Watching And Waiting Theme Analysis Essay

Theme Analysis of “Watching and Waiting”
“Oh beware my lord of jealousy! It is the green-eyed monster that doth mock the meat it feeds on - William Shakespeare. Shakespeare proposes that jealousy is the one thing that destroys the person’s life on which it feeds. In Morley Callaghan’s “Watching and Waiting” the protagonist, Mr.Hillard, is a skeptical young man who is jealous of the men his wife spends time with, and so tends to spy on her. Eventually, his jealousy reaches such an extent that he sneakingly enters his own house, and his wife mistaking him for a stranger kills him. Thus showing how “jealousy mock[s] the meat on which it feeds” as in this case jealousy symbolically mocked Mr.Hillard’s life. Morley Callaghan’s “Watching and Waiting”

First of all, Mr.Hillard’s jealousy destroys his relationship with his wife. At one point in the story he suspects his wife, and she questions, “I don’t know why you keep staring at me. You’re frightening me” (Callaghan 22). The author use of diction shows the reader how Mr.Hillard’s jealousy keeps him suspicious, so he habitually spies on his wife. His wife notices this, and begins to become afraid of him, showing how weak their relationship has become as a result of Mr.Hillard’s jealousy. This shows how jealousy can destroy romantic relationships. Furthermore, the author uses Mrs.Hillard’s isolation from society to convey the theme, “he insisted that they move out to the country and renovate the old farmhouse. There they lived like two scared prisoners in the house that was screened from the lane by three old oak trees” (Callaghan 20). The author uses the simile “like two scared prisoners” to show how Mr.Hillard and wife like prisoners are isolated and locked up from the rest of the world. One can view Mr.Hillard as a hunter, both living in a forest and closely guarding their possessions. Clearly, Mr.Hillard treats his wife as a possession and becomes jealous when she talks to other men, due to this, “He insist[s] they move out to the country]”. Evidently, he is scared that someone will take his possession which is why he is so doubtful of her actions and is keen on secluding her from society. Further, the author uses symbolism “the house was screened from the lane by three old oak trees to reinforce the idea that they are secluded from society. This is because, the three old oak trees symbolize how they are cut off from society. This all adds up, to the idea that Mr.Hillard’s jealousy destroys Mrs.Hillard’s social relationships as he keeps her hidden from