In Max Porter’s Grief Is the Thing with Feathers, a woman passes, which sends the husband and two boys to the depths of sadness. Thus, the state of grief is examined. Porter wrote this as a hybrid novel, meaning that he combines a range of genres in separate stories to reveal a central, underlying theme. Through the use of disconnecting narratives with varying forms of literature, Porter portrays Dad and Boys’ lamentation to suggest that individuals manage grief differently.
Porter implies that Dad’s way of dealing with bereavement is by creating an imaginary figure, thinking that everything is about his wife, and reminiscing about his past. Before Dad meets Crow, he is hopeless and pitiful, as he is smoking and drinking (4). But, when Crow …show more content…
He used violence and lies to surmount the period of bereavement. The story of the guppy fish, where the brothers “dammed it and smashed it,” uncovers the violent nature of this aggressive boy (21). Using violence to overcome grief is common. He wants to put his pain on other living organisms, so that the other being can feel it. Also, the less hostile brother’s perspective on the killing explicates his guilt, compared to the remorseless brother. The more agreeable boy dedicates a whole page to describe the story, while the other one only gives a half, with the bulk of it reporting on his brother’s diagrams (19, 21). This brief discussion could mean he is one of two conditions: either this brother is truly ruthless, or he tries to hide his regret. It makes more sense for the second one, and there are several reasons for this. First, when the agreeable brother explains the story, he remarks that his “brother swore” after he brutally murdered the guppy (19). Hence, the brother clearly feels something about it. Second, the less amicable brother offers a little excerpt about the incident, trying to prove to the reader that he does not care about it. Yet, he still devotes some narration. He wants to confess, but he wants to be a “man.” Lastly, this brother is known to lie often, which corresponds to the second reason; this also connects to why he attempts to reject his grief. He tries to create fabrications in other parts of the book, such as the poem where he grants two options of what happens when the two brothers do not take a bath (31). This can only be done through the employment of poetry, using two stanzas to give similar situations but different outcomes. He formulates it so that one decision allows his mother to sound affable. He isn’t doing this for the reader, but for himself. Which one does he choose? By looking at the boy’s character, his mother may have actually selected the
Porter implies that Dad’s way of dealing with bereavement is by creating an imaginary figure, thinking that everything is about his wife, and reminiscing about his past. Before Dad meets Crow, he is hopeless and pitiful, as he is smoking and drinking (4). But, when Crow …show more content…
He used violence and lies to surmount the period of bereavement. The story of the guppy fish, where the brothers “dammed it and smashed it,” uncovers the violent nature of this aggressive boy (21). Using violence to overcome grief is common. He wants to put his pain on other living organisms, so that the other being can feel it. Also, the less hostile brother’s perspective on the killing explicates his guilt, compared to the remorseless brother. The more agreeable boy dedicates a whole page to describe the story, while the other one only gives a half, with the bulk of it reporting on his brother’s diagrams (19, 21). This brief discussion could mean he is one of two conditions: either this brother is truly ruthless, or he tries to hide his regret. It makes more sense for the second one, and there are several reasons for this. First, when the agreeable brother explains the story, he remarks that his “brother swore” after he brutally murdered the guppy (19). Hence, the brother clearly feels something about it. Second, the less amicable brother offers a little excerpt about the incident, trying to prove to the reader that he does not care about it. Yet, he still devotes some narration. He wants to confess, but he wants to be a “man.” Lastly, this brother is known to lie often, which corresponds to the second reason; this also connects to why he attempts to reject his grief. He tries to create fabrications in other parts of the book, such as the poem where he grants two options of what happens when the two brothers do not take a bath (31). This can only be done through the employment of poetry, using two stanzas to give similar situations but different outcomes. He formulates it so that one decision allows his mother to sound affable. He isn’t doing this for the reader, but for himself. Which one does he choose? By looking at the boy’s character, his mother may have actually selected the