Raymond Carver Popular Mechanics Analysis

b. The snow symbolizes Ann’s depression. Cold is obviously associated with snow, which is how Ann feels about the cold. In reference to the text, Ann says “Wad something along the window sills to keep out the drafts. Then I’ll feel brighter. It’s the cold that depressed.” The depression is resulted from Ann’s isolation and she is always trying to fix it. A lot of the times in the story the snowy cold drafts creep through the window sill and makes Ann feel even more depressed.

In “Popular Mechanics”, Raymond Carver’s visual details help the readers adapt to the text. Carver’s vocabulary makes the mood understandable. Repetitive words makes it clear that people can hurt the ones they love. People hurt the ones they love as simple as having an argument leading to who takes the baby, just like the short story describes. The use of descriptive words help know the story has to do with divorce

In the short story “Popular Mechanics,” by Raymond Carver there is a relationship between vanity and the human predisposition to rage when faced with loss. This is an analysis of the nature of human relationships and how tragedy tends to result from the vanity of certain individuals.

Raymond Carver's symbols, use of details, and his inventive title really bring together this unusual story, to convey the theme that not all relationships end happily. He describes every little bit of this story with brilliant detail. The symbolism is indescribable, and the title is tricky but yet it makes absolute sense when you pick it apart. Popular Mechanics is truly a very meaningful short story. Carver packs so much significance into such a short piece of literature that this is no other word for it but amazing.

One of the main ways Carver shows his thematic message is through his use of allusion. In this case, the fight over the baby acts as an allusion to The Judgement of Solomon. In the original story of Solomon, he presides over the case of two women claiming to be the true mother of a single child. To solve the conflict, Solomon decrees that the child be sawn in half so that each woman may get an equal part of the child. One of the women then tells Solomon to give the baby to the other woman so that the baby can continue to live, thus revealing herself as the true mother.

Carver uses foreshadowing as a prominent element in this story. There are many examples of foreshadowing throughout the story. The first time the reader gets to see obvious foreshadowing is when the woman picks up the picture of the baby off the bed where the man is packing his belongings. “Then she noticed the baby’s picture on the bed and picked it up. He looked at her and she wiped her eyes and stared at him before turning and going back to the living room” (277). This small detail foreshadows that physical altercation that the couple will go through with the baby. The last big foreshadow that the reader gets is when the couple knocks over the flower pot. “The baby was red-faced and screaming. In the scuffle they knocked own a flowerpot that hung behind the stove” (277). This is very brief and only mentioned in this sentence. But this is the foreshadowing of the relationship that is broken, or even worse the baby being broken along with the relationship. While there are details at the beginning on the story, there are smaller things that can easily be looked over but are very important. The characters in this story, since it is minimalist fiction, are not ever given names. The characters are always just referred to as; the man, the woman, and the baby. The audience never finds out why the couple is breaking

In Ann Petry’s novel The Street, the wind plays the fundamental adversary, who purposely plays a violent and dangerous force. Through the use of imagery and personification, Petry successfully illustrates the relentless nature of the cold wind, further complementing Lutie Johnson’s auditory experience and strong-willed character. By using specific imagery, Petry portrays the harshness and brutality of the cold that the protagonist is forced to overcome in her endeavor for a home. For instance, the presence of the “cold November wind” becomes overly evident on 116th street as it is enveloped in a chaotic and turbulent state. Trash is flying everywhere, chicken and pork bones are on the curb.

Another metaphor, “making it a screen between herself and the surrounding snow and silence” is displayed to show how Ann used work to create a wall between her and the silence inside as well as the dangerous weather outside. The snow symbolizes her feelings of isolation as Ann is without her husband due to the weather. The silence is a constant reminder that she is alone while her husband is out in the blizzard. Ultimately, Ann will do anything in her power to escape this reality.

In "Popular Mechanics," a dark atmosphere sets the tone of the story. A story with characters who we aren't properly introduced to. The fact that we don't know the characters names or anything about them has already set a suspenseful ambiance. The suspense escalates when the stories male character is "...pushing clothes into a suitcase," and is soon interrupted by a frantic female character. She begins yelling at him and an altercation erupts. Moments later, they get in a verbal dispute over a baby. The disputes turns physical, and we aren't left with a clear understanding of what happens next. By leaving unanswered questions, Raymond Carver exceeds at leaving his readers in suspense long after the story has ended.

The cracking frost on the ground also adds negative connotation emphasizing the isolation and anxiety of the speaker before he is accompanied by his significant other. The speaker mentions a distinct detail of his lover’s house: the “Porch light burned yellow / Night and day, in any weather” is the first overt example of positive tone(10-11). The hyperbole exaggerates that the home has overflowing happiness and love in any condition. In addition, Soto combines auditory and visual imagery as the ringing of “the tiny bell” and the “narrow aisle of goods” refer to the soft-hearted speaker’s unintentional imagery of a wedding, justifying the predilection towards his relationship(Alliteration). Alternatively, Personification of the “tiny bell / Bringing a saleslady / Down a narrow aisle of goods,” introduces the ‘Symbolic Character’; representing the effects of love towards a person and how society understands the rewards of love(21-24). Besides introducing the character into the poem, the bells that bring the saleslady into the poem can also be interpreted as the wedding bells

Carver’s “Popular Mechanics” demonstrates that the selfish and emotional acts of human beings often lead to tragedy. In this specific work, the tragedy of killing a baby is left to ponder after two adults’ battle for the baby’s presence. Carver demonstrates this theme by making the argument appear important however, making the origin of the argument unknown. The short and mysterious argument not only prove how fast a tragedy could occur but also shows no matter how bad the situation may seem, letting it escalate to coincide the human emotion is not worth the horrific outcomes. The man and women written about in this flash fiction are both emotional and selfish as neither of them want to give up the baby. They start by verbally expressing their

Finally, it appears that Carver does not give an adequate description of his characters. The male and the female characters in this story are flat, stock characters. Because Carver relies on commonly held gender-based stereotypes this helps the reader to create his or her own image of the characters. The need for physical or psychological description is not necessary. For example, the woman?s opening statement, ?I?m glad you?re leaving! I?m glad you?re leaving! Do you hear?? (265), illustrates that she is a stereotypical, emotional female, who is out of control. Furthermore, the man?s refusal to acknowledge her illustrates a stereotypical male response to conflict. It shows that he considers her unworthy of a response. As if the same fight has occurred many times before and he knows there is no sense in replaying this scene again. The story escalates to a

Carver also emphasizes the contradictions within the characters themselves in the story, which illustrates the uncertainty of love, and how there is not a clearly defined approach to understanding it. Returning to the topic of Terri's previous marriage, Mel, her current husband, complains about his failure to understand how she could refer to that abusive relationship as love. However, later on when she corrects him while he is talking, he turns to her and asks her to "shut up" (Carver 767). Another important contradiction which takes place throughout the entire story, is how the four friends are discussing a subject which they all have had bad experiences with, since they have all been divorced and remarried. The contradictions throughout Carver's story symbolize how love can also contradict itself, and trying to understand love is impossible since so many particular cases can negate specific examples of love.

The short story is written in a colloquial tone and reads similarly to an unfocused train of thought, conveying simplicity and realism within the piece. The narrator frequently drifts from a complete statement to an aside throughout the narrative; for example, while discussing the poem his wife composed about her friend Robert he offhandedly recalls, “...I didn’t think much of the poem. Of course, I didn’t tell her that. Maybe I just don’t understand poetry,” (Carver 356). This passage, and others similar to it, cause the flow of the plot to meander, rather than adhere to a strict linear format. Additionally, while the abrupt and nonchalant remarks hold little substance to the narrator, they give the reader a window to the substantial disconnect between the narrator and his peers.

“Communication is key,” is a statement that people hear more than once in their lifetime. Whether they choose to understand it or not, it’s something that they will always hear. But if communication is really key why do people choose to hide away the key and keep their door locked? Every relationship has it up and downs. There is no couple who can say that their relationship is perfect, everyone runs into a few bumps in the road. It seems like they only want sunshine and rainbows in a relationship and don’t want to endure the storms that may come along. People just have to hang in there and learn how work through their issues. In Raymond Carver’s “Popular Mechanics”, the social issue of communication in relationships is brought up. Communication is important in relationships because it is the key to success. Poor communication can bring up many issues in a relationship like unnecessary arguments, unhappiness and in worse case scenarios separation.