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What does it mean to be human?
What does it mean to be human? Dancing, music, love, sex, cooking, other people… You’ll have heard these answers. Many are problematic. EXPANDING THE QUESTION First, this question has various answers depending on context: Much of the time, though, ‘what it means to be human’ feels like another way of exploring ‘what it means to […]
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The Flats Road by Alice Munro Short Story Analysis
“The Flat’s Road” is a short story by Canadian author Alice Munro. This story opens Munro’s 1971 collection Lives of Girls and Women.
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Definition of Logos in Literature
Logos is one of three main persuasive techniques as categorised by Aristotle alongside ethos and pathos.
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Postcard by Alice Munro Short Story Analysis
“Postcard” is a short story by Canadian author Alice Munro, first published in Dance of the Happy Shades, Munro’s first short story collection (1968). This one’s about a player, and his unwitting bit-on-the-side who thinks he’ll eventually marry her.
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My Year Of Reading Queer
This is an ongoing post about my 2023 reading goal of reading queer books by and about queer people. After half a lifetime of absorbing and analysing story, there remains only one sure way to find interesting and surprising perspectives and narratives: Actively seek the perspectives of marginalised voices.
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Boys and Girls by Alice Munro
“Boys and Girls” is a short story by Alice Munro. Find it in Dance of the Happy Shades (1968), Munro’s first collection.
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Review: Troubleshooting & Using a Kobo Libra 2 in 2023
Finally, I decided to switch to a dedicated eReader. Here’s what I think of the Kobo Libra 2.
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Thanks for the Ride by Alice Munro Short Story Analysis
“Thanks For The Ride” is a short story by Canadian author Alice Munro. Find it in Dance of the Happy Shades (1968). “Ride” has two meanings in this one. Yes, those two meanings.
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What is the meaning of simulacrum? Definition and examples
What is the meaning of simulacrum? What is the plural, and how is this word used metaphorically to illustrate ideas?
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The Peace of Utrecht by Alice Munro Short Story Analysis
“The Peace of Utrecht” is a short story by Canadian author Alice Munro. The easiest place to find it: In Munro’s first short story collection Dance of the Happy Shades (1968). This story was actually published earlier, in 1960 (by a 1956-1982 Canadian literary magazine known as Tamarack Review). THE MEANING OF THE TITLE Alice…
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The Brain In The Jar by Hammerstrom and Searight Short Story Analysis
“The Brain In The Jar” is a short story by Norman Elwood Hammerstrom (c. 1900-1970) and R.F. Searight (c. 1902-1975).
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Images by Alice Munro Short Story Analysis
“Images” is a short story by Alice Munro, first published in Dance of the Happy Shades (1968). This story comprises two character studies through the eyes of a woman looking back on her own early childhood. One character study paints a portrait of a second cousin once removed, who prevails upon the household to take…
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The Empathy Gap and Authorial Intent
As much as possible, I try to avoid talking about what the author intends by doing such-and-such in a work of literature. Today I’d like to clarify why I personally think this is not a helpful way to approach a text. I’m hardly the first to criticise this approach, though I suspect some of my…
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The Red Shoes by Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tale Analysis
“The Red Shoes” (1845) is a — let’s face it — horrific literary fairytale by Hans Christian Andersen (1805 – 1875), built on a tradition of stories in which a female character is punished (by her ostentatious, sexually charged shoes) for her social deviation.
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A Trip to the Coast by Alice Munro Short Story Analysis
“A Trip To The Coast” is a short story by Alice Munro, first published in Dance of the Happy Shades (1968). In stories, trips to the coast often coincide with a big self-revelation. A character looks out to sea, realises something, and the audience understands their life is about to change in some significant way.…
