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Children are supposed to be the pride and joy of an adult’s life. When someone’s child is born, the love that is shared between the parents and child is unbreakable; the bond is impenetrable. Nearly everyone, one day would desire to become a parent. Moreover, when that day comes and the little one enters the world, the child is the most important thing in their parents’ lives. Parents cherish the simple precious moments with their son or daughter, which is imbedded in their memory forever. For instance, the first time one holds their baby, or the first time steps are taken, the first time the child smiles, the first time the little one utters the words mamma or dada, or says’ I love you. There are no words to express the feelings one possesses …show more content…
when these treasurable occasions take place. They even remember the bad times; the first time the child falls off a bike, or the first time they come home crying since someone picked on them at school.
But, the worst of them all is finding out that your little angel is on the verge of losing his or her life. When you lose or are close to losing your child’s life that in itself, is the definition of pure torture and agony. While reading “The Bath” and “A Small Good Thing” by Raymond Carver, individuals see what parents’ go through when they are at the brink about to lose their child. According to McCaffery et al. watching characters in Caver’s stories is like spending time with people who have just had a huge fight before you get together, this is true of the characters in the two short stories; that revel emotional depths and creates hidden meanings: (p.228). These feelings are displayed between the parents’ and the baker. The link between these two stories are that Scotty gets in an accident, yet in both stories it is portrayed differently. This is supported by May, who agrees that “ Carver adds explanatory information to 'A Small, Good Thing' that adds nothing significant to the original version entitled ‘The Bath’ …show more content…
(48). “The Bath”, focuses on the adults rather than their eight year old son, and the constant anonymous calls that the parents receive, when they are home. “A Small Good Thing” expresses more about how this shocking event is exaggerated by constant unidentified calls from a baker. Whom the boy’s mother had previously ordered a customized birthday cake from. The plots are exactly the same; this is a general idea of what each story is about, yet “A Small Good Thing” uses more descriptive details. Each story centers on a couple whose child was hit by a vehicle on his eighth birthday. After that, he was hospitalized and remained in a coma. The author Raymond Carver explains on why he wrote the two stories, “ Certainly there's a lot more optimism in "A Small Good Thing." In my own mind I consider them to be really two entirely different stories, not just different versions of the same story; it's hard to even look on them as coming from the same source. I went back to that one, as well as several others, because I felt there was unfinished business that needed attending to. The story hadn't been told originally, it had been messed around with, condensed and compressed in "The Bath" to highlight the qualities of menace that I wanted to emphasize? You see this with the business about the baker, the phone call, with its menacing voice on the other line, the bath, and so on. But I still felt there was unfinished business, so in the midst of writing these other stories for Cathedral I went back to "The Bath" and tried to see what aspects of it needed to be enhanced, re-drawn, re-imagined. When I was done, I was amazed because it seemed so much better. I've had people tell me that they much prefer "The Bath," which is fine, but "A Small Good Thing" seems to me to be a better story” (McCaffery, “An Interview with Raymond Carver” 66). The two stories are very connected to each other considering their storylines are the same. The begging of each story, starts off on a Saturday afternoon with the mother (Ann) ordering a cake at the bakery shop for her birthday boy, Scotty. While expressing to the baker who was listening attentively, that she wanted a chocolate cake for her son; his favorite flavor. She surveys the binder of loose pictures of cakes and chooses the cake with the space theme. She further instructs the baker that there should be the name SCOTTY iced on it, in the color green as if it were the spacecraft’s name. After this, she gives the baker her information, such as telephone number and name. It is decided that the dessert will be ready by Monday morning, which is perfect since the party will be taking place in the afternoon of Monday. Finally Monday morning arrives and the birthday boy is walking to school accompanied by his companion, another boy. While sharing a bag of potato chips, Scotty tried to figure out what his mate wanted to give him for his birthday. Given Scotty’s lack of attention, he takes a step off the curb at an intersection and is hit by a moving vehicle. “He fell on his side with his head in the gutter and his legs out in the road. His eyes were closed, but his legs moved back and forth as if he were trying to climb over something” (Carver, “Small Thing” 1). The first story focuses on the emotions of the characters (Mother and Father) after a tragic incident involving their eight year old son.
One theme here is lack of communication, for instance, when the mother, who is known as mom in this version of the story tells the technician “I don’t understand this,”(Carver, “Bath” 53)(Carver, “Small Thing” 5) when the technician draws blood from Scotty. As any parent, one would like to know specific information, especially when involving a child, yet the tech never explained to either party why he was taking blood. He just continued without argument or clarification. In addition, when the first phone call from the baker is received, Scotty’s father picks up the phone. The baker makes the phone call to figure out why no one has picked up the cake. It is ready and he would like the collect his sixteen dollars. Yet, the father is unaware of a cake, which leads him to hang up the phone on the baker. This lack of communication is between the mother and her husband. Scotty’s father is seated beside Ann in the infirmary, and “he wanted to say something else” (Carver, “Bath” 52)(Carver, “Small Thing” 4). But there was no saying it. Lastly, when mom spots Nelson’s parents, it is acknowledged that Nelson’s mother mistakes her as the doctor and voices, ‘Tell me now, lady” (Carver, “Bath” 55)(Carver, “Small Thing” 7). From this the viewers can tell that no clarification will be detailed since mom is not a doctor and cannot provide any
information; hence, lack of communication. Which is identified as a failure to trade information. The emotions that are expressed in the two main characters are terror. One can tell this by recalling when mom was looking out the window and her eyes meet a woman who is in a parked car, guiding away from the hospital; she pretends she is this woman. The narrator articulates that “she was afraid”(Carver, “Small Thing” 5). She is desperate to have some closure in her life, to leave the hospital, which means her son is up and doing well. Without this information, she is stuck and has all the worries of the world on her shoulder. Another example, is when Scotty’s father was driving home and when finally reaching his destination, he could not bring himself to move his legs to leave the car. This shows that the father is overwhelmed with fear and after it leads him to take a much needed bath. As stated above, mentioning Nelson’s family again, when Ann is finally ready to leave the hospital and meets up with the other parents, viewers can sense that these people are worried and afraid. It gives the reader a sense of helplessness. Lastly, what also connects to helplessness is the constant praying from the mother and father, as well as the desperate need for their child to get well soon. “A Small Good Thing” is the same story as “The Bath” but only written two years later, with increased detailed information. In this account, the mother’s and father’s names are known: Ann and Howard Weiss’. In this interpretation of the tale, the baker constantly calls the Weiss’ residents and when Scotty gets hit by the automobile, it is revealed why the driver fled the scene. Readers can tell the baker only calls in view of the fact that, he doesn’t want to get ripped off since, he wasn’t paid so far and still has the cake in his possession. He has no knowledge of the accident involving the young boy. One can tell this from the scene where the father picks up the phone and is unaware of the cake and the baker response “Don’t hand me that” (Carver, “Bath” 49)(Carver, “Small Thing” 2). It is professed in both stories that this man is basically a loner and has time to constantly call for his money. For instance, Ann is a person who likes to make connections with others; she tries her hardest to attract the baker in small talk; however, he will not come out of his introverted ways. Now from the reoccurring calls both Ann and Howard are irritated and head down to the bakery shop, which was never revealed in the first version. In this edition of the story the theme would be compassion. By this time their son has passed and they inform the baker of the situation at hand, and now with this information, known he apologizes for the things he said earlier on the telephone. From then on, they continued talking which gave the now childless parents closure. He professes all his disappointments, frustrations, and loneliness he experienced through his life. They realized that all of them have been suffering and were able to make a connection. Owing to the sorrow the baker feels, he offers Ann and Howard cinnamon buns after the tragic incident he recently found out about. The cinnamon buns connect to compassion, because it shows a sweet gesture and reminds everyone that sweet little things in life come after a bad day.
Parenting has been a long practice that desires and demands unconditional sacrifices. Sacrifice is something that makes motherhood worthwhile. The mother-child relationship can be a standout amongst the most convoluted, and fulfilling, of all connections. Women are fuel by self-sacrifice and guilt - but everyone is the better for it. Their youngsters, who feel adored; whatever is left of us, who are saved disagreeable experiences with adolescents raised without affection or warmth; and mothers most importantly. For, in relinquishing, a mother feels strong and liberal; and in guild she finds the motivation to right wrong.
... words, and they had better be the right ones, with the punctuation in the right places.” n each of these stories, Carver makes those words take reader to the same scene twice and end up in a new place each time. He is a master wordsmith and the uniqueness that is 'The Bath' and 'A Small Good Thing' is a masterpiece.
Having a kid is an important responsibility for a parent. The teachings, values and morals that the parent imposes on the kid, will have a great impact and will determine the outcome of the kid's personality and way of living. In Everyday Use, a short fiction story by Alice Walker, also in The Bridegroom, a short fiction story by Ha Jin, two different parents and children relationship take place. In Everyday Use, there is an importance in heritage and a struggle between the educated and the non-educated in the relationship of the parent and child. In The Bridegroom, the main character, also being the narrator, made a promise to the child's real parent to take care of the child. This promise has a two-way fold. One fold is that the parent love, care for, and look out for the child. The other fold is that the parent does not respect some of the decisions of the child because they don't align with his. In these two short stories, the strong and caring characters of the parents versus the strong-willed character of the children, the importance of heritage and the overstepping of boundaries due to a promise, shows the conflict and relationship of two generations.
The information presented during this course has increase my knowledge and experience about my role as an early childhood educator. The resources presented helped me to learn ways to promote healthy development and well-being of all children and how to be an advocate for them. I believe this class enriched my knowledge about infant-toddler care and education to the point that I would most like to express to others its importance. One thing that I would like to share is that infant–toddler care and education is crucial for physical and cognitive development. The caregiver/parent interaction is necessary for the children to keep alive the desire for communication and learning. I would like to express to others that we should keep in mind at all times that children are unique individuals that deserve care and respect. The caregiver should be a role model from day one, so the child will learn to copy her, and later on impart the same behavior to others. She should interact with the children to develop a relationship that will help the child to express feelings and emotions in a nice way. Also, I would like to express the importance of teamwork. Parents and caregivers need to work together in developing relationships to promote healthy development for children. According to Mary Benson McMullen and Susan Dixon, “ Each family and professional must learn to work and make decisions together to support the child’s healthy development and to ensure the family’s well-being” (McMullen & Dixon, 2006). In my opinion caregivers need to start developing the relationship with the parents from day one, and supporting their wishes on what they prefer for their child. One way of doing this is by respecting thei...
Women nowadays are becoming mothers at an early age and often have to the raise the child on their own. Due to this hardship, they must improvise when it comes to adjusting to the change of now raising a child and their parenting skills. They must manage their personal goals while trying to provide a stable structure for their child. Many times they fall short due to their lack of resources and stress. Regardless of their romantic relationship status, it often falls on the mother to raise the child. Even though it is important for both parents to be present in a child’s life, if a parent is participating in deviant behavior, then sometimes it is best for the child to be raised by one parent.
Baker gets to know her life story and what is was like growing up in her family. She talks about her father and how he treated them wrong. Mimi’s father was a man who was abusive to her and her mother. He spent all of his money on booze and little on his family. Mimi’s mother would lock the door when her husband would get drunk and her first memories (page 297) of her father was him “smashing the big glass window out of the locked front door to reach the lock inside”. On holidays he would often be drunk and abusive. For example, her mother was building a toy garden under the Christmas tree and Mimi’s drunk father came in and “kicked it to ruins”. Mimi’s father is an example of a bad man because he was mean, abusive, and an alcoholic. He would leave Mimi to fend for herself and she would move around from house to house and then weeks or months later he would show back up wanting to get the family together only to disappear again.
The short story, "A Small, Good Thing" by Raymond Carver tells of two American parents dealing with their son's hospitalization and death as the result of a hit-and-run car accident. The insensitive actions of their local baker add to their anger and confusion, yet by the end of the story, leave them with a sense of optimism and strength. With such content, Carver runs the risk of coming across as sentimental; however, this is not the case, and the anguish of the parents and their shock at the situation is expressed with dignity and understatement. It is a story with a broad appeal: the simple prose makes it accessible to a wide audience, while the complex themes and issues make it appealing to the educated reader. Written in Carver's characteristically minimalist style, the story poignantly evokes not only the trauma of the death of a child, but also the breakdown of communication and empathy in society. The plain and direct narrative style suits the content, conveying the lack of communication that is central to the narrative - between the parents, between the hospital staff, and with the baker. Critically, it is generally considered one of Carver's strongest short stories. It is a tale of isolation and of grief, but also of hope, and, with its fluid, pared-down style, clearly demonstrates why Carver is widely regarded as one of the greatest writers of the late 20th century.
First, from a child's point of view I believe that parents are their child(’s/ren’s) first love. They are the child's example and model of everything in life, they are the child's first teachers. “If parents want to give their children a gift, the best thing they can do is to teach their children to love challenges, be intrigued by mistakes, enjoy effort, and
Raymond Carver’s The Bath is a revised version of his early work of A Small, Good Thing. In his two pieces of the short story, the length of the story significantly varied as The Bath is a lot shorter. Moreover, his former work has more detailed emotional expressions while The Bath lacks communications and leaves to the reader a suspenseful ending. The story begins in a third person view with a mother has her son’s birthday cake made to order at a bakery. Then his son is hit by a car when crossing the road. The mother and father come to hospital and exchange words from the doctor. Finally, the story ends with an unfinished ending which doesn’t show any sign of boy’s fate but a strange phone call that says the son’s name. There are several things
A close relative who considers that they would never be capable of giving emotive stability for their children should have thought twice before deciding to become parents. Accidents occur once in a while, but in most circumstances adults know when to have it or not. Basic and simple, if the person is not prepared, then the person should not even think about it. To be a good parent, the person must be prepared to sacrifice and love unconditionally. To enrich the well-being of a child, the person must be prepared for. LaRossa, Ralph states that “Children who do not have fathers as male role models suffer especially”. It is crucial for a child to be around its loved one .They must learn the lessons that they need to become well-educated persons.
Every parent experiences stressful moments during their daily activities. Whether it may be a screaming baby, a temper tantrum or a stubborn child, the way the parent chooses to react, is significant for the child’s development. Understandably, parents are only human and cannot be perfect all the time. Although no one is expecting perfection, every reaction that parents express is seen by the child, helping them to view the world through their parent’s reactions. Children depend on the adults for survival, the more calm and compassionate the parents are towards their children, the more resilient they become, in being able to handle their emotions. (Firestone, 2011)
A father is someone who protects, loves, supports and raises his children, whether they are biologically related or not. Every single person living on the Earth has a biological father. These biological fathers are supposed to take the responsibility of being a father because they did help bring a child into this world. One of the main responsibilities of a father is providing the child with the necessities of life, which include food, shelter, and clothes. Not only is a father responsible for the physical aspect but the emotional aspect as well. Children need to feel loved, cared for, and emotional support from their parents. A child needs to be reassured, so a father must show his affection, both physically and emotionally. A father needs to be involved in his children’s life. He needs to be a problem solver, playmate, provider, preparer, and he has to have principles. A father has to pr...
The moment a person becomes a parent, their role in life is patently altered. A parent must become a guide, a teacher, and a role model in the life of their child. As studies have shown, a significant connection is linked in the overall development of a child. The Attachment Theory states that a child will develop into a healthy, functioning adult in the contest of a continuous relationship with and emotional attachment to a parent figure (Hairston 2007). Yet, what may occur when the only contact a child may share with their parent is a hand pressed on cold glass that separates them? Or when the last thought of the child’s parent is them getting arrested right in front of them? “In 2007, there was an estimate of approximately 1.7 million children
Comedian Ray Romano once said “Having children is like living in a frat house. Nobody sleeps, everything 's broken, and there 's a lot of throwing up.” Children are human beings between the stages of birth and puberty. Children need a lot of care and nurturing and because of this they need a guardian around a lot. The decision to have a child is the most difficult and most life changing decision a couple will ever make. This decision will either negatively or positively influence a couple’s life. Overall informs, “having children has impact far beyond the family circle” (396). When someone raises a child, they must introduce the world to the child. Parents have the job of teaching the child right from wrong and get them prepared to join society.
It is imperative that both parents do their best to take equal engagement in their child’s lives. There are certain things children can learn only from their fathers, and other things that they can only be taught by their mothers. Children should not be deprived of any of these learning opportunities because their parents cannot manage to hold it together and take care of their duties as parents.