Loneliness In Short Stories

Whether a story is written short or long, in a novel, or in a movie, it always has a main theme that attracts the reader. The theme helps connect all the plots together to come to a final resolution. Being lonely, isolated and unwanted are the feelings that most affect people. Loneliness is about feeling disconnected from the rest of the world. Being isolated have a negative impact on society, but it will also have a negative impact on the person being isolated. The two short stories, “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman and “Ms. Brill” by Katherine Mansfield focuses on the way two women experience loneliness, isolation, and social expectation in their society. Social expectations may hold back women from achieving their fullest potential because they are obligated to stand by a series of rules that may be counter-productive to them. Throughout these two stories, the readers are able to see a lot of similarities between the stories just that they are presented in different ways.

This essay implies to the reader that loneliness isn’t always a vile thing. The author compares somebody who has absolutely nothing in life but enjoys the solitude, to people who roam through life alone, seeking for company—but never find it. The author compares the chosen lifestyle of the box man, to the undesired for loneliness of the victims. The author explains that although one may be poor and alone, it does not mean that one is unhappy. For example, in paragraph 12 it is explained that the mayor has offered him help, but the box man pushes it away. In paragraph 18 it is described how the box man enjoys his dark life. It is portrayed that life is a solo journey and that one may be much more miserable by going through

In the following short stories Eveline written by James Joyce, The Story of An Hour written by Kate Chopin, and A Rose For Emily written by William Faulkner we find that isolation is a popular theme throughout the stories. There are several factors in each one of the stories that makes us feel the isolation that each one of the women in the stated stories felt. Weather it is Eveline feeling stuck at home due to a request for her to tend to her family and resume the place of her deceased mother. Or Mrs. Mallard with her feeling that “it was only yesterday that she felt that life might be too long” (228). Along with Miss. Emily who seemed isolate her self form the word by closing her door for good. In the three

In the essay ‘The Box Man’ Ascher invokes many stylistic devices and rhetorical strategies to portray her message that you should accept loneliness. The devices she uses include the rhetorical strategy “Ethos” and the stylistic device Anecdote. She uses many more which will be discussed later in this essay. She portrays the message “accepting loneliness” throughout the whole piece and even provides real life examples to support her message. These Examples include The Box man, the Soup lady, and the Television lady. All of these examples are lonely Individuals however, they go about it at different ways. The Box man chooses to accept loneliness and the other two ladies don't accept it and therefore live miserably.

The theme of isolation is a heavy premise throughout all three books that help to shape not only certain characters but also provide insight on fundamental qualities of their identities. The object of this essay is to prove who seems to be the most solitary character between the books Light in August by William Faulkner, A Good Man is Hard to Find by Flannery O’Connor and The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. In these stories, the idea of isolation is the loneliness that has been experienced in a characters life. Some characters have experienced their loneliness since early childhood while others have been kept isolated involuntarily. Although these three characters have taken different approaches in their lives, they all ended up isolated from society. As Alfred Kazin believes that Joe Christmas is the most solitary character in American fiction, I would like to discuss how both the villain in A Good Man is Hard to Find and the heroine of The Yellow Wallpaper would not rival Kazin’s opinion. Joe Christmas in Light in August proves to be the most solitary character I have read about, as he is never able to become a full member of society.

Loneliness is usually a common and unharmful feeling, however, when a child is isolated his whole life, loneliness can have a much more morbid effect. This theme, prevalent throughout Ron Rash’s short story, The Ascent, is demonstrated through Jared, a young boy who is neglected by his parents. In the story, Jared escapes his miserable home life to a plane wreck he discovers while roaming the wilderness. Through the use of detached imagery and the emotional characterization of Jared as self-isolating, Rash argues that escaping too far from reality can be very harmful to the stability of one’s emotional being.

Loneliness and exclusion from society hurts and affects everyone; the emotional strain a person endures from it creates the image they present to others, but deep down they are not the display image they manufacture. As an illustration, while opening up to Lennie in the barn Curley’s wife states, “I get lonely… You can talk to people, but I can’t talk to nobody but Curley. Else he gets mad.

“Guys like us, that work on ranches are the loneliness guys in the world. They got no family...we got a future. We got somebody to talk to that gives a damn about us” (Steinbeck 14). During the Great Depression, much of society is alienated while survival of the fittest prevails. The power of loneliness affects the individual involved as long as the society it is present in continues to harvest the discriminatory ways. During the 1930’s, the Great Depression was at its peak; The stock markets crashed, and a chain reaction caused the unemployment rates to rise to an all time high. Thus, migrant worker became popular because they were always needed on a farm and it was a way for one to find employment. In of Mice and Men, Candy, Crooks, and Curley’s wife are all victims of the Great Depression. Candy and Crooks work on the farm, while Curley’s wife is the flirtatious nuisance whose dreams were crushed. The pervasive emotion throughout this novella is loneliness. Loneliness is felt by Candy, Crooks, and and Curley’s wife, whether it’s being represented symbolically as the characters are fighting social devastation, learning to make it alone, or through their actions.

Throughout the novel, Curley’s wife is used as a model of loneliness in order to show the impact of loneliness and isolation on the human mind. For example, she shows

In “A Rose for Emily”, Miss Emily Grierson lives a life of quiet turmoil. Her

In “A Rose for Emily,” Emily Grierson, referred to as Miss Emily throughout the story, is the main character of 'A Rose for Emily'. Emily used to live with her father and servants, in a big decorated house. Emily was not able to develop any real relationship with anyone else, but it was like her world revolved around her father. When her father passed away, it was a devastating loss for Miss Emily. Instead of going on with her life, her life halted after death of her father. Miss Emily found love in a guy named Homer Barron, who came as a contractor for paving the sidewalks in town. The passed passage of time creates a tension in her life. At first she cannot accept the death of her father. After that she creates tension in the community by refusing to pay the taxes. When Emily proposed Homer Barron

Every human builds their own version of the world, complete with perceptions of themselves and others. In "Mrs. Brill" by Edith Wharton, the protagonist struggles to accept reality, but an epiphany reveals the inner conflict of the narrative. An elderly woman living in Paris, Mrs. Brill looks forward to her weekly visits to the local gardens. Her special talent is listening, and she observes the minute details of those around her.

“Understanding Miss Brill” Most elder women find joy in everyday activities. In the story, “Miss Brill” by Katherine Mansfield takes us into the life of the main character Miss Brill. Miss Brill is an old lady who finds happiness by going to watch bands and the people around her every Sunday morning. Miss Brill is developed through her actions, choices, and her thoughts and feelings. To begin, Miss Brill’s actions shows that she is an old lady with little to do, she enjoys being surrounded by people because it gives her something to do.

The women in “Adventure” by Sherwood Anderson and in “What lips my lips have kissed” by Edna ST. Vincent Millay are both feeling a sense of loneliness without the presence of men in their life .In the story by Anderson, a young woman giving herself away to a man that moved away and never came back to her. In the poem by Millay, the womans lonely and she is reminiscing about the men she has had in the past and now she in alone with no one. Anderson and Millay construct their writings with the settings, time, and the women’s actions because of their emotional states.

“Title” “Miss Brill” by Katherine Mansfield, is a short story about Miss Brill, an elderly woman living on her own, who regularly goes to the park. To escape the harsh realities and loneliness she feels in her everyday life she inserts herself in the lives of the people at the park. She sits and listens to the band play and eavesdrops on people’s conversations. Every Sunday while heading home, Miss Brill would stop at the bakery and get a piece of honeycake, but on this particular Sunday, Miss Brill does not stop at the bakery. Miss Brill’s drastic character change is shown through the use of symbolism, character development, and theme.