A dark side of reality
George Saunders’s collection of stories, Tenth of December, makes statements about current society by depicting a darker version of reality. By mixing elements of science fiction, horror and cynical humor, Saunders moves the reader through a series of intense emotions. In “Victory Lab,” he tells one story from multiple points of view, describing the brutality and terror of a young adolescent girl who is kidnapped but then saved by a neighbor. In “Sticks,” he portrays the simultaneous embarrassment and loving acceptance involved with having a crazy dad who uses a pole in the yard to communicate and externalize his emotions. In “Exhortation,” Sanders offers two opposite interpretations of a single situation: the encouraging …show more content…
As he considers whether or not to kill her, he wonders whether it might be worth it to keep her alive if the sex will be good. In this moment, her neighbor Kyle jumps into the scene, smashes the windshield, hits the man, and saves her. To add to this scene of intense drama, Saunders tells this story from all three characters’ points of view, so that the story builds to a climax as the meter man is deciding what to do with Alison.
An attempted kidnapping involves intense emotions for all of the characters. By taking the perspective of each of the three characters, Saunders leads the readers to feel all of the intense emotions present in the situation: Alison’s fear at finding herself into the hands of a kidnapper that could harm or kill her, Kyle’s stress and adrenaline while running after a man with a stone to save his friend, and even the anxiety of the old man over potentially being caught pulling the young girl into his van. All of the three characters experience strong feelings that together instill a sense of fear in the …show more content…
Todd asks his employees to model their working attitude after him and his son’s attitude during a vacation, but is careless of the fact that his employees are working hard, cleaning ‘Room 6’ and not enjoying a family vacation. Todd also mentions the story of Andy, a former employee who did well for a month and then become withdrawn, disconsolate, and unwilling to work. With this example, Todd seems almost to threaten his employees that if they don’t maintain a positive attitude, they may lose their positions. While he forces them to do repetitive and boring tasks, he also pressures them to show a pleasant, hardworking
George Saunders’s collection of stories, Tenth of December, makes statements about current society by depicting a darker version of reality. By mixing elements of science fiction, horror and cynical humor, Saunders moves the reader through a series of intense emotions. In “Victory Lab,” he tells one story from multiple points of view, describing the brutality and terror of a young adolescent girl who is kidnapped but then saved by a neighbor. In “Sticks,” he portrays the simultaneous embarrassment and loving acceptance involved with having a crazy dad who uses a pole in the yard to communicate and externalize his emotions. In “Exhortation,” Sanders offers two opposite interpretations of a single situation: the encouraging …show more content…
As he considers whether or not to kill her, he wonders whether it might be worth it to keep her alive if the sex will be good. In this moment, her neighbor Kyle jumps into the scene, smashes the windshield, hits the man, and saves her. To add to this scene of intense drama, Saunders tells this story from all three characters’ points of view, so that the story builds to a climax as the meter man is deciding what to do with Alison.
An attempted kidnapping involves intense emotions for all of the characters. By taking the perspective of each of the three characters, Saunders leads the readers to feel all of the intense emotions present in the situation: Alison’s fear at finding herself into the hands of a kidnapper that could harm or kill her, Kyle’s stress and adrenaline while running after a man with a stone to save his friend, and even the anxiety of the old man over potentially being caught pulling the young girl into his van. All of the three characters experience strong feelings that together instill a sense of fear in the …show more content…
Todd asks his employees to model their working attitude after him and his son’s attitude during a vacation, but is careless of the fact that his employees are working hard, cleaning ‘Room 6’ and not enjoying a family vacation. Todd also mentions the story of Andy, a former employee who did well for a month and then become withdrawn, disconsolate, and unwilling to work. With this example, Todd seems almost to threaten his employees that if they don’t maintain a positive attitude, they may lose their positions. While he forces them to do repetitive and boring tasks, he also pressures them to show a pleasant, hardworking