Alan’s Perspective on Love
In the short story, “The Chaser” by John Collier, Alan Austen has a very twisted perspective on love. The old man says in the story, “She will want to be everything to you.” Alan replies, “She is, already. Only she doesn’t care about it.” This is how we know Alan is madly in love with his girlfriend Diana, (named Diana after the young goddess who couldn’t be won over by any man,) although she does not share the feeling.
Alan is selfish with love. He cries out, “Wonderful!” when told that he will become the sole interest in Diana’s life. The old man says, “She will want to know all you do. All that has happened to you during the day. Every word of it. She will want to know what you are thinking about, why you smile suddenly, why you’re are looking sad.” Alan replies to this statement with, “That is love!” All Alan wants is someone to care for him, but he doesn’t know that. He thinks he wants someone to obsess over him, for him to be the only thing that person cares about, thinks about, and talks about. That, to Alan, is love.
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The idea that a potion could make him the sole interest of his Diana’s life, is overwhelming to him. That’s why he doesn’t care if Diana has to completely change to “love” him, he’s willing to do whatever it takes. “‘I can hardly imagine Diana like that!’ cried Alan, overwhelmed with joy.” Alan knows that Diana will be changed, he just doesn’t care. The old man tells Alan that Diana will never divorce him. The effects of the potion are everlasting, and in a state of desperation, love is the only
Before buying the love potion, Alan was warned to “consider the spiritual side” (Collier 2), implying that he should consider the consequences of someone being completely and crazily in love with him.. the reality. He also tells why the love potion is so inexpensive compared to the other things he sells. He said that if a customer is pleased with their first purchase they will come back for something more expensive. I believe that the old man knew the consequences of the love potion. He knew that you will only get sick of the person who is crazily in love with you after time. The old man also sells a poison that is colorless, flavorless, and completely untraceable. He says that “one might call it a life-cleaner” (Collier 1). By calling it a life cleaner, it implies that having a woman will only contaminate your life. Which is probably why the poison is five thousand dollars. Another line in the story that I found interesting was “One has to be older than you are, to indulge in that sort of thing[the poison]”. From this line I can infer that he meant the death of a women is something to indulge in, almost as if it were like saving up for a reward. He also mentioned that it would be for someone older and I believe it’s because he will get sick of his woman after years of her on the love
All individuals have their own unique traits that compliments who they are. In the short story, “The Chaser”, the main protagonist, Alan Austen, has the following traits: naïve, greedy and obsessive. To begin, it is evident that Alan is profound of a girl named Diana. Alan goes to the extent of purchasing a ‘love potion’ to make Diana fall in love with him. “She will want to know all you do," said the old man.
Because he is going to have centered-love and Diana's obsession is only Alan, and he is not giving any attention to Diana's opinion and react of using a love potion. The idea of being the only affection for Diana controls his mind, and his motivation increases when the old man says: “Give on tiny measure of this to the young lady-its flavor is imperceptible in orange juice, soup or cocktails-and however gay and giddy she is, she will change altogether. She will want nothing but solitude and
Milestone 1: Literacy Analysis Paper: Love means loving someone unconditionally. Loving them with flaws and all. Love is a part of being human. How can you love without accepting the society you live in? Nowlan’s poem
I wanted him to love me…” Robert: “ …I don’t like you” Robert’s only problem with his son was that he had been born. However he didn’t love Stephen because he could not love any one. It was just simply because he did not like him. Robert: “its temporary, Elaine knows I love her.” These words emphasise even more that it was just his son he had a problem with and that he was devoted to his daughter.
Afterwards, she understood why he hated her after she prevented him from playing the stock market when their stock would increase on stanza 3, additionally demonstrating the equity between them. Moreover, proof of their equity is further shown through their dedication. “I put on eyeliner and a concerto and make pungent observations about the great / issues of the day / Even when there’s no one here but him,” shows the wife’s efforts for the husband. The husband’s dedication is revealed on stanza 2 when she asks “If his mother and I was drowning and / he had to choose one of us to save, / He says he’d save me.” A relationship deprived of equity would be illustrated in “The Chaser”. The love potion described by John Collier will cause the drinker to “want to know all you do” (Page 200) and “want to be everything to you” (Page 200). “Then the customers come back, later in life, when they are better off, and want more expensive things” (Page 201) imply many of his customer’s return for the poison. This suggests that many of the relationships will be unable to develop beyond a certain point after buying the “love
John Collier writes the short story, The Chaser, telling of how a desperate, love-craving man, Alan Austen, finds himself helplessly turning to an old man for the solution to a problem only magic can fix. Deprived of love from the girl, Diana, who has caused him constant saudade, Alan makes a purchase. The trickery of the old man’s bargain is nonexistent to Alan and, eagerly, he accepts the love potion. A one dollar purchase that will have a snowball effect, eventually leading to an obsessive Diana, no free time, an extremely frustrated Alan, and, eventually, a second potion purchase. Untraceable, tasteless, and colourless, the glove-cleaner, or, life-cleaner, will rid Alan of the stress coming his way.
Understanding of love and true devotion is one of the most prevalent themes, if not the theme, in literature since the beginning of time. William Shakespeare often wrote of the implications of love and how truly foolish it can be. This is made most apparent in his work, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” in which love is cast about from person to person by the power of a flower’s juice in the eyes of its victim. The scene in which both pairs of lovers reunite after having the love spell cast on them by Puck is one of the best displays of the transient and seemingly foolish nature of love through the use of clever syntax, diction, and vivid imagery for which Shakespeare is known.
Claudio has no sooner seen the pure face of Hero than he professes his undying love and seeks her hand. This gesture could be regarded as the quintessence of romantic
“And however gay and giddy she is, she will change altogether. She will want nothing but solitude and you,” is how we start out the description of the consequences that follows the drinking of the potion. Alan wants his girlfriend to stop going out to parties and having her own fun and to realize that he is deeply in love with her. In my opinion, he should not have to give her a potion for this, women should be allowed to live how they please as well if it is making them happy. It is as though Alan believes that his
When young and experimental, everyone remembers their first love and what it meant to them and how it shaped them. They are often fond memories of purity or naivety, however, sometimes, those experiences are haunting and leave permanent scars in people's hearts. “Coleman (1993)” tells the tragic love story of a female speaker and her lover. They appear to live out happy lives while keeping to themselves however, are separated later in the poem by a group of white boys who decide to murder her lover on a whim. Her interactions and thoughts about Coleman shape the fundamentals of the poem to the point that he is the driving force of this poem. His being is the purpose of Mary Karr’s piece of writing and her time with him and without
Alan Austen simply wants someone Diana to fall in love with him. He wants a companion and someone to enjoy life with. Austen does not want to work for it. He wants it to just appear for him. True love takes time and two people perfect for each other. Austen wants to force love so he buys the potion. He does not listen to the old man and buys the potion. The old man knows its only a matter of time before he is back .Aan returns to purchase the expensive glove-cleaner. Alan Austen desire for love ends up killing him because he will understand that it is impossible to find true love and will use the glove cleaner as his escape.
How Annabel’s lover expresses his love to Annabel and how Mrs. Mallard expresses love toward Brently is greatly different. Annabel’s lover loved with a deep passionate love, before her death, in response to her death, and continued walking through life with his main focus still being of his love, Annabel Lee. In contrast, Mrs. Mallard loved with what some people, even she admits, was not always love. Her response of her husband’s death is led with selfish ambition and goals for her future freedom, then after claiming that freedom, she then walks triumphantly through life, without thought of her loss. So what is the difference between unconditional and conditional love and an everlasting and fading love? “The Story of an Hour” and “Annabel Lee” define that
From the daily actions of the husband in daily lives, we can see that his blindness to love hampers his definition of love into simple consideration. And such superficial love directly accumulates dissatisfaction and it is unleashed by the love test. His husband’s attention to do the housework appears when he “overheard a friend of his wife 's congratulate her on having such a considerate husband.” (1, Tobias
Cummings theme of how strong someones love can be appeals to readers minds, because everyone wants that connection with their partner, That undying love for one another. Some people long for a love...