THE THEMES WE CARRY














lack of self-knowledge
o don’t know true self
o +/family heritage
o real vs. faked

o commodified

o grasped in stressful, new situations
family/heritage:
o home is where the heartache is

o the curse of family

o family as source of pain

 Rose for Emily
 Rockinghorse Winner
 Cask of Amontillado
 Rappaccini’s Daughter
 Grave
 WRUG
 GCP
 Everyday Use
 Lottery
corruption of youth
education = bad
pride goes before the fall
o arrogance
o self-centeredness
o overconfidence
o stereotyping
 revenge of the stereotype
o condescending
hard choices
self-sacrifice
war is hell
the burdens we carry
o guilt
o regret
o family debts
o let go or drown
how we deal
o defines us
o denial, projection, displacement, avoidance - drugs
in violentia veritas
o in stressful situations true character comes through/out
o when the water is heated, the scum rises to the top
personal conscience vs. authority
o national law
o those in power
o bosses
THEME:
the central idea/s underlying a literary work
frequently offering insight into the human
condition
o BUT not directions on how to live
a universality to the message
indirectly stated
not a “moral” (ethics, values, didactic)












humans = mostly evil
o turn on each other
o self-preservation over friendship, family
o war
o cons
o rape & murder
o lottery
o at times, people must take a stand (against) & end/remove/overthrow evil
shelf-life of traditions:
o limited
o at times, people must take a stand & end/remove/overthrow outdated traditions
take a stand:
o Antigone
o Lottery
o Things Carried
o Eveline
o Rose
o A&P
o Chrysanthemums
o Hour
trapped:
o Cask
o A&P
o Antigone
o Eveline
o Rose
o Chrysanthemums
o Hour
 women in the story
 BUT us in theme
 claustrophobia, constriction, constraint, restriction, limitation
 by society, by families, by ourselves
hypocrisy
juxtaposition
the past
o as anchor, ancestral voice as command
o as myth, lie
appearance vs. reality
feminist allegory
young vs. old (A&P, Rose)
men = impotent (Rose, A&P, Chrysanthemums, Things, )
change for the better?? (Rose, Eveline, Chrysanthemums, Everyday Use)