Regret is the feeling of disappointment or sorrow over a lost or missed opportunity. Often people get too caught up in their own lives to realise the bigger picture and they miss these opportunities. Once their eyes are opened, by an event or person, they are filled with regret for not paying attention to the other important parts of their lives. This feeling of regret from missed opportunities is what Tom Benecke felt as he clung to the window sill. The short story, “Contents of the Dead Man’s Pockets”, by Jack Finney is about regret and reveals to the readers that getting too caught up in one’s own life causes regret.
The first time this theme reveals itself is as Clare Benecke is rushing out the door to see yet another movie premiere alone. …show more content…
This paper had all of his hard work from the past few months on it, so “it was hard for him to understand that he actually had to abandon it.” Abandoning the paper wasn’t an option so by instinct he climbed out the window to retrieve it. After he retrieved the paper and looked down below “of what lay below him; and he knew he had made a mistake in not making himself stare down at the street.” Frozen in pure fear from what he just saw, “he couldn’t bring himself to make the slightest movement.” He thought of the different scenarios of what were to happen if he were to fall and “he understood fully that he might actually be going to die.” A headline came to his mind, “Contents of a dead man’s pockets...one sheet of paper bearing penciled notations- incomprehensible.” After having those words replay in his head over and over again, he finds a deeper meaning, “Contents of a dead man’s pockets... a wasted life.” He feels that if he were to die at that very moment that he had wasted his life. If he were to die he’d want something more valuable or special to him in his pocket other than some paper from work. His personal assessment of himself caused him to look at his life with a whole new perspective and to realize he had his priorities wrong. He looked back to his desk after he retrieved the paper, and
The first time this theme reveals itself is as Clare Benecke is rushing out the door to see yet another movie premiere alone. …show more content…
This paper had all of his hard work from the past few months on it, so “it was hard for him to understand that he actually had to abandon it.” Abandoning the paper wasn’t an option so by instinct he climbed out the window to retrieve it. After he retrieved the paper and looked down below “of what lay below him; and he knew he had made a mistake in not making himself stare down at the street.” Frozen in pure fear from what he just saw, “he couldn’t bring himself to make the slightest movement.” He thought of the different scenarios of what were to happen if he were to fall and “he understood fully that he might actually be going to die.” A headline came to his mind, “Contents of a dead man’s pockets...one sheet of paper bearing penciled notations- incomprehensible.” After having those words replay in his head over and over again, he finds a deeper meaning, “Contents of a dead man’s pockets... a wasted life.” He feels that if he were to die at that very moment that he had wasted his life. If he were to die he’d want something more valuable or special to him in his pocket other than some paper from work. His personal assessment of himself caused him to look at his life with a whole new perspective and to realize he had his priorities wrong. He looked back to his desk after he retrieved the paper, and