HAPPY ENDINGS NARRATIVA PDF

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HAPPY ENDINGS – MARGARET ATWOOD: story depicting multiple plot lines Margaret Atwood was born in 1939 in Ottawa, Ontario. She was raised in Canada for the majority of her childhood. She is an internationally-known author and she has written awardwinning poetry, short-stories and novels. This is an example of METAFICTION: story that addresses specific conventions of a story. It reminds readers that they are reading a story as opposed to letting them get lost in the story (C). The author directly addresses the reader (Story F/ Closing). And FLASH FICTION (1300 words) Points of views: There are 6 plots with different endings, but with each plot and setting there are the same characters, but they have different personalities and storyline to their life. The plot ending will always be the same. Message: She wanted to point out that the story isn’t in the endin, it is in what we do on the way, and no matter how people live their life and what we encountered, we all have the same ending which is death. Theme: treatise about how one should savor the development of one's life, and move beyond its structure to focus on its meaning and purpose in life. Nothing is always the same. What’s valued as important/expected by the middle class? Characters are described as middle-class characters They have professional jobs and make good money and hold true to the standard of middle class (The reader can make the characters " a revolutionary and a counterespionage spy”). With them, Atwood reinforces the absurdity of romantic fiction Story A: John and Mary live a picture perfect life (“They fall in love and get married”  classic storyline: the reader expects the couple to have good jobs and a big beautiful house and two well raised children. It is also expected that the couple will eventually grow old and die) Story B: Mary believes that through impressing John with good meals and a clean home along with constantly wanting him he will fall in love with her and eventually marry her Story C: The story follows Madge after it doesn’t work out for the other character: she finds and falls in love with a man named Fred and lived out their happy lives together. Once again everything works out and is happily ever after Story D: A story of Fred and Madge living on the seashore. A large tidal wave! People die Fred and Madge survive, and through the power of true love overcome all obstacles and once again live happily ever after Story E: Almost an alternate ending to D. Fred has a bad heart which causes his early death. Madge devotes her life to charity work till the end of her days Elements Foreshadowing: The title itself shows an example of the foreshadowing in the story, Happy Endings, not in singular because the reader can infer that there may be more than one ending. Atwood’s point of all the foreshadowing is that life ends the same no matter how you look at it, everyone dies. Irony: Throughout the story, the reader is being educated on all the different possibilities, until the very end they realize the main point is how all the different scenarios end: The couple dies. The story in its self is ironic: No matter which scenario you read, they will always end the same, with death. Last scenario: The author tells the reader to not be deluded by any other endings, they are all fake. The most authentic one is that John and Mary die. She points on that beginnings are more interesting than endings, because they all end the same and you can always change

the beginning Anyone can change how John and Mary meet, fall in love, and what they do with their lives, but no one can change the fact that they will eventually die. How and Why Atwood's point is to focus reader on the importance understanding how conclusion is reached and why. Tone: Stories have a very negative, dark and almst cynical undertone. It's seen a dramatic shift in the tone with John and Mary's characters ("The only authentic ending is the one presented here: John and Mary die. John and Mary die. John and Mary die) Vulgar diction: John using “her body for selfish pleasure and ego gratification of a tepid kind” and Mary’s friends suggesting that “… John is a rat, a pig, a dog, he isn’t good enough for her, but she can’t believe it” Social context: While reading it, we relate scenarios to their own situation or relationship (we all die in the end). Each one portrays how relationships are in today's society: not all love stories have a happy ending. SUMMARY A-F A. John & Mary fall in love, get married and then proceed to live an average but satisfying life. Eventually they grow old together and die. B. Their story changes drastically in this scenario. Mary is in love with John but he only uses her as entertainment. Eventually Mary finds out that he's also seeing Madge but unlike with her he actually cares enough to take her out. So she ends up killing herself (still with hope that he'll save her on time). John ends up marrying Madge and they live according to option A C. In this scenario John is a lot older than Mary, and is actually already married. John falls in love with Mary but she only feels pity for him, but she sleeps with him anyways. Who she really is in love with is James who is her same age and is equally as reckless. One-night John finds them together, kills both of them and then kills himself. His wife Madge remarries a man named Fred and they get they follow once again option A D. Fred and Madge get along very well and have a good life. Until a giant wave floods their home, but luckily they survive They are very grateful for each other and carry out option A E & F: Offer other possible things that could go wrong their lives.

THE WEREWOLF – ANGELA CARTER (1976): Second wave of feminism Angela Carter was born in 1940 in England. She wrote short stories, novels and essays but is best known for the Bloody Chamber. Carter’s writing has been seen as part of the feminist move in Britain Summary: The Werewolf adapts the traditional tale of Little Red Riding Hood. The story opens with a short introduction to the superstitious lives of the villagers in a "northern country''. She sets off to her sick Grandmothers house with food, and bumps into a wolf with red eyes on the way, as he goes to attack her she cuts of his hand, only for it to turn into her Grandmothers. She pulls back the covers off her Grandmothers bed and sees that her arm was gone, the girl cries out and the neighbours rush in. They noted she had the 'witches’ nipple', therefor they took her to the edge of the woods and stoned her to death. The young girl prospered in her dead Grandmothers house. Themes: Death, Superstition, The Supernatural, Hidden truth, Surrealism, Darkness, Good vs Evil, Horror and terror (superstitious beliefs & bloody murder), Oppositions, the Doppelganger, Abhuman (grandmother is a werewolf; and also the girl (she shows no emotion at the murder of her grandmother)), Religion

Context: Time where the idea of witchcraft (idea de la brujería) was rife. It was largely believed throughout christian Europe that witches were women (or sometimes men) who made a pact with the devil in order to get powers in order to harm to people or property. This fear of witches and witchcraft existed throughout many cultures, often resulting in full scale witch hunts. Characters’ features: Reversal of gender roles - Girl is presented as strong (not passive and weak; the innocent maiden/heroine) ('The child is strong', 'It went for her throat, as wolves do, but she made a great swipe at it with her father's knife and slashed its right forepaw.') and carries a knife (Gothic feature) Reversal of Fairytale stereotypes - In the traditional 'Red Riding Hood' stories, the wolves are usually the villains, and aren't to be sympathized with ('The wolf let out... almost a sob' 'wolves are less brave than they seem') The Antagonist turns out to be the Grandmother (frail and vulnerable; the villain/monster). She contrasts with the traditional active strong male antagonist. Carter criticize that is a victim to patriarchal male dominated society ('witch nipple' witch hunts, strong women victimized) Gothic Genre: Gothic Horror Elements: Violence: Little Red carries a knife, knows how to use it (clear demonstration--> 'slashed off his right forepaw.') Horror: Disfiguring and killing her grandmother) Supernatural beings/elements (Werewolf, Grandmother being a witch) Victim (Grandmother) Ambiguous ending (‘She prospored’) Fairytale & Magic Realism Elements: Evil character (Grandmother) Events (She turns into the wolf) Setting the woods, Set in the past / historical Fairytale and Gothic surroundings: Forest: typical and traditional fairytale stories ('five miles' trudge through the forest') Witches ('the wart on the hand... a witch's nipple') Superstition and the consequences, especially in the opening. But when we observe the story as a whole it is unclear if these beliefs are merely superstitions or not. Narrative Perspectives and Tense Shifts: 3ªp narration (impression that action is ongoing, so reader feels more involved), Present tense (“the child crossed herself and cried out so loud”). No shifts in tense, all the same. Final line: "Now the child lived in her grandmother's house; she prospered" It can mean... The girl has become just as monstrous as the wolf was or The girl has herself become a witch. How else could she prosper in a realm of poverty? VERSIONS: Original Oral Tale - The antagonist was more of the wolf rather than a werewolf. Girl unwillingly cannibalizes her Grandmother. The wolf was know to ask the girl to throw her clothing on to the fire, he was also known to eat her after he had taken her to bed. Although in others she is cunning and see's through the wolfs disguise. Perault's 'Le Petit Chaperon Rouge' - A beautiful young lady is tricked into giving a wolf information about her Grandmothers house. He finds it, eats the Grandmother and lays a trap for little Red. Red is asked to climb into the bed by the wolf, and he eats her too. No happy ending, and warns young girls to be obedient. Grimm Brothers 'Little Red Cap' - The early part to the story is very similar that of Perault's, however the ending is different. The Grandmother and girl are saved by a woodcutter, therefor making more tame a less graphic.

EVELINE – JAMES JOYCE (1904): A young woman weighs her decision to flee Ireland with a sailor James Joyce was born in 1882 in Dublin, Ireland. He wrote many short stories, included in Dubliners. He reflected there the negativity he found living in this area. Irish novelist and poet, considered to be one of the most influential writers in the modernist movement of the early 20th century.

Summary: The story tells of Eveline's past, present, and what she longs for in the future. Eveline, the main character in the story, has multiple jobs in order to support herself and her alcoholic father. Her mother died years ago, yet she is still being a "dutiful daughter" and taking care of her abusive father. Naturally, she wishes to escape Dublin and her unstable household, but she struggles with leaving her father because of a promise she vowed to her mother. Her brother no longer lives at home, so she feels less obligation to stay. One day she is determined to leave, so she waits for her lover, Frank, to arrive and board the ship with her. Their plan is to elope to Argentina. In the end, Eveline pulls away from Frank and resists the temptation to leave. Point of view: 3ªp because "Eveline" is not as limited and suggests concepts of a women's common obstacles during this time period. Theme: The Prison of Routine (She felt like a prisoner because her routine is work and care for her father. She was not happy doing this) The Desire for Escape (She wants to escape because of her bad circumstances) The Intersection of Life and Death (The monotony of Dublin life leads Dubliners to live in a suspended state between life and death, in which each person has a pulse but is incapable of profound, life-sustaining action) / Sudden fear and doubt can change our decisions easily / All things stay the same ("Her eyes gave him no sign of love or farewell or recognition") Genre: short story of naturalism: life as it is —without preachment, judgment, or embellishment— and stresses the importance of the environment and heredity in shaping human destiny. Tone: He changes it to make Eveline’s indecisiveness about whether she should stay and help her family or experience a new life with Frank. Tone in melancholy when she’s leaning towards staying, and exuberant when she is leaning to adventure with Frank. The final tone is perplexed because Eveline doesn’t decide between the two options. Joyce’s shifts are about whether people should do what makes them happy or what they think is the right thing to do. Characters Eveline: 19, lives with father in Dublin. Her mother died when she was young. She has 2 brothers, Harry and Ernest. Loves the sailor Frank. She is poor and dynamic. Eveline's father: Age unknown. He is violent and the antagonist. Harry: Brother and he is out of the house. Ernest: He died. Frank: Sailor. Eveline's love interest. Says they can sail away together and be happy. Elements Flashbacks: Eveline is thinking back to all of her childhood friends, how they would use to play. She also remembers her mother, how she was treated by everybody else  Eveline's epiphany at the end. She has revelation because she realizes that her life is not so bad Moral paralyses. Although people suffer, they are afraid of change. -Simile: On the last page, James Joyce describes Eveline's facial expression "She set her white face to him, passive, like a helpless animal." -Irony: The story has situational. In the beginning Eveline wanted to run away with Frank and live happily ever after. In the end, though, Eveline chooses not to go with Frank ("Her eyes gave him no sign of love or farewell or recognition.") -Social condition: “the odour of dusty cretonne,” (major characteristic of modernism) creates an image and depicts such a common place action as sitting and staring out of a window, an element of the naturalist movement. Joyce also describes Eveline and her hardships as that of the lower working class through his words (“It was hard work-a hard life”) -Stream of consciousness: Eveline’s thoughts of her childhood, home, father’s classmates, what people will think of her leaving, on further still to thoughts of the dynamics to her family, of Frank, making a decision, mother’s death bed, and ends with Eveline’s experience of abandoning Frank at the dock. It allows the reader to get into the character's head -Open-ending: having an unexpected or unsatisfying ending.

Allegorical Meaning: The meaning behind this story is that it could always be worse. In the end, Eveline decides to stay after having multiple pleasant memories. For example, she remembered a time where her father was being nice to her and helping her when she was sick. This made her realize that she did not have as bad a life as she had made it out to be. She realized that her father was not a complete jerk all of the time, so this gave her hope that her life was not as awful as it could be. HAPPY PRINCE – OSCAR WILDE (1888) Oscar Wilde was born in Dublin in 1854. Summary: It begins with a description of The Prince who was on a high pole in the city. He was beautiful and was covered in gold. In meantime, a swallow saw the statue of The Prince and settled in between his feet. Later, he realized that it the statue was crying. The Happy Prince was sad and he explained to him that he did not know about tears when he was alive.The Prince asked Swallow to take a jewels from his body and eyes and give it to the poor people. The Prince was completely blind and the Swallow could not leave him now and even though it was getting colder, therefore, he stayed with the Prince and told him stories about Egypt. The Prince asked him to fly over the town and tell him what he will see. After he came back he told him that he saw a lot of poverty. The Prince told him to take a leaf of gold from his body and give it to the poor. The Prince looked lifeless and the Swallow died because of the cold. Since the statue lost its beauty they get rid of him. They threw his lead heart away with the Swallow. Message: Wilde bring to light the problems of the Victorian age: poverty, hypocrisy and exploitation that plagued the cities. The author wants to show us the suffering humanity, so that we could understand and resolve their issues. The writer makes us aware of these problems in a fantastic way because the story was written "to mirror modern life in a form remote from reality"

Tone: Selfless, because they both are doing selfless deeds to help the people in need. Style: The author writes the story as a sorrowful story with the constant reminder of all the people who are barely living in the city. Irony: They call him the happy prince but the first time he is introduced he is crying. He would give his valued treasures to the less fortunate people and would leave himself with nothing. Personification: The two main characters are not supposed to talk and act like humans. But Wilde used this to add a vivid tone and give them emotions, so readers would have feelings for them. Setting: A city in Ireland in late spring and early winter. The city was extremely poor and many people suffer. Point of view: 3ªp omniscient (feelings and thoughts of all characters) Characters: The happy prince: It is a handsome statue, made of gold and diamonds. He stands on towel where he sees misery and decorated with jewels. People admire his beauty. It represents happiness because of his whole life / The Sallow: It reflect love and empathy, he is selfish and is dynamic, and learn what it is to sacrifice /Poor people /Town councillors Themes To put others before yourself, and to think more about others. -Being judgmental: The Happy Prince has given of his beauty and possession to benefit the impoverished people he's witnessed below. Instead of being grateful for his care and compassion, the townspeople judge the prince by his outward appearance. -Inward beauty: Sacrifice & Love: Happy prince sacrificed his jewels for the wealth of others. Swallow sacrifices his time to help the Happy Prince. -Outward beauty: Is a show -Gap between the rich and the poor, the rulers and the masses. Jungian Criticism: As a mortal, the prince lived in a paradise. He had everything and he never experienced sadness (“Happy indeed I was if pleasure be happiness. So I lived, and so I died”). The Swallow lives in a world of ignorance. The time of trial and tribulation came, the Prince saw the different perspective of life (“I can see all the ugliness and all the misery of my city”). The Swallow must decide whether to continue his lifestyle or become altruistic and help the Prince (“I am waited for in Egypt .... But the Happy Prince looked so sad that the little swallow was sorry”) Swallow realizes love doesn’t exist (“You have been trifling with me”, he cried I am off ...”). The Prince then discovered his generous nature (“And though my heart is made of lead I cannot choose but weep”). Both characters died, The Prince and the Swallow, and were accepted into Paradise (“And though my heart is made of lead I cannot choose but weep”) Symbolism: The swallow and the prince because they are trying to make the world a better place.

ASHPUTTLE OR THE MOTHER’S GHOSTS – ANGELA CARTER (1987) Angela Carter was born in Eastbourne in 1940. She moved to her grandmother's house in Yorshire and probably this is the reason why she shows Ashputtle as a loney girl moreover because she suffered from anorexia. Summary: Ashputtle is a little orphan who lives with her bad stepmother. One day the mother's ghost decides to help her and went into many animals. First she went into a cow and gave her daughter some milk, then she went into a cat to comb the child's hair and finally she went into a little bird to made her a dress and charm a man

Setting: The story is set in a house. Among the characters there are several animals, so we suppose that part of the story takes place in the house’s garden. Time: The story is set in the past. For example, milking the cow and cleaning the ashes are actions that let us imagine the period of time where they live. N...