Interpreting The Short Story 'Popular Mechanics' By Raymond Carver

Popular Mechanics

In the short story, “Popular Mechanics” by Raymond Carver, the narrator describes a couple that is constantly arguing. The narrator never tells the reader the reason for the couples separation, but it’s obvious that they are mad at each other for some reason. Raymond Carver uses bad weather as a setting that foreshadows the story's conflict. Since everybody can relate to the weather and the way it behaves it’s definitely is a powerful mood and tone setter. I argue that the weather is key to interpreting this particular story because it sets the tone and foreshadows the story’s conflict . The imagery in the first line indicates that the story could turn nasty, “Early that day weather turned and snow was melting into dirty water”( Carver 324). By doing so, Raymond Carver is putting a very graphic representation that everything that comes in contact with this water is going to get dirty. The snow acts as a symbol since snow is usually white and white represents purity. The white snow represents the purity the couple once had, and the dirty water demonstrates how the couple’s relationship in slowly dying. As well as this day, that the reader can now sense has been a very long day with no true goal met whatsoever. Every

time from this moment on everything that the narrator does becomes a struggle.

Later ,Raymond Carver uses the baby tug to darken the mood almost to the point of reaching its climax.

The reader is exposed to a gnarly scene as the father is left in physical possession of the baby while still trying to handle the fisted fingers of his wife who by now wants to react much more tougher. “The kitchen window gave no light. In the near-dark he worked on her fisted fingers with no one hand and with the other hand he gripped the screaming baby up under an arm near the shoulder”(Carver 325). By having no light in the kitchen, Raymond Carver uses weather again to demonstrate an aggressive and angry setting. This dispute is used to draw the reader’s attention toward the underlying message of the importance of

communication.

Since the beginning of the story, the reader is aware that the weather is changing. The weather seems to be getting darker and darker. The lack of light acts as a foreshadowing device for what will happen to the couple’s relationship. “Cars slushed by on the street outside,where it was getting dark. But it was getting dark on the inside too”(Carver 325). When Carver says “ but it was getting dark on the inside too”, this leads the reader understand that the relationship is at it’s darkest point. The constant changing in the weather, provides the reader with so many images. These images help the reader to understand more about the story and realize that the couple’s relationship is over. Both, the man and women's attitudes toward each other also make us think that there relationship is over. They just seem to not care for one another, but they do care about their child. The whole story is a constant argument that the couple is having. Therefore, the real message in popular mechanic would then be communication.

The weather is the most important element in the stories' setting. The setting is a very powerful element that shows the reader the relationship between the man and the woman and everything that surrounds them is going from good to bad.The weather in “Popular Mechanics” by Raymond Carver, is the key symbol that Carver uses in order for the reader to understand the story . After reading Carver’s short story, I was personally left feeling uneasy and thinking about the real need for proper communication in a family home. It is not uncommon for disputes like to happen and clearly humanity has witnessed all sorts of severe family disputes that have ended even worse. Hence, a family needs to be able to maintain proper communication at all times to avoid getting involved in such wrong doings to prevent irreversible damages that would ruin forever the foundation of their family homes.