SHORT STORY
ANALYSIS:
Theme
✔”Everyday
Use” by Alice
Walker
✔”The
Birthmark” by
Nathaniel
Hawthorne
THEME ANALYSIS ESSAY DISCUSSION NOTES
“EVERYDAY USE”
By Alice Walker
*Subject vs. Theme
-Subject: Family reunion/homecoming
-Theme/s: Family dynamics, Cultural heritage,
identity
-Universal Messages: We can view our cultural
history in different ways,
Family relationships are complicated & do not
out the way we hope they will
Americans have a complicated history that can
in different ways by different groups in society
“THE BIRTHMARK”
By Nathaniel Hawthorne
American
& ancestral
always turn
be viewed
*Symbolism
-Mamma/Maggie: Traditional, pragmatic view
of
history/ancestry
-Dee: Modern, culturally sensitive view of history/ancestry
-House: Families’ past, Dee’s hatred, Maggie’s scars
-Maggie’s Scars: Her ugliness/shame, Dee’s hatred, The
past
that can never be wiped away
-Blankets, Butter Churn, Benches: Cultural artifacts, household
items meant to be used
-Names: Slave owners legacy, African-American
heritage,
Black Power/Muslim culture
-Absence of a father: Strength of black women to do the
same things as black men
*Historical Criticism
-How should African-Americans view their own
heritage in
the context of slavery & the Civil War?
-Is one side correct or is it ok to accept both views?
-Should we view historical artifacts as items for
“everyday
use” or relics of history that should be
preserved?
*Subject vs. Theme
-Subject: Scientific experiments to attain physical perfection
-Theme/s: Science vs. Nature/God, Love, Physical Perfection,
Human Mortality
-Universal Messages:
Science should not try to change or take over the role of
Nature/God in the world
Human perfection is unattainable
Mortality is what makes us appreciate life
“Beauty if in the eye of the beholder”
*Symbolism
-Aylmer: Science, scientific pursuit to perfect humanity
-Georgianna: Human imperfection
-Aminadab: Nature/God, natural order of the world
-Laboratory: the world of Science, scientific method (cold,
sterile, unloving)
-Bedroom: the natural world (warm, emotional)
-Aylmer’s Experiments: human attempts to change/fix the
natural world
-Aylmer’s Dream: subconscious understanding of the
fatal consequences of his desire for perfection
*Dark Romanticism
-Dark side of humanity (sin, destruction)
-Death
-Puritan ideals
-Man vs. God/Nature
-Natural world is dark, decaying, mysterious
-Human failure