Interpretative Literary Critical Essay on Truman Capote’s “Miriam”: the Theme of Death in the Story

The idea of death can be, and is an enormously disturbing, unknown issue in which many people can have many different opinions. To some individuals, the process of life can progress painstakingly slow, while for others life moves too fast. In the excerpt We Were the Mulvaneys, by Joyce Carol Oates, a innocent farm boy named Judd Mulvaney has an eye-opening encounter by a brook near his driveway. During this encounter, Judd faces a chain of feelings and emotions that lead to his change of opinion of the issues of life and death, and change as a character. This emblematic imagery of life and death, as well as jumpy, and retrospective tones benefit the development of Judd as an innocent child as he begins to change into a more conscious and aware adult.

a very common fear every salve of the time inhibited. By illustrating the tragic life of a young

In the story we see the development of the young man into adulthood and responsibility. He seems to be a fair headed person but once Death begins to give him riches and fame we see that the young man's behavior begins to change. Since it seems that the young man never really has to work for his riches he begins to take his fame and wealth, and his godfather for granted. This is demonstrated three times in the story, once when the king becomes ill, second when the princess becomes sick herself and is in need of a physician and finally when the young doctor is shown his candle of life.

In Miriam, by Truman Capote, amidst loneliness, Mrs. Miller becomes face to face with a young girl whose personality is the complete opposite to her own, a girl who is not afraid to ask for what she wants, while Mrs. Miller is recluse and avoids asking too much from other people. Gradually, as Miriam pushes Mrs. Miller over the edge, she begins to lose the polite, withdrawn part of herself who gives in to passivity. Realizing her faults, Mrs. Miller avoids any of her past characteristics and any qualities that remind her of Miriam. Through characterization, conflict, and tone, Truman Capote uses Miriam to reveal to the reader that self-preservation and detachment can tear a person apart, just as Mrs. Miller herself became a hollow shell of a person.

The first passage reveals the parallel suffering occurring in the lives of different members of the family, which emphasizes the echoes between the sufferings of the father and the narrator. The narrator’s father’s despair over having watched

This novel is a classic example of many people's lives, which includes fear, jealousy, pride and their insecurities to name a few. The transformation of the narrator from before his reincarnation until afterwards is filled with tragedy and grief, but it is through the sacrifice of his own life that he is permanently freed from his jealousy and egotism. His "punishment" or his purgatory seemed to prove how good of a person he was all

The ends of the story are very different from each other in quite a few ways. Let just say there is a good ending in one story and a bad ending in another. Lets go deeper

Truman Capote's writing techniques are an essential component to the overall effect that his message gives to the readers. The use of rhetorical as well as literary devices work hand in hand to show the reader just exactly what Capote was trying to convey through his words. At first glance, it may be difficult to decipher the message, however once one digs deeper the message becomes much clearer. Capote wants the audience to understand the importance of living life to the fullest because it can change drastically in the matter of minutes. Although he explains very little that directly relates to his true purpose, his subtle use of stylistic devices work in cohesion to express his ideas, thus the importance of living life to the fullest at all times is greatly emphasized.

is about. Thus, from the beginning of the story until almost the end, there is an

In the story, the reader can note the use of indirect and direct characterization to visualize character Mrs.Miller before and after she met Miriam. Before she met Miriam “her interests were little and she had no friends to speak of” (page 1 Capote) To me, this examplifies that as said before, Mrs.Miller is quite lonely and blane although she has very little interests which means she’s probably home a lot and rarely goes anywhere which may cause her to become insane in the long run. Since Mrs.Miller is so isolated and rarely goes out there may be a possibility she could develop a sickness, such as schizophrenia which would cause her to imagine things and think of situations with Miriam that are just a fragment of her imagination. When the readers read the book they see that as Mrs.Miller went to the movie theatre and met Miriam, she changed to a more alive person than what she was before she met her, which in my opinion proves that maybe Miriam had changed Mrs.Miller by just talking to her for that short amount of time. Although, we see Miriam go to Mrs.Millers house later that day, she tries to get Mrs.Miller to give stuff to her and she also tries to get Mrs.Miller to kiss her as shes leaving. Later on that night Mrs.Miller is sick and goes to rest. The following morning Mrs.Miller stayed in bed “only rising once to feed the canary and drink a cup of tea” (page 8 Capote) This means that Mrs.Miller had gotten a little shooken-up on how Miriam showed up last night, so maybe that’s just the beginning of her insanity.

This essay will explore the function of the narrative which helps the readers to perceive the meaning of the narrative. It will do so in terms of the point of view, narrative voice as well as the structure of the narrative. Furthermore, the setting of the story will be another focus which exploits the generic convention which reflects the social anxiety behind the story at the time. I

After quickly recovering from the storm of grief which showered her, Louise comprehends her own independence; “‘Free, free, free!’” (202). Something of which she has not possessed before. Not to mention, Louise holds great passion for the future without her husband influencing her decisions, “...(the) long procession of years to come (...) would belong to her absolutely” (202). As the story continues, it becomes evident that Mrs. Mallard’s confidence and jubilance holds direction in her long life to come. Ironically, however, Louise only lives to see the next few minutes of her life. As the shock of seeing the living dead births a heart attack; “When the doctors came they said she had died of heart disease- a joy that kills” (203). Ultimately, her gluttonous behaviour and extreme state of joy lead her to an untimely death when her eyes lay upon the presumed dead, Brently

The main analysis this essay with cover is comparing how the three stories discuss and express class and heritage, as well as how death can cause people to not only think things in a different way but also how death can open your eyes to something you never would have seen otherwise. Another thing that is potentially easily missed is how each of the individuals writing styles and backgrounds affect the ground work of the stories and how they progress.

The short story, “Miriam,” by Truman Capote was first published in Mademoiselle in 1946. It was one of the first short stories published by Capote, who would later become a legendary writer. The story is interesting on multiple different levels, with great character development as well as the mystery behind the antagonist, young Miriam. At times, the story takes on something of a chilling tone in a way that is reminiscent of classic horror writers such as Edgar Allan Poe. However, while the suspenseful nature of much of the story hints at a macabre ending this anticipated ending never comes about. Instead, the reader is left wondering what the true

The play Everyman may have been written many years ago, but its lessons are still relevant today. Generally, the facts of death are very traumatizing and in fact unthinkable. This leads the modern day Everyman to ignore its significance, dying without acknowledging or reflecting on their lives here on earth. It is based on this fact that this paper aims to show the position of the author of the play “Everyman” regarding death.