Gooseberries, by Anthon Chekhov

 Rating: 8/10


  As I quite didn't understand why the title was set as 'Gooseberries', I focused on the object 'gooseberry' throughout the story. Gooseberries were the trees Nikolai planted after he got a townhouse with his wife's capital. In contrast to Nikolai who like the taste of the gooseberries he got from the trees, Ivan didn't really enjoy them, saying even the freshest ones tasted sour and unripe. I think these 'gooseberries' were the medium that shows the different standards of happiness and different ways people achieve happiness. Nikolai's was close to materialism, which portrays the behavior of many people nowadays. People tend to evaluate not only themselves but also other people by their possession, lifestyle etc., even though all of these might just depend on one's values. I was struck by the fact that a story written more than 100 years ago conveys such a criticism about our society.

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The Student, by Anton Chekhov (1894)

 Rating: 6/10  I hadn't had much interaction with Russian writers before, so this short story was another fresh contact to Russian writings. The story was about Ivan, who meets two widows and tells them about Peter's denial. By listening to the story of how Peter denied Jesus several times and finally realized his awful mistakes, the two widows were moved and their eyes shed tears. After observing their reactions, Ivan walks away with satisfaction. His feeling of peacefulness shows by the description of the background as Ivan walks home.  To interpret this story through Hero's Journey, I personally don't see the point where any of the characters take part as a 'hero'. Throughout the story, the only character who 'can' be called a hero is Peter from Ivan's story. For Ivan and any other characters such as widows, I personally don't see any action which can be step 5, 'crossing the threshold'. As I believe it would not be precise or exact to...
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Eveline, by James Joyce

 Rating: 8/10   'Eveline' shows a character's inability to escape for her own good, because she unwillingly adapted to the restrictive situation she was in. Even though Eveline was thirsty for 'freedom' and Frank gave her a hand to rescue her from pain, she was reluctant to seize the chance. This portrays the situation of Ireland in the 20th century. Just like Eveline's father controlled Eveline under the name of protection, England colonized Ireland, saying that they were 'protecting' Ireland for Ireland's sake. So I thought the action of Eveline not grabbing Frank's hand can be interpreted in two different ways. Maybe the author was trying to criticize Ireland, the dubliners, who were afraid to step out and achieve freedom. But a simple change in point of view leads to totally different analysis. The refusal of grabbing the hand might mean Eveline's - or Ireland's - will and determination to stop acting in a passive voice and become a s...
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Araby, by James Joyce (1914)

 Rating: 9/10   The narrator of the story made it easy for me to immerse myself in the story. Everyone will have an experience of being in love as a little kid. Even though our behavior when we were in love as a kid will look silly and funny as we reminisce those days, I can say for sure that we were as passionate as any adult can be back then, too. In the short story, the young boy went to Araby, the bazaar, because of Mangan's sister. She asked the boy if he was going to Araby, saying that she can't go because of a retreat that week in her convent. The boy ensures Mangan's sister that he will go to the bazaar and get something for her. He eventually arrives at the bazaar about 10 minutes before the closure, but he then realizes the reality and gets filled up with anger and anguish.  I liked the depiction of the boy opening his eye towards reality, apart from idealism. Blinded by love, the boy went to Araby but eventually escapes from the fantasy and illusion he was seei...
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