Same author, same stories, different unity: a close comparative reading of a selection of stories from Raymond Carver’s What we talk about when we talk about love and beginners
Author
Faculty Advisor
Date
2023
Keywords
short story cycles, Raymond Carver
Abstract (summary)
This essay provides a close comparative reading of three stories from Raymond Carver’s short story cycles Beginners and What We Talk About When We Talk About Love. A working definition of short story cycles is developed and referenced in the evaluations of these stories—this definition utilizes literary scholar Gerald Lynch’s work on the sub-genre. The close comparative analyses of “Why Don’t You Dance?”, “One More Thing”, and “Gazebo” reveal that both collections meet the criteria of short story cycles, however Beginners has a stronger unity that achieved through its shared themes. This supports the argument that Carver’s editor, Gordon Lish, exchanged Carver’s unity of theme in Beginners for a weaker unity of style in What We Talk About.
Publication Information
DOI
Notes
Presented February 2-3, 2024 at the English Student Conference 2024 held at MacEwan University in Edmonton, Alberta.
Item Type
Student Report
Language
Rights
All Rights Reserved