In the modern world of texting, tweeting, memes and broadcasting sound bites the key to gaining anyone’s attention is keeping a message to 140 characters or less. Otherwise you risk losing your audience within 3-7 seconds. In a culture where a writers needs to capture the reader’s attention that quickly could be a pretty tall task however writers of short stories are definitely at more of an advantage. Brevity was their key to a successful work of fiction and grabbing their audience’s attention in the space of minutes has been what made them accomplished writers in this genre. The short story genre has had its fair share of critics who believe that the shortness of the work is in fact it’s downfall as creditable literary form. The…
My major work If… is a short story exploring notions of familial relationships, ultimately enforcing the value of parents and the unchanging love families give. The title If… conveys the emotions of regret as well as the sense of bitterness in life. This mirrors what I want my major to achieve, making the audience reflect on their actions towards their family members and parents in particular as well as allow them to anticipate their future with their children. My audience is middle aged women…
Short Story Expansion Defining a short story can be difficult, there does not seem to be any particular formula. Without a concrete formula can a short story, therefore be limited because of its brevity? Upon reading the selections this semester from our text, it is my opinion that short stories can be expanded on. (Gwynn) Although short stories are written and drawn from a single situation or incident, there beneath the short story lies a vast volume waiting to be written. I am of the…
There is a long thought process authors go through when writing any piece of literature. They must think thoroughly about the plot and make sure that each part is meaningful and helps with the unfolding of the story. The cyclone that is occurring in this short story grows at the same pace as the plot is developing. “The Storm” follows the basic five-part structure: the introduction, rising action, climax, falling action, and lastly, the conclusion. Each part of the short story is equally…
“The Sniper” vs. “The Most Dangerous Game” The short story “The Sniper” by Liam O’Flaherty and the short story “The Most Dangerous Game” by Richard Connell have many similarities including conflict, type of hunter, and type of resolution. One of the similarities is the type of conflict. The type of conflict is person vs. person. In both of the stories, the main characters are facing other people. An example of this would be the enemy in “The Sniper” and Rainsford facing General Zaroff in “The…
the ways you won’t ask how you can help” (Anderson 33). This ending line makes the reader feel hopeful that eventually the man, (you), may be able to help the woman. One of the strongest examples of emotional writing pieces in “Flash Fiction Forward” is “Bullhead”. The author writes of her mother’s first and truest love in the world. The mother made love once to the boy and the next day he moved away, leaving her to never see him again. This fact in itself is sad, but the story progresses…
What would you do if all the birds in the world started attacking people? Well, that's what happens in the movie and short story The Birds. The short story and the movie are very different, even though there are some similarities. One of the major similarities between the short story and the movie is that the radio was there the main source of information. In the movie between bird attacks, they go out to the car and turn on the radio to see if they can leave town. In the short story, they…
Today I came across a fascinating story filled suspense, darkness, mystery, and an ironic ending. It was given the title “The Interlopers” and the first time I read it, it took a few minutes to pass through my brain. I found that it was different from any short story I have read so far thus I managed to enjoy it a lot. Here are my thoughts and ideas about this short story, written by Saki. Like the title, The Interlopers, the short story itself includes of several different interlopers.…
The dictionary definition of objectification is to refer to a person as an object, an appellation which usually pertains to the mistreatment of women. The objectification of women is evident in all types of media, including short stories. For instance, Tim O’Brien’s The Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong places some verification that most men objectify women for their “entertainment and education” (68). Mary Anne Belle is immediately characterized as a toy as she “came in by helicopter” (67) into…
Choices In the short stories “A&P” by John Updike, “Searching for Summer” by Joan Aiken, and “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker the protagoni, are all face drastically different situations: an embarrassment three attractive female shoppers, a post-war world that is void of sunlight, and a rural southern home in which heritage drives the family apart. The characters can be linked together through their response to conflict: they choose to act selflessly rather than selfishly. The selfless acts of…