Dogs In Winter By Eden Robinson Summary

When it comes to all the various works of literature we explored throughout the course, I would argue that Eden Robinson’s short story “Dogs in Winter” is one of the most interesting and significant texts in our discussion of Canadian literature. Compared to other short stories we encountered in class, “Dogs in Winter” is unique in that its narrative style does not follow a chronological order. Instead the reader is shown little instances through Lisa’s narration starting from when young and in her Aunt Genna’s care and ending when Lisa’s mother left her as a little girl (690). This particular narrative style works effectively with Robinson’s story as it allows the reader to take on an active and detective like role similar to the police officers in the story. In each section more and more information is provided and the reader is able to assemble it into the interesting horror story it is. It is this element that truly makes Robinson’s short story stand out among the other works we have looked at. If the story was framed in any other way, it would not be as significant or entertaining. …show more content…
Putting the irregular narrative structure aside, the fact that the opening is ‘light’ and ‘funny’ compared to the other sections that are more gruesome and disturbing is quite remarkable. The stark contrast between the easy-going atmosphere with a Picnic the humping dog versus blood and bodies in a freezer is attention-grabbing and memorable. In addition, I found her horrific descriptions to be evocative to the point where I started to feel nauseous while reading, such as the freezer scene: “He reached down and lifted the lid. For a moment, the skinned carcasses inside the freeze looked to him like deer or calves. The he saw the arms and legs, sealed in extra-large plastic bags piled high”