Kyleen Oldham
Oldham 1
Ms. Jordan
English 1101
September 4th, 2009
A Weapon or Insight
In the short story “Life After High School” by Joyce Carol Oates, in the car in
which Zachary dies, he leaves behind a clothesline which could have been used as a
weapon or as an insight into Zachary’s character. Zachary was not like everyone else in
the sense of the feelings he felt inside. He had urges of homosexual tendencies which
went against the bible, by which he was raised. The only girl whom he felt attraction to
was Sunny(Barbara). When no one wanted him, Zachary turned to suicide, as one may be
led to believe. Yet, the mysterious note left behind could indicate something of the
retrospect. Not only that, but the obscurity of the clothesline in the glove compartment
resembles how out of place Zachary was in life.
The strange presence, described in the book as “oddly”, of most of the items in
Zachary’s car that night was nothing compared to the clothesline in the glove
compartment. It was very random and did not fit together with anything else that car
Oldham 2
contained, listed as being, “bible, textbooks, pizza carton…”. Zachary was much like the
clothesline, not fitting in the world he was born into. God placed him in an environment
where he was looked at in a queer fashion, for he just did not fit in to others expectations.
He was stated as being, “feared, thus disliked”. His only friend was Tobias with whom
the story says he “talked a good deal about religion“. Even around Sunny he had, as
Oates writes, “discussed his religious doubts”. Not only that but every morning, Zachary
is described praying, “for his sinful thoughts, deeds, and desires”. When he was asked
what he prays for, he says, “To get through the day”, as if something was already out to
get him. That clothesline was strange in its presence as much as Zachary was in life.
As much as the clothes line was peculiar, it had a secret. It may not have simply
been used as a clothes line, as the average person would seem to infer. Zachary had a
secret as well. He was ashamed to admit who he really was, and his religion criticized
him for it. Zachary is said in the story of , “expressing doubt whether God exists”, to dear
Sunny. This is due to his homosexual feelings and desires. It is never directly states it, yet
Tobias does say, “I couldn’t have loved Zachary Graff as he claimed he loved me”. This
is inferred as a sexual attraction from where Tobias is hinted to being gay by saying, “I
knew I was attracted to other guys-but of coarse I couldn’t act upon it.” This is probably
due to strict parents, which Tobias also speaks of them both having. So there is no
guarantee that Tobias did not love Zachary, only that he could not act upon his love at the
time. Tobias also is said to have written on “the vicissitudes of gay life” later in his career
after high school. Zachary did not know how to handle his homosexual instincts. He did
Oldham 3
not know if he was to hate God for the curse, or pray to God to fix it, which is did pray
often. Zachary may have tried to become what the bible wanted him to become by
pursuing Sunny (Barbara), but in the end no one seemed to want him, not even God
himself. His pursuit of Sunny may have also been more of finding someone else who can
relate to him, for as Sunny puts on a façade to hide her true nature, so does Zachary.
Sunny is described as being, “little plain Barbra” once. After Zachary’s decease, Sunny is
mentioned as being, “paler, more subdued, less ‘Sunny’, and did not speak with her
closest friends”. Soon after, she became her real self, by becoming Barbara again. Once
Zachary was lost, Barbara realized a façade can kill. As much as that clothes line held a
secret in its intentions, Zachary held a secret of such shunned passionate desires in his
life.
The simple clothesline was not merely a tool to dry garments, but may have held a
darker and demented desire by Zachary. Almost like a Romeo and Juliet travesty,
Zachary may not have intended to die alone that night, he may have had intentions of
dragging Sunny or possibly Tobias along side him. With his aggressive and peculiar
actions towards Sunny the night of his suicide, Zachary implied he was not himself and
wanted to abuse Sunny. Sunny says in the story, “I realized something was gravely
wrong. Here was Zachary Graft, yet not Zachary”. Oates describes the forceful nature by
saying, “He reached for her hand, this time taking hold of her wrist. His fingers were
strong”. Sunny also is told to be feeling as though “her arm was strained in its very
socket”, due to Zachary’s actions. Whether it be by strangling her or binding her with the
clothes line, if
Oldham 4
she came with him, there seemed to be a dark purpose that clothesline contained, by
being a weapon of violence and murder. Sunny calls his voice, “the voice of a stranger”,
something signifying Zachary was not himself, in a negative context, that night outside
her house. Zachary seemed to never want to be alone, even in death. Tobias even
inquires, “Suicide is very attractive to adolescents”, signifying they had talked about
suicide together, maybe even spoke of taking the ‘plunge’ together. Luckily Sunny nor
Tobias accepted Zachary’s invitation that night, possibly saving one or both of their
necks.
With Zachary’s hesitant and anxious demeanor, it is hinted that he did not take his
own life, but that someone used the clothesline against him and forged a suicide. If one
reflects on Zachary’s suicide note, it seemed quite odd in how it was written. Beginning
with “April Fool’s Day”, you might infer that the note was not the truth. It was cleverly
written, where it could have been trying to explain that he was murdered, stating ,”I,
Zachary A. Graff, being of sound mind and body, do hereby declare that I have taken my
own life of my own free will and I hereby declare all others guiltless as they are ignorant
of the death of the aforementioned and the life.” Normally if you think of a suicide letter,
you do not think of it as being so vague and to the point. Usually it would be written for a
certain person, yet Zachary writes the letter as if any stranger will read it, signing it,
“Zachary A. Graff”, not just Zachary. If you think of the note as a April Fool’s letter and
having dark message, you can infer he was not of “sound mind and body”, and that he did
not take his own life “out of my own free will”, and lastly that there are guilty people.
Oldham 5
Zachary may have been forced to write the note in order for it to look like he committed
suicide, when he could have easily been strangled originally by the clothesline instead of
the carbon monoxide. If someone discovered his homosexual desires, he would be
disliked by many, leading up to the proposal to Sunny where he tried to cover it up. It
was almost as if someone was watching Zachary during the proposal, as if he was
proving to them that a girl loves him. In the story, when Zachary proposes, he says,
“Please… will you accept it”. It is not the normal proposal situation, especially after
Sunny refuses to wear the ring and Zachary says, “will you try it on just to see if it
fits…on your right hand if you don’t want to wear it on your left.” This becomes a
desperate attempt to get Sunny just to place the ring on her finger, as if a person in the
shadows needs to witness this to get Zachary off the hook. Then Zachary tries to say it is
just a gift, and to take it in that sense. The ring was expensive and could have been used
as a bribe. Zachary even says, “I realize you don’t l-love me, Sunny, at least not yet, but
you could wear the ring, couldn’t you?” The situation seemed very staged, where Sunny
refuses to play her role and leaves Zachary in a bad place. Days then passed and it states,
“Zachary did not call. If he was absent from school, Sunny did not notice”. This implies
that Zachary was probably not around, hiding from someone or something. Sunny then
refuses to tell anyone about the proposal saying, “this too would be a betray of Zachary”,
when in actuality it could have made things worse by ignoring it, making it seem as if
Zachary was homosexual still. When Zachary randomly comes one night to Sunny’s
window and Tobias’ as well, he was described as being, “forceful with a raw urgency”,
and he said he needed to talk. When he first spots Sunny he is spotted acting like, “an
impatient child”, who was “waving
Oldham 6
excitedly” happy to have someone he can trust to assist him possibly save him. To come
to both Tobias’ and Sunny’s window, this was a sign that it was a plea for help,
desperate, yet both rejected him, his only two friends. Coincidentally he was found dead
the next morning, with reminisce of food in his car that implied there was enough food
consumed for three or more people, including a pizza box, and several empty Pepsi
bottles. That clothesline could have been the instrument that caused the strangulation and
true death of Zachary. The car could have been a set up to depict a suicide. He would not
be described as, “stripped to his underwear in the rear seat of the car”, if something else
was not going on. With Zachary’s decease, it is hard for anyone to understand the
situation that night, only the clothesline could hold the true story of what happened that in
the car.
Zachary was a soul that was not properly understood in the time period of the
“1959”. In his death, it is still puzzling as to what happened to him that night. The
clothesline in the glove compartment was most likely used or to be used to inflict abuse
in one fashion or another. Zachary loved and lived and tired to get others to understand
him, along with trying to fix himself for God’s sake. In the end, his desires caught up
with him, caused him to feel rejected, and led to his death. The clothesline’s mystery will
never be solved, yet its impact really makes a reader question what really happened
occurred that April Fool’s morning.
Works Cited
Oates, Joyce Carol. High Lonesome: Selected Stories 1966-2006. New York, New York.
2006.
Jordan Owens
M. Jordan
English 1101
4 September 2009
Joyce Carol Oates
“In Hot May”
When a door is locked it means you are keeping someone else out. That is the reality of locking a
door. The symbolic importance is keeping your secrets or issues locked away from others. Kileen is locked
out of her parents’ relationship, out of her family, and out of her own home. Throughout Joyce Carol Oates
short story “In Hot May” there are doors locked both metaphorically speaking and the actual doors for the
house, keeping Kileen out of her life.
At the beginning of “In Hot May” Kileen is locked out of her house. “The front one was
permanently locked” (123) which symbolizes her parents’ secrets hidden from the neighbors and Kileen.
Kileen has been locked out of the family. “Once the door…was shut with them inside and you outside”
(131) Kileen had no way of getting inside and knowing her parents. The stairs that were no longer in front
of the door symbolizes there were no ways for Kileen to ever know or understand her family’s relationship.
Kileen was shut out of her parents’ relationship and had no way of getting back inside. “It must be locked
against her” (123) the doors are locked against Kileen ever knowing the reality. Kileen believes she is the
reason behind her parents’ secrecy, but there could be reasonable doubt.
As the story continues Kileen feels that “the door might be locked for some other reason” (122).
She sees doubt that her mom would lock her out of her home. Kileen never would ask about what has been
happening because it was not in her place to ask. Assuming that the door is locked for a different reason
Kileen continues to ask to be let in. When there is no answer “Mom? Daddy? It’s me Kileen…” (123) she
has to explain who she is. Since Kileen is no part of the parents’ relationship it seems like she has to
explain herself to them. She did not choose to be locked out of the life, but her parents did “Kileen knew
better than to ask for details.” (122)
Erma explains to Kileen “I mind my damn business” (128) which tells the reader that Kileen’s
family each sticks to their own issues and does not inform others. Kileen sticks with herself and does not
pry into her parents’ life, even though she wants to be a part of it. “Did you really want…the neighbors to
know your business?” (124) Kileen says this to herself as if her mother was telling her because she knows
to keep others out of their life. Kileen locks her friends and neighbors out of what has been happening in
the house. Shutting others out of their life keeps all their secrets intact. Erma does not want their name to be
ruined in the town they live in “[It is] a joke against our family.” (125)
Being locked out of her own house and her parents’ life was a common thing for Kileen. She has
learned to block out the fights and actions her parents have on each other. Being locked out symbolizes the
distinct the family has among themselves. They do not want people to know about them and to keep it
secret they lock their own family out. This causes the issues they have to become physical and possible
mental abuse. No one knows what goes on. When something happens Erma runs with Kileen. They run so
their neighbors will not know what has happened to their family. They would run to Clarice’s home till
Kileen’s dad would come back for them.
Joyce Carol Oates explains the significances of their family’s hidden secrets and problems
underlying their home. The cause of the doors being lock affects the story. The act of locking means to
keep out. Joyce Carol Oates talks about the locking of the door, but it goes deeper into the story. Kileen is
shut out from her parents’ relationship and locks others out of her thoughts and feelings. Erma locks
neighbors out, so they do not see what is wrong with their family. The stairs not being there states to others
they do not want you to become a part of their group of friends. There are no steps to learn or understand
Kileen’s family. The house is locked to keep everyone out of what happens. When Kileen’s family shuts
and locks the door they hide everyone else from what lies behind the exterior of their home.
Work Citied
Oates, Joyce Carol High Lonesome New and Selected Stories 1966-2006. New York:
HarperCollins Publisher, 2006.
Briania Simmons
A simple set of boxing gloves; who knew they could have so many different
meanings. Throughtout the story “Golden Gloves”, you are shown versatiltiy of an object
that is normally so straightforward. During the beginning of my reading, these gloves that
seemed to only serve one purpose, purely to box in the ring. Yet as I continued on the
gloves seemed to reoccur yet serving new purposes and multiple meanings. They were a
monumental part of this young man’s life, and were more important that most people
could fathom.
Although the boxing gloves held bounitful purposes there physical and most
common meaning was also relayed in this short story.The dictionary defines boxing
gloves as, cushioned gloves that fighters wear on their hands during boxing matches. The term also
refers to gloves used in training, though these often differ from competition gloves. Modern boxing gloves
were developed to protect the hands of the striker during a fight, though specialized gloves are now
available for competitions, sparring practice and other types of training. The use of modern boxing gloves
typically results in fewer superficial facial injuries but greater brain damage to participants. “Golden
Gloves” not only made aware of the physical meaning but also the abstract connotation.
A deeper meaning and a higher logic; the gloves were a freedom and a release from what he once
was. The young man was a premature baby and born with deformed feet, he had a rough childhood and
truly know the meaning of pain. At the age of eight he received a surgery, that forever changed his life.
After the operation his father began to take him to boxing events and therefore leaving an everlasting
impression on the boy’s existence. As a gift the father gave the boy boxing gloves; at that moment I believe
the gloves were no longer a physical symbol but a mental way of healing, and thus the freedom began to
bring him into a new world, the one he only envisioned while sitting in his wheel chair.
An extension of the man he always sought to be was also a symbol the boxing golves held. Once
the casts were removed, his legs were capable to walk, sprint, and soon even run. His father, the man who
had once looked at him as just a poor lost soul, now sparred with him and taught him the ends and outs of
boxing. He and his father began to train daily at the YMCA and gradually his confidence began to develop.
When the boxing gloves were on, he was a new and different man, not the same boy who was once looked
down upon because of his disability, or teased and laughed at by his peers, or even the same boy whom his
father saw, but looked straight through. He was now a strong, confident individual who was finally being
seen to the world as the type of person he always was inside.
The boxing gloves that were once a promise of his future now only reflected the loss of what he
could have been. His first was loss, was then his last, he suffered his defeat and never looked back. Thus
the boxing gloves became a mirror into his past. Time progressed, he grew older, and continued on as a
regular individual . He married Annemarie whom he loved very much, she was to be the mother of his
children yet he still would not tell her of his life prior to their meeting. The gloves were no longer a
representation of freedom and happiness they were now a constant reminder of what he could have
achieved, but yet could never truly be superior in. The gloves that were once a testament to all that he
could do, now made him feel as if he fell short of the goal he once had.
During the enitrety of the story, the boxing gloves continued to be an ever changing, crucial, and
and substantial element to this narrative. They held countless meanings and served numerous purposes
inorder to better serve the direction and understanding of the written account. Amidst my learning
endeavors, I was taught that one symbol can not have one meaning but a vast array meanings.
Hannah Taylor
September 3, 2009
English 1101
Three Dials Away
Have you ever been in a situation where one decision could change your
whole life? A decision you do not want to make but know you have to? In
the short story “Where are you going, where have you been? “by
Joyce Carol Oates, Connie , a young teenager ,
is unwillingly put in a
situation where a simple phone call could make or break her life.
While Connie is home alone and stunned by an unwelcome stranger, Arnold
Friend, who is verbally manipulating and threatening her to get in his
car, she tries to use her phone to call her help but is put in a
predicament. Arnold tells her,― soon as you touch the phone I do not
need to keep my promise and can come inside. You won’t want that―.
Connie’s phone symbolizes hope in that if she calls for help maybe
Arnold would get scared and leave. She is three numbers away from
having the police come and save her from this creep. She would have no
more worries, no more panic, and no more terror. Connie’s phone also
symbolizes danger, fear, and uncertainty. Arnold could do awful things
to her and her family if she makes the call. A simple call with unknown
consequences.
Connie is forced to make a decision that could alter the rest of her
life. One call, that’s all. Throughout the story “Where are you
going, where have you been―, Joyce Carol Oates expresses symbolism of
hopeful thinking and heaps of terror though one phone call.