Weblog 8: Character's Unmet Needs

Jhumpa Lahiri, the author of the short story Interpreter of Maladies makes use of events not central to the story line to underscore the unmet needs of the characters. This kind of writing style is seen throughout the story. The main story line in this short story is the story of Mrs. Das and Mr. Kapasi, however, Lahiri often diverges from the main story line and writes about Ronny and Bobby, Mrs. Das and Tina, and Mr. Das and Mrs. Das.

            Ronny and Bobby are Mr. and Mrs. Das’ children. Several times throughout this story, Lahiri talks about these two brothers and the conflicts between them. For example, Mr. Das says “Bobby, make sure that your brother doesn’t do anything stupid.” And Bobby replies, “I don’t feel like it.” This shows how the relationship between the two boys. It seems like they do not have a good relationship. They do not respect each other, and do not get along very well. I think that the relationship between these two boys reflects the relationship of the whole family. Because the Das family does not get along very well, it could lead Mrs. Das to not love her family. In a way, the relationship between Bobby and Ronny foreshadow Mrs. Das’ conflicts. Near the end of the story, we learn that Bobby is not actually Mr. and Mrs. Das’ son. Mr. and Mrs. Das seem to give a lot of responsibility to Bobby, but it seems as if they do not love him very much.

            Tina is also Mr. and Mrs. Das’ daughter. Mrs. Das is not a very good mother to her. It doesn’t seem like she cares for her at all. At the very beginning of the story, Mr. and Mrs. Das argue about who will take Tina to the toilet. Mrs. Das eventually ends up taking her, and while she is taking her, “she did not hold the little girl’s hand.” Also, while the Das family was in the car, Mrs. Das was painting her fingernails. Tina says “Mine too. Mommy, do mine too.” Mrs. Das replies, “Leave me alone.” Mrs. Das does not seem to care for her daughter. This mother-daughter relationship underscores the main story line by showing how Mrs. Das does not love and care for her family very much. This lack of love could make her feel lonely and sad. Also, Tina does not receive enough love from her mother. All she wants is for her mother to love her. I think that she expresses her frustration through playing with her doll. She treats the doll like her mother treats her. 

            Mr. Das and Mrs. Das also have a shaky relationship. Mr. Das seems very inconsiderate of Mrs. Das. For example, Mrs. Das asked Mr. Das to roll down the car window, but Mr. Das says “Quit complaining, it isn’t so hot.” However, a few minutes later, Mr. Das rolls down his own car window. This shows that their marriage is falling apart. It also shows the difference between the two people: Mrs. Das is very materialistic and Mr. Das is not that materialistic. The bad marriage between Mr. and Mrs. Das makes it possible for Mr. Kapasi and Mrs. Das to start their own relationship. Mr. Kapasi’s marriage is falling apart. His wife does not love him. As a result, he wants Mrs. Das to love him, and he begins to develop feelings for her.

All of the characters in this short story are in need of love. They find different and subtle ways to cope with the their lack of love. 

            

Weblog 7: Short Stories

There are many driving force for short story writers. One driving force for short stories is to teach a lesson to, and share their experiences with the readers. For example, the short story, The Necklace teaches the readers not to be vain and greedy, and to be happy with what one has. The author, Guy de Maupassant, may have wanted to teach the readers that being selfish and unhappy is bad, and that one should always be selfless. Another driving force for short story writers is to express their inner emotions. Writers are able to truly express what they are feeling through their work. A writer may write a short story to express what they are feeling, and to spread their ideas and feelings about a certain topic. Writing short stories is the way that authors communicate with the rest of the world.

According to Tobias Wolff, the reason why people read short stories is because the short stories are very realistic, and common people can make a connection with the characters in the short stories. Modern short stories are mostly based on normal people, unlike the old stories that are about heroic people. Also, because short stories relate to the readers, they have a tendency to become a memory of an experience for the readers. People can experience certain things that they would not have otherwise through the short stories that they read. Short stories can also help readers through tough times. For example, if someone is going through financial difficulties and they read a short story about a character going through financial difficulties, then that person can gain knowledge about what to do and what not to do. The reader can relate to the characters in the story, and as a result, they can learn and experience things indirectly.

                

Weblog 6: Failures

When I was ten years old, I was in fifth grade. At that time, I had terrible study habits, but I didn’t care because I was so young. I never studied for quizzes or tests, and even though I always completed my homework, it was done very sloppily. Our first social studies quiz that year was about the 50 states in America. We had to memorize the names and locations of all of the states. For the first time in my life, I wanted to do well on a quiz. I convinced myself that I could get 100% on the quiz. As the quiz date got closer and closer, I started feeling nervous, but I didn’t study because I wasn’t used to studying and I didn’t know how to study. On the date of the quiz, I walked in to the classroom confidently because I thought I knew that I could do well. Even as I was taking the quiz, I felt like I knew what I was doing. However, when we got our quizzes back the next day, I was so shocked. I got a 58%. I had failed miserably.

            There were some indications that I would fail on this quiz. For example, I didn’t study at all for it. Instead of studying, I was just confident. Obviously, without studying, it is impossible to get a good grade on a test. However, because I was young, I was oblivious of that fact.

            W.D. Wetherell, the author of the short story The Bass, The River, and Sheila Mant, foreshadows that the protagonist will not be successful at impressing Sheila Mant throughout his story. For example, the protagonist and Sheila Mant do not share any common interests at all. The protagonist pretends to understand what Sheila Mant is saying many times. “’Yeah, I can understand that,’ I said, though I couldn’t” (Wetherell 36) Fishing is a natural part of the protagonist. This can be seen when he “automatically, without thinking about it” (Wetherell 37) mounted his fishing reel and rod. It is obvious that the protagonist loves fishing, however Sheila Mant thinks that “fishing’s dumb” (Wetherell 38) which shows that she has no interest for fishing. The interests and personalities of the protagonist and Sheila Mant clash, and foreshadow the protagonists’ failure at impressing Sheila Mant.