She D Alway: A Short Story

Dorothy Allison's voice is one of authenticity, experience, and wisdom. This is apparent in her recounts of her mother's death and rape by her abusive stepfather as a child. She uses her storytelling as a way of sorting out her inner demons and memories of her broken life, “the [story] I wish I could make you hear,” as she says, because “the need to tell [her] story was terrible and persistent, and [she] needed to say it bluntly and cruelly, to use all those words, those old awful tearing words” (39, 42). She strives to get to the root of her own unresolved issues and, by her own admission, “[works] to make you believe [her]”:

She would take Ritalin to help her stay up at night to finish papers, and the first she did was in college to help her relax and focus. She knew she was addicted to drugs in college, but still graduated with from a top university, with a dual Masters. She secured a great job after graduation, and moved in with her boyfriend. It was around a year later she found out she was pregnant. Her boyfriend was also using drugs and was controlling. He insisted that she have an abortion, because “what was he going to do with a child”. She mentioned, “killing her baby” was the hardest thing she has ever had to do.

The bullying was just getting worse and worse throughout each grade she went in that she thought suicide was the only way to make it stop. Luckily she never went through with it. By age 14 she lost almost all of her vision. Later in the year something terrible happened to Molly so her mother took her out of school for the remaining part of the year. During that time she realized, “That’s when I realized I wasn’t being bullied because I’m different. There’s no reason. It’s not my haircut, or how I dress, it’s just something in the other person, and they’ve decided to target

She had returned from a family vacation to Hawaii and bought all of the bedding and school supplies she needed to move into her dorm at San Diego State University. Her parents were thrilled that she was just forty minutes from home and could visit often. Kim was ever more excited for what lied ahead of her, a new school, new friends, and she was especially excited to be out on her own! She was officially an adult, free to make her own decisions and to do as she pleased. One night Kim made a poor decision that would cut her life a lot shorter than expected. That feeling of freedom and power would all end in a heartbeat. Kim was always sheltered by her parents as she was growing up and had never stepped foot into the real world. Now, it was staring her straight in the face. One night she decided to attend a party with some friends not knowing what was in store for her. She was roaring with excitement and couldn’t wait to get there and experience college. During the party, Kim decided to try a drug that was offered to her by a tall, handsome boy. She accepted, thinking it would do her no harm to just try it once. She did

While I was walking through the hallways of Duncan High School, I seen Destyni walking out of the girls bathroom across from Mrs. Snider’s journalism class with toilet paper from her waistband. I seen it and everyone started laughing and pointing at her so I ran up to her and told her. From that day forward Destyni was known as the toilet girl. Her so called best friend Destinie started bullying her and Destyni thought she was a true friend. Destyni couldn’t take the bullying anymore, so she went home and told her mom what was happening and how she wanted to take her life away because she was getting bullied and it was just making her stressed out even more. Her mom decided to take the school to court for her getting bullied. Destyni then got

It had been about ten months since Aileen Mavourneen was introduced to the family. I was never fond of her. She was a dog and since i was a cat, we didn't get along. She always had the attention and Sadie never played with me anymore. The baby was always pulling on the dog's fur, laying on it, playing with it, kissing it. My days are quite a bore now that no one does any of that with me.

Once this girl started with the drugs, she could not stop. As soon as she tried the first drug, it lead to all of the other drugs and things that she did. Her first time doing the drug was an accident, and she did not know, but she made the wrong choice in continuing to do them. She said it gave her a feeling of belonging and love that she had never felt before. If her parents or her close friends had paid more attention to her, then some of the events that happened would not have happened. Her heavy drug use lead to her runaway from home to the streets, involvement in crime, her prostitution, and her visit to the insane asylum. She found a "best friend" (Chris) - one that would give her drugs - and they decided to runaway and leave their family and friends to start their own shop in San Francisco. They thought they could not handle their parents telling them what is right and what is wrong, but that is what they needed to hear. They were naive in thinking they could live their lives alone without any rules or any authority.

Uncomfortably, she sat in the restaurant; the romantic ambience almost felt sickly, the dim lighting, the candles and the classical music humming in the background. It is not that she did not enjoy the romantic side to love; it is just that she was here with Billy, a man who now seemingly loved her. The last man who loved her and who had taken her to this restaurant was Ric; it was the night he had confessed his love for her, the night they kissed in the moonlight.

Seventeen-year-old Layla had never tried drugs before. Then, she began dating Doug, a boy two years her senior, and things changed. Her mother didn’t like her daughter’s new boyfriend, but that didn’t stop Layla from seeing him. She would sneak around with him, and though her mother warned her about how he was too old and a bad influence, Layla dismissed the admonitions. After all, Doug had been nice enough-surprising her with flowers, saying nice things, and taking her to school. One morning, though, things took a turn for the worse.

“Clay, I know you’re having a hard time grieving, but she’s gone. And there’s nothing we can do about it” Tony replies back seriously

Maria lay there for a moment, gazing up at Jack, her heart still pounding and her breath still stuck in her throat. He was dressed in a ragged white shirt covered and smeared in bits of dirt, patched brown pants, and a rough gray jacket; he walked barefoot, his feet stuck with pieces of mud and grass. But his face was what caught Maria’s eye. He was the most handsome boy she had ever seen. His face was finely shaped, and set with a pair of radiant eyes that gazed down at her, glowing like crystal balls in the moonlight.

My foot is getting swollen from being up here for so long. I think it might have been early this morning when I decided to forage around the forest then I stepped in this weird trap sort of thing and now I’m stuck. I need Sophie to come and help me now. I then start making loud shrieks to get her attention. Still nothing. I keep making them and keep making them higher as I do so. I was sure this would be the end, then suddenly I heard someone. Sophie, it must be Sophie. I start making my shrieking noises again and she pops out and takes a good look at me. I was so happy to see her. She then said,

The major theme of Tim Winton’s short story ‘On Her Knees’ is dignity. Throughout the short story Vic Lang the narrator speaks in 1st person about Carol Lang’s (his mother) struggle ‘to pay off his debts and keep us a float and get me through university’ after the husband has abandoned Vic’s family. We know this as Vic states ‘I was 16 when the old man shot through’ indicating that his father has been and gone. The mother and Vic move back to the city where she gets a job as a cleaner because ‘it was all she could get’. In the short story the main point of dignity is presented by Vic’s mother after being accused of stealing earrings worth $500 and is asked to clean the house one more time before she is fired. The theme of dignity is relevant to today’s society as it is very important to have integrity and understand your own self-worth. This is shown through the short story by the selfless acts of Vic’s mother as even though she is falsely accused of taking the earrings she still goes and finishes her job at the highest quality. Carol at the end of the story makes a strong statement after they have finished cleaning the house and preparing to leave. There is an envelope on the counter for her last pay of $500 and is left behind. Out of her own pride Vic asks ‘what about the money’ and the mother says to her son ‘I am worth more’.

“Sabrenna’s life wasn’t the greatest, she didn’t have the money to have a nice stable house and we didn’t live in the best neighborhood either, we lived in a small apartment. She had always gotten bullied and abused, her therapy was soccer that was the one thing that took her mind off of her troubles. I Margo, Sabrenna’s mother was diagnosed with trachea cancer almost 2 years ago. I had a hard time trying to take care of my family while battling cancer and defending myself from my abusive second husband.” “When Sabrenna turned 17 I bought her a pair of soccer cleats , with the little money I had. The soccer cleats were blue with 3 small bright yellow stripes on the inside of the cleat, with the word "Believer" on the outer side part of the cleat. Sabrenna had always had a passion for soccer, but never got the chance to play. Once I had bought those cleats for her, she would wake up in the morning go to school and after school she would walk to the local soccer fields, do her homework and then would put her cleats on and practice until I called her and told her to come home. Most the time I was to weak to make food and my husband Steven was way too hungover to cook dinner, so Sabrenna would make food. Every once and awhile Sabrenna would come home late while me and Steve were sitting down at the table, Steve would stand up and start yelling at Sabrenna and slap her hard across the face for not being home in time for dinner.”

Another memory, my friend called me like the 2nd day of high school, “April where are you at? Everyone is asking where you at, everyone is calling you and asking for you. You have all my classes. Where you at? It is truly crazy out here. Everyone is smoking in front of the school, we drinking bottles” Why did I want to go to that school because all my friends were there and all that crazy stuff was happening. Honestly I don’t know what the hell my problem was, but I must confess I was super excited. When I was younger during my teenage years I used to be a trouble maker I used to drink and do drugs. It was exciting to know the students were gambling in the bathroom. I didn 't even know how to shoot dice but I was down to try. I recall the first day I attended the school it took me a while to get there because it looked so different it didn’t look like a school at all. I don’t know if that was the best decision I’ve made in my life but you know it is what it is it got me where I am today. Going to that high school was like being in a prison. Students were on house arrest, in parole, probation, people were always in fights it was just insane. The first year was crazy I didn’t really want to learn, I wasn’t as excited to be educated. I mean it was 9th grade and in my head I believed I had everything settle. There were a lot of different stuff that happened 9th grade year. Then 10th grade come by and I receive my first 3.0 and I was super proud of myself. My mother called like,