresor then replies to Fortunato, “True-True.” (Poe). At this point in the story it becomes evident to the reader that Montresor is plotting the death of Fortunato.

In Kate Chopin’s short story “The Story of an Hour" we can also find several examples of irony. Mrs. Mallard is an older lady who is told tragic news that her husband has been killed in a train accident. Upon hearing of the death of her husband Mrs. Mallard leaves to her room by herself, and everyone believes that she is completely distraught and mourning the death of her husband, when in reality she is overjoyed upon hearing of his death, “It was only yesterday she had thought with a shudder that life might be long.” (Chopin). It seems that her husband was an overbearing man who never let his wife accomplish the things she wanted to do in her life. Another example of irony in the story is the weather, outside it is bright, warm and beautiful which is completely opposite of the situation of her husbands death and the grief that people are meant to be experiencing when faced with such a tragic event in their life. Yet another example of irony in the story is the death of Mrs. Mallard. At the beginning of the story the reader is told of her present heart problems. At the end of the story as Mrs. Mallard is coming down the stairs she is shocked to see her husband walk in through the door, and upon seeing him she dies of heart disease.

In conclusion, both Poe and Chopin used irony effectively throughout their stories.

A Writer is Born Blog Entry Two

In the short story “How to Become a Writer” by Lorrie Moore we are introduced to a young girl by the name of Francie, who by chance and certain circumstances discovers her true passion for writing. Throughout the short story it is clear that the author Lorrie Moore is writing about herself, and all the struggles, criticism and career choices she contemplated on, before finally realizing that writing was a skill she possessed and enjoyed doing. The tension that is created in the story is between Francie, the narrator, and all the people she encountered throughout her life who criticized her choice of becoming a writer. The story would not have been as effective and successful had the author used a different point of view. By using the second point of view, the author is able to engage the reader and have them believe that Francie is speaking about them and the steps that they should take if they want to become a writer.

  

    Francie encounters countless times of tension throughout the story. The tension is between her mother, classmates, and professors. For the most they all try to discourage her from the dreams she has to become a writer. Her classmates, mother and professors all try to discourage Francie from the dream she has to become a writer, “You have to think about what is happening. Where is the story here?” (Moore), or “Francie, Francie, remember when you were going to be a child psychology major?” (Moore)  Throughout all this turmoil and conflict Francie refuses to give up on her dream.

   Throughout the story the point of view that is used, makes the reader believe that they are being spoken directly to by the narrator. With phrases like, “Decide that you like college life,”(Moore) or “You will continue, unfortunately, to view the world in exactly these terms for the rest of your life.” (Moore). Slowly throughout the story it becomes evident that the narrator is not speaking to the reader, but she is telling her personal life story in a humorous tone. She tells her story to the reader in a sarcastic manner, making fun of the idea that a person would actually believe there are steps taken, in order to become a writer. The title of the story “How to Become a Writer”, makes fun of the very thought that a writer can be made, the narrator is actually trying to insinuate that a great writer is born and not made.  

   In conclusion, a different point of view would have changed the story dramatically. A different point of view would have been impersonal, and would not have connected the narrators own struggles with similar hardships that the reader may have encountered throughout their own personal life. 

Blog Entry One

After reading the short stories that were assigned for this blog, I became intrigued with the countless ways that the authors jumped between several different time periods within their stories. For example in the short story, “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’ Brien, the author uses this technique several times throughout the story.  In the story we are introduced to Lieutenant Ross, he is at war, and struggles to maintain his focus on keeping his soldiers alive and away from daydreaming of a life with a young girl named Martha who he fell in love with before going to war.  For example, the men had missions in which they were required to search out and destroy the tunnel complexes in the Tan Khe area south of Chu Lai. Ross travels into the tunnels and once again finds himself reminiscing of Martha, “After five minutes, Lieutenant Jimmy Cross moved to the tunnel, leaned down and examined the darkness. Trouble, he thought-a cave-in maybe. And then suddenly, without willing it he was thinking about Martha.” By switching between Ross’ current situation and his fantasies about Martha, O’ Brien has the ability to control the suspense in the story. The reader is involved in more than just one aspect of Lieutenant Ross’ life. The fact that O’ Brien gave us some details about Ross’ life outside of war, made him more human. It gave the reader the opportunity to become more involved with Lieutenant Jimmy Cross’ character.

   

   Another technique used by authors is omitting certain information from the reader until the story nears its conclusion. William Faulkner uses this technique in his short story, “A Rose for Emily.” By withholding certain information from the reader Faulkner is able to shock the audience at the end of the story. Throughout the story the reader is left in the dark about the whereabouts of Rose’s lover, “And that was the last we saw of Homer Barron. And of Miss Emily for some time.”  By building suspense William Faulkner is able to maintain the reader’s interest in the story. Without suspense Faulkner would lose the readers interest.  He allows the reader to come up with their own assumption about what happened to Emily’s husband Homer Barron, and then at the end of the novel he hits the reader with a huge revelation and an ending that was completely unexpected, “For a long while we just stood there, looking down at the profound and fleshless grin. What was left of him, rotted beneath what was left of the nightshirt had become inextricable from the bed in which he lay.”

  

    In conclusion, both of these techniques achieve the goal of maintaining the reader’s interest in the story.Tim O’ Brien engages the audience by providing the reader with a back-story to the character. He takes the reader on a journey that jumps from Ross’ present situation, and then moments later the reader is experiencing a past event. On the other hand William Faulkner omits facts throughout his short story, which engages the reader into fantasizing their own version of events, and helps to engage the reader. Both techniques are equally successful and help to maintain the readers attention.