A Variety of Loss
Loss impacts many stories throughout history. It effects people in every generation, and influences numerous lives. Loss occurs within the short stories “Gwilan’s Harp” by Ursula K. LeGuin, “The Washwoman” by Isaac Singer, and “The Last Leaf” by O. Henry. In these stories, each main character experiences various kinds of hardship, however they eventually resolve their conflict and learn from their choices. Although each character experiences loss, it occurs differently in each situation. Overall, these short stories show how main characters experience loss in different ways.
“Gwilan’s Harp” by LeGuin portrays a character, Gwilan, who loses many things throughout her life. At the beginning of the story, Gwilan discovers
Henry shows a young woman, Johnsy who loses the will to survive. Within the story, Johnsy falls ill with pneumonia and ties her life with a tree whose leaves are falling. After the last leaf fell, Johnsy convinced herself and her friend, Sue, that she would die too. Johnsy later told Sue, “‘I’m tired of waiting. I’m tired of thinking. I want to turn loose my hold on everything, and go sailing down…just like one of those poor, tired leaves.’” (Henry). Throughout the story, loss occurs when Johnsy falls ill and gives up the strength it takes to survive. Eventually, the last leaf falls, however, Johnsy’s neighbor paints a picture of a leaf in its place, thus saving Johnsy’s life. Nonetheless, Johnsy experiences loss when she loses her strength and abandons the thought of recovering.
In the end, “Gwilan’s Harp” by Ursula K. LeGuin, “The Washwoman” by Isaac Singer, and “The Last Leaf” by O. Henry illustrates a similar theme of loss in various ways. Although all of these stories show loss differently, each character loses something of value. Within “Gwilan’s Harp”, Gwilan loses her ability to play her beloved harp. Meanwhile, the Jewish family in “The Washwomen” lose their valued washwomen to old age. In addition, Johnsy in “The Last Leaf” lost her will of survival when she wished to die. Overall, the main characters in each of these short stories respond to loss
“Picking up the pieces of their shattered lives was very, very difficult, but most survivors found a way to begin again.” Once again, Helen was faced with the struggle of living life day-to-day, trying not to continue feeling the pain of her past.
In Alistair McLeod’s collection of short stories the Lost Salt Gift of Blood; death seems to be a constant companion. Death is important and perhaps even symbolic in this collection of short stories. It is important because it has the power to affect people and relationships, invokes freedom and even predetermines ones future, through the death of animal’s people and the impending death of others.
In “Whoever We Are, Loss Finds us and Defines Us”, by Anna Quindlen, she brings forth the discussion grief's grip on the lives of the living. Wounds of death can heal with the passing of time, but in this instance, the hurt lives on. Published in New York, New York on June 5, 1994, this is one of many Quindlen published in the New York Times, centered on death's aftermath. This article, written in response to the death of Quindlen’s sister-in-law, and is focused on an audience who has, currently is, or will experience death. Quindlen-a columnist for the New York Times and Newsweek, Pulitzer Prize winner and author-has written six bestselling novels (Every Last One, Rise and Shine, Object Lessons, One True Thing, and Black and Blue) and has been published in the New York Times and Newsweek.
When Gene makes Finny fall from the tree can be identified as the ordeal because it makes Gene work harder in his studies or sports since it is not only for himself, but for the friend he nearly killed, “Holding firmly to the trunk, I took a step toward him, and then my knees bent and I jounced the limb.” (Knowles 28). This represents the beginning of the challenges because Gene is faced with the burden of carrying not only his work but with living his life for Finny since he took that chance from him. Gene soon begins the road back to his journey with his new found burden as Finny denies that Gene intentionally made him fall off the tree, “‘Finny, I tried to tell you before, I tried to tell you when I came to Boston that
People one can never really tell how person is feeling or what their situation is behind closed doors or behind the façade of the life they lead. Two masterly crafted literary works present readers with characters that have two similar but very different stories that end in the same result. In Herman Melville’s story “Bartleby the Scrivener” readers are presented with Bartleby, an interesting and minimally deep character. In comparison to Gail Godwin’s work, “A Sorrowful Woman” we are presented with a nameless woman with a similar physiological state as Bartleby whom expresses her feelings of dissatisfaction of her life. Here, a deeper examination of these characters their situations and their ultimate fate will be pursued and delved into for a deeper understanding of the choice death for these characters.
Grief played a large role in the lives of the Boatwright sisters and Lily Owens. They each encountered death, injustice, and sadness. Grief impacted and left an imprint on each of them. Grief proved fatal for May. August knew that grief was just another aspect of life; that it had to be accepted and then left in the past. June and Lily learned to not let grief rule their lives. Life is not inherently good or bad – events not solely joyful or grievous – it is glorious in its perfect imperfection.
Many people lose things everyday, but the truth is you never know how much you need something until it’s gone. In the books “Going Over” by Beth Kephart and “brown girl dreaming” by Jacqueline Woodson the theme; you never know how much you need something until it’s gone is perfect for both books because of the tragic loss of Jackie’s grandfather and the separation of Ada and Stefan. This theme is supported by Jacqueline’s move to New York, Ada and her deep longing for Stefan since the wall separated them, and Jacqueline losing her grandfather.
The struggles that many face while experiencing poverty are not like any other. When a person is experiencing poverty, they deal with unbearable hardships as well as numerous tragic events. Diane Gilliam Fisher’s collection of poems teaches readers about labor battles within West Virginian territories, at the beginning of the twentieth century. Some of these battles include the Battle of Matewan and Battle of Blair Mountain. The collection of poems is presented in many different manners, ranging from diary entries to letters to journal entries. These various structures of writing introduce the reader to contrasting images and concepts in an artistic fashion. The reader is able to witness firsthand the hardships and the light and dark times of impoverished people’s lives. He or she also learns about the effects of birth and death on poverty stricken communities. In the collection of poems in Kettle Bottom, Fisher uses imagery and concepts to convey contrast between the positive and negative aspects of the lives of people living in poverty.
Heffernan, Teresa. "'Beloved' and the Problem of Mourning." Studies in the Novel 30.4 (1998): 558. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 14 Jan. 2014
When one faces a traumatic experience, his or true nature often reveals itself. Trauma forces its sufferers to cope. How one copes is directly linked to his or her personality. Some will push any painful feelings away, while others will hold onto pleasant memories. Both of these coping mechanisms can be observed in Katherine Anne Porter’s “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall” and William Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily.” In “The Jilting of Granny Weatherall” and “A Rose for Emily,” the two protagonists’ prominent characteristics distinctly affect the way they cope with trauma and influence the short stories’ outcomes.To begin, Granny Weatherall is a prideful control freak. In contrast, Miss Emily is delusional and stubborn.
Have you ever experienced a day where nothing goes right? The story “A&P” written by John Updike is one of a teenage boy named Sammy who quits his job in hope of impressing some girls --- only to find they neither cared nor listened. “Miss Brill” written by Katherine Mansfield is a story about an elderly woman named Miss Brill who goes to the park to observe people; her evening is ruined when some kids make fun of the way she 's dressed. Miss Brill and Sammy started their day motivated, as the stories went on their moods shifted because their actions were affected by other people 's opinions. But sad endings don 't always have to be sad, there 's a lot a reader can learn from them. Sad endings are more memorable than other endings because there is a feeling of uneasiness left for the reader. It is also more realistic that people don’t have a perfect day or the hero gets what they wanted. Updike and Mansfield use sad endings to further the theme of disappointment.
Life can come to a stop periodically when a person is troubled by burdens. For a considerable amount of people it may be too difficult to live in the present while constantly thinking about the past, and because of this, are unable to move on. These difficulties can be burdens that they have been carrying for a long time or even just recently. In the short story, “The Things They Carried,”Tim O’Brien uses symbolism, ambiguity, and a non-linear narrative structure to illustrate emotional burdens.
tragedies that befell her. She is an example of a melancholic character that is not able to let go of her loss and therefore lets it t...
The story begins on a very sad note especially in the eyes of a reader. Mrs. Mallard is said to have a “heart
... they didn’t go. And lastly, she hears more noises until a hole is dug and it’s her old dog. She is happy to see her dog, but even the dog has forgotten her because he merely digs the whole to bury his bone as a hiding place. So, the main themes of loss interpreted in this poem are loss of love, loss of hope, loss of memory, loss of remembrance, and loss of importance.