In Jill McCorkle's short story “Snakes”, it is said that “a marriage that never takes a dive is like skimming the surface of life … sooner or later you have to suit up and dive to the bottom” (McCorkle 167). The meaning being that no marriage is going to travel the high road the entire time, and if one is, it won't have much depth. The statement made in “Snakes” is very true. A marriage needs to have its ups and downs to be balanced. There are many themes explored in the stories of Jill McCorkle's Creatures of Habit: Stories. The theme of marriage is addressed in both “Snakes” and “Chickens”, and it is enhanced by symbolism.
“Snakes” is focused around the marriage of a middle aged couple. Every year, the couple writes down their grievances, they read them and they burn them (McCorkle 166). The couple hit a dark patch in their relationship. They called this “The Dark Ages” (McCorkle 166). During this time they were angry with each other and had to face many problems between them. “The Dark Ages” was the dive they took. It made them appreciate the lighter, more easygoing times in their relationship. By knowing what it was like to go through such a arduous time, it was easier for the couple to overlook the smaller things instead of making a big deal of them. That dive into the darker parts of their marriage gave them a balance to the lighter times. It gave their marriage depth and meaning.
“Chickens” is a story that is focused around the main character Lisa. Lisa has just married Alan. Lisa rushed into marrying Alan after a bad breakup with her long term boyfriend, Randy, because Alan was everything that Randy was not. Although Lisa and Randy were not married, the principle of “the dive” could still apply to them. When Lisa fo...
... middle of paper ...
...McCorkle 167). The married couple in “Snakes” had already dove to the bottom of their marriage, and it gave their marriage meaning and helped them to appreciate the lighter times. In the story “Chickens”, the newly married couple just skims the surface, but it is evident that when they make the necessary dive in their marriage, Lisa could find out she married the wrong marriage. The analogy used in “Snakes” just means that in order to be with each other at their best, a couple has to go through their worst and stay together through it all. In both stories, characters were symbolic of the animals in their titles.
Works Cited
McCorkle, Jill. "Chickens." Creatures of Habit: Stories. Chapel Hill, NC: Algonquin of Chapel Hill, 2003. 47-76. Print.
McCorkle, Jill. “Snakes”. Creatures of Habit: Stories. Chapel Hill, NC: Algonquin of Chapel Hill, 2003. 163-184. Print.
Because the artist constantly created a relationship between text and image, each incorporation has a slightly different relationship. The first is that the sheathe without the text inscribed would just be seen as a sharp, brutal, farming object, but with the text it creates a new meaning. In this case, the text can be deemed as prioritized because the there is a reliability the sheathe has with the words. The second is the incorporation of words in within the corrupted snake garden. In this case it tells viewers that not only are there people and institutions in the government whose actions can be deemed slithery and comparable to a snake, but also combined with the inscribed words such as falsehood, malice, venom, and hatred. If it wasn’t already explicit enough, the artist is trying to convey not only is the government is infiltrated with snakes, but they also represent extremely negative behaviors. In case, I think the text is reliant on the image because without the words viewers could get still get the point it’s trying to
The sight of the snake is so heartbreaking that even the man is left to rethink
The effect the reader perceives in the passage of Rattler is attained from the usage of the author¡¯s imagery. The author describes the pre-action of the battle between the man and the snake as a ¡°furious signal, quite sportingly warning [the man] that [he] had made an unprovoked attack, attempted to take [the snake¡¯s] life... ¡± The warning signal is portrayed in order to reveal the significance of both the man¡¯s and the snake¡¯s value of life. The author sets an image of how one of their lives must end in order to keep the world in peace. In addition, the author describes how ¡°there was blood in [snake¡¯s] mouth and poison dripping from his fangs; it was all a nasty sight, pitiful now that it was done.¡± This bloody image of snake¡¯s impending death shows the significance of the man¡¯s acceptance toward the snake. In a sense, the reader can interpret the man¡¯s sympathy toward the snake because of the possibility that he should have let him go instead of killing him.
Throughout history, the story of womankind has evolved from struggles to achievements, while some aspects of the lives of women have never changed. Poet Dorianne Laux writes about the female condition, and women’s desire to be married and to have a home and children. She also seems to identify through her poetry with the idea that women tend to idealize the concept of marriage and settling down and she uses her poetry to reach out to the reader who may have similar idyllic views of marriage or the married lifestyle. Though Dorianne Laux’s poem “Bird” reads very simply, it is actually a metaphor for an aspect of this female condition.
Zora Neale Hurston’s short story “Sweat” is about the empowerment of Delia, the main character, as she tries to find herself and overcome her husband’s abusive strong hold. Throughout the story snakes are fervently discussed symbolizing evil and malevolence. Delia is petrified of snakes and her husband uses this to his advantage. Thus the snake in “Sweat” makes biblical references to The Garden of Eden and the Forbidden Fruit and the evil that can be so tempting. Just as Sykes uses the snake in “Sweat” to scare Delia and become powerful, in some way, Satan entered into the body of the serpent to tempt Adam and Eve.The serpent was the instrument the Devil used to do his bidding. At first Delia loathes the idea of even being in the same room
Robert shares a special relationship and bond with animals, in particular rabbits. The rabbits are a symbol of Rowena, not only because they were her prize possession, but also because the rabbits remind Robert of his younger sister. Both Rowena and the rabbits are characters of innocence and purity. Being considered as small, fragile and precious to those who love and look after them. Findley uses the rabbits to evoke feelings of guilt from Robert, during the constant appearances in the novel. When Rowena dies, R...
The couple in the story is a couple that has been together a long time and persevered through life together. When they first see the whooping cranes the husband says “they are rare, not many left” (196). This is the point in the story where the first connection between the couple and the cranes are made. The rarity of the cranes symbolizes the rarity of the couple’s relationship. Although they have started developing anomalies in their health, with the husband he “can’t smoke, can’t drink martinis, no coffee, no candy” (197) ¬—they are still able to laugh with each other and appreciate nature’s beauty. Their relationship is a true oddity; filled with lasting love. However this lasting love for whooping cranes has caused some problems for the species. The whooping cranes are “almost extinct”; this reveals a problem of the couple. The rare love that they have is almost extinct as well. The wife worries about her children because the “kids never write” (197). This reveals the communication gap between the two generations, as well as the different values between the generations. These different values are a factor into the extinction of true love.
In the book, The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work (1999) John M. Gottman provides insight on the seven fundamental tools to construct positive relationships. Through long years of research, Gottman studied married couples and noted degenerative behaviors that hindered the formation and attainment of a long and healthy marriage. Gottman research focused on several key behavioral predictors of divorce, which he calls the “The Four Horsemen”; Criticism, Contempt, Defensiveness, and Stonewalling.
In the poem we get the picture that Adam is lamenting for the mistake they have done and specially blames and insults Eve's female nature and wonders why do god ever created her. She begs his forgiveness, and pleads with him not to leave her. She reminds him that the snake tricked her, but she fully accepts the blame for sinning against both God and him. She argues that unity and love c...
woman, and man. The serpent’s punishment was that it had to slither the rest of its life and that serpent would be inferior to mankind. The woman’s punishment entailed becoming the
Pastor Joseph Turner’s vignette centers around a redefinition of the word “chicken”. His scene opens with his recollection of his childhood where bullies would pick on him and call him chicken. He interprets the bullies definition of this word as, “Coward and lacking in courage” (Lewis, The Natural History of the Chicken) He expresses the hurt and anguish he feels over this and resolves to read a story he’s written about the adventures of Lisa the chicken. His use of story, or parable, is how he comes to terms with the nature of a chicken and how he is able to redefine the word to make it appeal to himself. The issue with this however, is that his reformulation is only acceptable in his enclosed space at his farm and everywhere
Inside the article “Why Marriage is Good for You”, Maggie Gallagher makes claims that marriage improves many facets of an individual’s life; including both mental and physical health, longevity, finances, and reduced chances of infidelity (Gallagher). The statements made throughout the article reference many statistics and studies conducted by various organizations and individuals, however, Gallagher falls victim to a number of common logical fallacies. While this weakens Gallagher’s argument in the article, it does not necessarily make it false.
Lawrence uses figurative language in order to present his ideas of societies expectations of a man. Lawrence changes the structure and style of “Snake” in order to highlight the struggles of the narrator. Specifically, when writing about the snake he uses repetitive and flowing words. He also uses traditional devices like alliteration, for example “and flickered his two-forked tongue from his lips.” The use of these technics gives the snake an almost human like feel that the reader can connect to. At the same time, Lawrence writes about the log used to hurt the snake in a different style creating such a contrast between the snake’s description and the log. The words describing the log are much different, “and threw it at the water trough with a clatter.” The changing styles helps emphasize the internal struggle the narrator is experiencing as he tries to figure out if he should do as society dictates and kill the snake like a man or do as he wishes and leave the snake in peace as his guest at the water
... Nature, including human beings, is `red in tooth and claw'; we are all `killers' in one way or another. Also, the fear which inhabits both human and snake (allowing us, generally, to avoid each other), and which acts as the catalyst for this poem, also precipitates retaliation. Instinct, it seems, won't be gainsaid by morality; as in war, our confrontation with Nature has its origins in some irrational `logic' of the soul. The intangibility of fear, as expressed in the imagery of the poem, is seen by the poet to spring from the same source as the snake, namely the earth - or, rather, what the earth symbolizes, our primitive past embedded in our subconsciouness. By revealing the kinship of feelings that permeates all Nature, Judith Wright universalises the experience of this poem.
When we think of marriage, the first thing that comes to mind is having a lasting relationship. Marriage is a commitment of two people to one another and to each other?s family, bonded by holy matrimony. When a couple plans to marry, they think of raising a family together, dedicating their life to each other. That?s the circle of life--our natural instinct to live and produce children and have those children demonstrate your own good morals. I have never been married; but I don?t understand why when two people get married and vow to be together for richer and poorer, better or worse, decide to just forget about that commitment. A marriage should be the most important decision a person makes in his or her life.