Short Story Recommendation #1

Suggestion 1: 

I just finished reading the short story, Regret, by Kate Chopin. The main character is a 50 year old woman named Mamzelle Aurlie. She is not married and lives on a farm with her dog Ponto and several people who work for her on her farm. The third line of the short story describes the a solitary life Mamzelle leads since “...she was quite alone in the world, except for her dog Ponto...her gun (with which she shot chicken-hawks), and her religion.” Mamzelle is not unhappy but rather she is content with her life. She never married but she does not regret her decision until her life changes and it makes her rethink her decisions. 

I was drawn to the story when I read the detailed description of Mamzelle’s  love life. Chopin tells the reader that Mamzelle “had never thought of marrying. She had never been in love. At the age of twenty she had received a proposal, which she had promptly declined, and at the age of fifty she has not yet lived to regret it.”  After reading this paragraph, I immediately wanted to continue reading and find out if she ends up regretting her choices. 

The focus of the short story is on Mamzelle and her feelings and emotions about her life as a single woman. All of a sudden, she goes from living a lonely isolated life to one in which she is caring for four young children. I felt Mamzelle’s mood though the descriptive language. Chopin says she “contemplated” the children and she “looked with a critical eye upon” them and she “surveyed” them. She clearly was not taking this lightly but she wasn’t sure what to do. I felt myself caught up in her situation. Mamzelle  was not nurturing but rather stiff and professional. I laughed when her solution was to just go ahead and feed the children because food makes everything better . 

After Mamzelle decides to feed the kids, I wanted to see what her next steps would be. I was anxious to see if she would warm up to them and actually enjoy having them with her. Mamzelle’s quiet existence was suddenly interrupted when four children abruptly entered her life. As time went on, she developed a routine with the children and got used to having them around. She enjoyed having them run around her house and having them laugh and snuggle with her. At the end of two weeks, she saw her neighbor approach her home to pick up the four children. Mamzelle was surprised to see her and was even agitated. She was alone again and the “excitement was all over.”  I was sad for Mamzelle to see her back to where she started because she was enjoying herself. I almost hoped that there was a way for her to continue a close relationship with the children. I really felt for her.

Chopin wants us to have a understanding of what it means to be lonely and the feeling of regret. I really enjoyed this short story because it made me think about consequences and how both small and large decisions have such a great impact on our lives. We are constantly making decisions for ourselves and they are not always the right decisions but we have to live with them. We may regret them but we still have to deal with the decision.  

Link to the short story: http://americanliterature.com/author/kate-chopin/short-story/regret

Short Story Recommendation #2

Suggestion 2:
T.S. Arthur writes an emotional short story entitled An Angel in Disguise. The story focuses on three young kids who’s mother suddenly dies. They are left alone and have no one to care for them. Despite the fact that everybody in the mother’s village despises her, they gather together to figure out what to do with her kids. The youngest daughter, who is disabled, had nowhere to go. Arthur clearly contrasts the death of the mother and the children she left behind. He creates sympathy for the children but he also creates suspense because we don’t know if anyone will decide to take care of the kids.

I was immediately drawn to the story when I read the first line which begins, “idleness, vice, and intemperance had done their miserable work, and the dead mother lay cold and still amid her wretched children.” This line really grabbed me and made me want to see what happened to the mother. It grabbed me in because it contained many emotional words and it was inevitable that something huge had just occurred.  I was sure this was a murder mystery. As I read on it became clear that the mother died of alcohol poisoning and left behind her young children. Arthur describes in detail the poor life that they led and how deprived the kids were. 

The short story begins to focus on the future of the youngest child, Maggie, who had fallen from a window and left with a spinal chord injury. Joe Thompson, a neighbor decided to take her home. Although they did not have any children of their own, this was not a perfect solution because his wife was very mean. She was not welcoming to the girl. I felt myself sympathizing with Maggie and hoping that Mrs. Thompson would warm up to her. In our society, sympathy is a rarity. People tend to care about themselves rather than other people. I think it is important that dire situations evoke sympathy from others. This story is a lesson that when someone is in deep trouble that people should care and people look out for that person.  It was refreshing to read about people who cared about one another even though it is fictional. It made me hopeful for the real world.

Arthur wants the readers to realize that change is not bad and that sometimes the things you dread become the best things for you. I liked this story because it was though provoking and realistic. It had an emotional element that really stuck with me long after I had finished reading it. Mrs. Thompson did not want Maggie at first but then realized that she was happier taking care of someone and being responsible for someone. I loved that Mrs. Thompson found happiness by caring for someone else. 

This story is very similar to Regret by Kate Chopin. In both stories, the characters learned to care for other people and overcome loneliness and sadness. It was interesting to me that in both of these short stories children helped the characters become happy. I think this is because children are special. 

Link to the short story: http://americanliterature.com/author/ts-arthur/short-story/an-angel-in-disguise

"The Littlest Hitler" By: Ryan Boudinot

"The Littlest Hitler" by Ryan Boudinot shows us that not everybody follows the rules that society establishes. The narrator even says that he likes his dad because he did not seem to follow the rules that other grownups are obligated to follow. Therefore, Davy dressed up as Hitler for halloween one year. I was shocked when I first read this and wondered where the story was going after this opening line. His father encourages him to go as Hitler regardless of what everyone would think. Unlike his father, Davy is affected by what his classmates think. Ironically, Lisette comes dressed as Anne Frank. The teacher tries to be sympathetic to both Davy and Lisette and asks them to talk about the historical component of their costumes. Davy was surprised that most of his classmates sided with Lisette and Anne Frank and he felt really bad they did not understand that he was just dressing up for Halloween. He took of his costume and as he describes, by the time the school parade started he was completely "demoralized." This was a very interesting read because Davy and his father had strikingly different outlooks on life. Davy had a miserable time at the school Halloween party. He did not even have fun trick or treating later in the evening. I think that it is very wrong that he dressed up as Hitler but, I still feel bad that he did not enjoy his Halloween. This is a memorable snap shot into Davy's childhood which made me think about my own childhood memories.

Story From My Childhood: A story from my childhood that has really stuck with me is when I was walking to school one day when I was in kindergarten. It was a warm fall day, and all the houses on my street were decorated for Halloween. There was one house in particular that caught my eye. There was a large pumpkin on the steps that was decorated like a pirate. It was an enormous pumpkin. While my mom and I were walking to school, I glanced over at the pumpkin. I couldn't stop staring at it and I kept on walking. Before I knew it, I tripped on a bump in the sidewalk and landed flat on my face. I looked at my mom and started sobbing. My chin was gushing blood and my tights were ripped. I turned around and sprinted to my house. My mom followed and we cleaned up my chin. I was able to go to school even though I had several bandages on my chin. I was scared and did not enjoy seeing the blood. I will always remember this moment.

"A Good Man is Hard to Find" By: Flannery O'Connor

"A Good Man is Hard to Find" by Flannery O'Connor is a disturbing short story. It begins with what seems to be a simple story about a family taking a road trip. O'Connor foreshadows the tragedy at the beginning of the story when the grandmother talks about The Misfit. The grandmother does not want to go to Florida because she said there is a fugitive on the loose known as The Misfit. She states that she would never be able to live with herself if she took her children, "in any direction with a criminal like that aloose in it." As the story unfolds, the family starts on their road trip and stops at a diner called The Tower and meets the owner Red Sam and his wife. The grandmother has a deep discussion with Red Sam about how people are not as sincere as they used to be. This conversation struck me. The story becomes even more scary when the family is in a car accident and three strangers approach the car. To my surprise, one of the stranger is The Misfit. At this point, it becomes clear that all of the grandmother's fears are going to come true. Immediately, the grandmother recognizes The Misfit and that is when all the trouble begins. I started to tremble when I read this and I knew that the family would never survive this encounter. This story left me scared. I couldn't believe that the whole family was murdered. The Misfit was such a horrible character and the ending was just so tragic.

Significance of the Title to the Story: The title, "A Good Man is Hard to Find" seems to refer to the fact that it is hard to find people who have a good heart and are trustworthy. The grandmother told Red Sam at the diner that people aren't the way they used to be. It is obvious because the family had an encounter with very evil people and it ended in a horrible tragedy. The grandmother said people are not as nice as they used to be and therefore, a "good" person is hard to find in this world today. The grandmother tried to find some goodness in The Misfit but he wasn't good at all.

"Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" By: Joyce Carol Oates

Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? by Joyce Carol Oates for Bob Dylan was creepy. Oates builds suspense with very vivid details. Connie, the main character, is a somewhat rebellious teenager who doesn't get a long with her mom and spends a lot of time with her friends. She goes shopping and to movies like other teenage girls and she seems confused by her teenage years. Connie is very happy with the way she looks and thinks that she is very attractive to guys. Toward middle of the story two men are introduced, Arnold and Ellie. They appear at Connie's home and demand that she get into their car. Arnold and his friend Ellie are very scary and gave me the chills when I read how they approached Connie at her home. It was really scary when they described in detail where her family was and the fact that Connie knew they were much older men. She was frightened and so was I when I read it. The end left me a bit confused. I assumed that Arnold and Ellie forced her to go with them as she describes the future, "... so much land that Connie had never seen before and did not recognize except to know that she was going to it." She is walking in to an unknown situation that will probably harm her. I did not like this short story because it was frightening but, on the other hand, Oates creates a compelling story that draws you into the story.

Image that Captures the Mood of the Story:  This picture captures the mood of Connie's isolation and confrontation with Arnold and Ellie.

Link for Picture: https://www.pinterest.com/robyn81657/plantation-ruins/

"A & P" By: John Updike

A & P by John Updike is an intriguing short story. The story begins with the sentence, "in walks these three girls in nothing but bathing suits." This first line immediately drew me into the story and I was anxious to find out where the girls were walking around. I was quite surprised to find out that they were in a grocery store. It was somewhat humorous. As the story continued from the male narrator's perspective, I realized that he was very critical of the girls and their physical appearances. The twist comes at the end when the narrator, Sammy, decides to quit his job. While he has not been sympathetic to the girls up to this point, he is offended by the way Lengel, the store owner, criticizes the girls for being in the store with bathing suits. Lengel tells the girls that they should be dressed "decently" when they come into the store. The girls claim that they are "decent." Even though Sammy has examined every part and move that the girls make in the store, he is sympathetic to them. It is interesting how he views himself as the "unsuspected hero" and comes to their rescue. He quits his job as a statement. He defends their honor. This was a very satisfying ending and in a way surprising. I enjoyed this short story. 

Favorite passage: "You know, it's one thing to have a girl in a bathing suit down on the beach, where what with the glare nobody can look at each other much anyway, and another thing in the cool of the A & P, under the florescent lights, against all of those stacked packages, with her feet paddling along naked over our checkboard green-and-cream-rubber-tile floor." 

Why I like it: I like this passage because it creates a contrast between the expected and the unexpected. We expect to see girls in bathing suits at the beach. We do not expect to see them in the cold and boring environment of a grocery store. I really like the image of the florescent lights and the stacked packages as a background for the girls in bathing suits.

Purpose it serves:  This passage shows us how out of place the girls are in the setting of the grocery store. It connects the end of the story when Lengel says that the girls are not "decent" to be in the store. They do not belong under florescent lights and on tile floor, but they belong on a beach with the warm sun hitting them. 

"A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings" By: Gabriel García Márquez

A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings by Gabriel García Márquez is a mystical short story. Many aspects of the story include a contrast between the complexity of the natural and the supernatural. The angel came to help Pelayo and Elisenda because their child was very sick. The couple quickly took advantage of the angel and used him to their own advantage. They put him in a cage and they charged admission to view him. Pelayo and Elisenda were ecstatic with all of their money and they even bought themselves a larger home. It was disappointing to me that they were not grateful for the angel's help. At the end, when the angel leaves them, Elisenda says that he was, "no longer an annoyance in her life but an imaginary dot on the horizon of the sea." This shows she and her husband did not really appreciate having the angel around and all the good he brought to them.

3 Questions:
1) Is Gabriel García Márquez making a comment on human nature and how many people do not appreciate kind acts towards them?
2) Why did Pelayo and Elisenda react so selfishly toward the angel?
3) Why was the angel characterized as an old man with enormous wings rather than a more mystical being?