The Deeper Meaning Of Shaving By T. Barry

“Shaving” is a short story about a teenage boy who shaves his dying father. Throughout this story, there are many lines of dialogue, and although they may seem simple at first, most of them have a profound deeper meaning. For example, near the beginning of the book, where his father stays to Barry that “You could have used electric razor, I expected that.” Barry replies by saying that “You wouldn’t like it, you’ll get a closer shave this way.” In this quote, what they talk about on the surface is fairly obvious, the quality of the shave ad the razor. However, beneath the surface of this quote lies a much deeper meaning. Barry uses a real razor instead of an electric one, which shows not only his confidence in shaving skills, but also the fact that he has taken the family matters into his own hands, as to put his father into such danger like that, as

even the smallest mistake will send his father into pain.

In a sense, the action of shaving his father with a bladed razor symbolizes his inheriting of the title has the head of the family.

A good example of this is the following quote:

"How old are you?" his father asked.

"Seventeen," Barry said. "Near enough seventeen."

"You're young," his father said, "to have this happen."

"Not too young," Barry said. "I'm bigger than most men."

"I think you are," his father said. (Norris _)

In this quote, one can clearly see that on the surface, they are simply talking about the death of his father. Although it is never explicitly stated it the story, it is implied many times that his father is on the cusp of death, and the reason why Barry is taking the time to shave his father is because so that his father can die on his own terms, his attitude of

stubborn persistence extending even after death. However, the deeper meaning of the aforementioned quote can be said that his father is passing his title as family “chief” to Barry, similar to the first quote. The first two lines of this quote represent his father evaluating him, seeing whether he is worthy of the title. The third line of this quote can be interpreted as his father testing Barry’s mettle, and whether has has not only the body but also the mind to inherit his father’s title. Barry replies in the fourth line by saying that he is old enough, and that he is bigger than most men. In the second statement, not only is he talking about his physical appearance, but also alluding to the statement “be a bigger man”, which means “manning up” and doing what is right. By saying that he is bigger than most men, he is stating that he has a stronger mental fortitude than most other men, and thus he is worthy for the title. In the final line of their dialogue, his father expressed his final doubts about his child. On the surface, he is saying that he agrees with his son’s statement that he is bigger than most men, but underneath the surface this final line can be interpreted as him saying that his father thinks that he is bigger than other an, but is he really going to play the part when push comes to shove and his father is gone.
Throughout the whole story, there was a feeling not only of dread but also of acceptance. Even though Barry’s father was dying, Barry had already matured past the point of shedding pointless tears, at least in front of his father. Although the story is told in third person, the author gives a good impression that Barry is treating his father as a man already dead.