Carver's story Boxes gives us two of the patterns I have stressed: 1. the difficulty and desperation of the working class and 2. the pre-epiphanic moment, at which a character sort of "wakes up." I have noted that many of the moments are also moments of the awareness of mortality.
When you have read Boxes, please write about 200 words. Tell me the defining characteristics of the narrator and note for me any significant details, that is, any details that function not only as part of the setting or plot, but also of theme or motif.
(Edward Michaud)The Narator of the story "Boxes" was some one who was easily annoyed. He didn't want to see his mother again, and yet he was persuaded by his wife to go visit his mother and ask how she was doing. After ariving, he went outside to watch a neighbor work on the yard while his wife and his mother talk about how she bothers him and that she makes him worry alot. He returns inside for dinner with a look that makes him appear as if he was bothered alot. He finishes his meal, hugs his mother good-bye, and leaves the home, taking a few boxes from his mother, that are lying around.
ReplyDeleteThe narrator of "Boxes" seems to be torn between wanting his mother to be happy living near him and wanting her to move back to California and live far away from him. He feels guilty for wishing she would leave because she is all the family he has left. He says he is sorry she doesn't like it there and wants to leave, but he is never going back to California. On the other hand, he has built a life for himself in Longview and is annoyed by his mother complaining about Longview. His mother wants him to spend more time with her like in he old times when he was younger and she wishes they could have the relationship they had before. She seems to be jealous of him spending time with other people and wants him all to herself.
ReplyDeleteIn the end, when they are eating dinner for the last time, it hits him that she is really leaving. Seeing the boxes around her house makes this more a reality for him. He also realizes that he is probably not going to see her again. This is the moment when he "wakes up" and becomes aware of her mortality. He is further reminded of her mortality by comments his mother makes like, "I wish I could die and get out of everyone's way" and "I don't want to see this place again except from my coffin."
"Boxes" is a short story that many people deal with when they want to start their life. In the story the narrator and his girlfriend Jill work and live in the city of Longview. The narrator's mother also moves into Longview. The narrator wants to live his own life away from his mother yet he still doesn't in a way. Jill seems to dislike the narrator's mother because of her negativity to the city of Longview. Many people in todays world want to start their own lives yet naturally still depend on their parents comfort and support. The "wake up" moment is when his mother moves knowing he may never see her again.
ReplyDelete(Matt Park) The narrator of the story "Boxes" has an arrogant attitude with confused thoughts and feelings. His girlfriend and him begin to settle down in a town called Longview when the narrator's mother moves into town. At first the narrator shows signs of annoyance toward his mom moving closer. As the story progresses, he has mixed feelings for his mother. The "wake up" moment happens when he realizes that he might never see his mother again. The awareness of mortality pops up through the conversation between the narrator and his mom at her house when he stops by to say farewell.
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ReplyDeleteIn "Boxes," the narrarator has two different attitudes towards his mother. One being that he is annoyed, and one being that he is grateful for her presence. We see early in the story that Jill, the narrarator's girlfriend, doesn't have the most appreciation for his mother. She states that she is just negative about everything, and it brings her down. Although the narrarator is annoyed by things his mother does such as, moving in or near him wherever he may be living at the time, complaining about everything, and most of all blaming him or making him feel guilty about decisions she made on her own. In the story I think both the narrarator and Jill are ready for his mother to finally move but that he is finally realizing once she moves for good, he will probably never see her again. Although he tells his mother he will visit if she moves, he knows deep down that the likely hood of that happening is slim to none and this makes him sad.
The narrator in the story shows characteristics of being miserable because it seems like everyone around lives in depression. He is trying to unify his family but it is not working. It doesn’t work because the wife feels like the mother is a clinger and the mother thinks the wife is an intruder. The narrator explains that when his dad died his mom kept moving to different places. She is an old woman that has not found happiness in her lifetime. He tried to be honest and tell his mother about the place he lived but she still came and was complaining about it to him like it was his fault. In the end, they go over and have that last meal with her and he realizes after she leaves he will never see her again.
ReplyDelete(Daniel Kennedy) In "Boxes" the narrator experiences a state of uncertainty. When his mother moves into the same city as he and his girlfriend, Jill, he is annoyed by her intruding presence. Jill is not fond of her and describes her as very negative person. The mother on the other hand is depressed by the city's bad weather and the fact that she moved closer to be with her son, but he hardly finds time to spend with her. But when his mother does finally decide to move, the narrator gets his "wake-up" call. The thought of something so final and permanent hits him because he knows that he probably won't ever see her again. Even though he says he will visit her, if he could not visit her in the same town, what makes you expect he will visit her from another state. This is just another way that Carver uses the state of mortality in his writings and the narrator realizes that his mother is most likely going to die soon, and it is a realization that he is uncertain and uncomfortable about.
ReplyDelete(Charles Stewart) In "Boxes" the narrator is constantly being nagged by his mother. His wife and his mother clearly do not get along but his mother is constantly asking if they can come over. The mother is upset by the fact that she moved to be closer to her son but her son hardly finds time to see her . In all of Carvers stories it takes something big for him to realize what has happened in this story it is his mother finally moving.
ReplyDeleteThe narrator is going through the same problem that many of us goes through as we grow up and even a problem that may affect when it comes to our decisions on what to do after high school. We all want to get away from our parents and give life a shot of living on your own. But we all know that living away from our parents at time of much responsibility and change is not something that comes easy. Throughout the story you can see the narrator dealing with this same exact problem. He has gotten to the same crossroads in life as we are about to be at. This is whether you still want to live close to your mother or begin to draw some type of separation between you so that you can learn to live and grow by yourself. In his situation the decision is much more extreme than most of ours. His is almost a lifelong decision and our is for the most part just a simple decision between what college we would like the go to and in what area we would like it to be in relevance with out family.
ReplyDelete(Jeese Reisman) In "Boxes", the narrator is going through a tough experience that most people have to go through in their lives. He has to help his mother move away from him. In doing this, he is helping her move on with her life and may never see her again. This is implied in the story several times when the mom constantly talks about death. There are many subtle hints that tell the reader that this is the last time that the son will ever see his mother. Throughout the story, the narrator and his wife, Jill, are annoyed by the presence of his mother in the same town as them. The "wake up" call for the narrator is how serious it is for his mother to move away. He realizes that he may never see her again, and that he is entering a new chapter in his life. At the end of the story, the narrator realizes that his mother is at the end of her life and that her moving away meant much less time that he could spend with her. The mother moving away did not hit his wife, Jill, that hard since it wasn't her mother. The narrator says to his mother that he will visit often, but deep down, he knows that this is not true.
ReplyDeleteThe narrator tries to hide his emotions throuought the story. Twice he had a mental blank and didnt know what to say to his mother when they were all together. This could be because of the constant depression that is always around him. His wife had been abused more than a couple of times. His mother is leaving (and constantly "leaves" at that). His father is dead. What does he have to live for? However, his mother also pushes some of that depression on him. She always tell him how she hates living there. How cold it is, how bad the people drive and so on. She wanted nothing more but to move back to California. So the narrator isnt to blame for his emotion repression. Its mainly from all the people around him.
ReplyDeletethe narrarator is trying find a way tp hide his feelings but really cant. he tries to talk to people but doesnt know what to say to them. he is depressed and that could be a reason but not an excuse foe not talking to people. his wife has been abused and his mother is leaving "constantly" his father is dead his mother pushes the depression on him she is always complaining about where thery live and how cold it is and that is finally fed up with it and is goin to leave for good now.
ReplyDeleteIn the story "Boxes," we see the major relationship between a son and his mother. The other relationship we recognize is the son's wife, Jill, and his mother. The son's feelings for his mother are sporadic and indecisive. The son wants his mother to "move away" as she says she will do, but also, he wants her to stay because he loves her as a son. He is split between these feelings due to the way his mother acts towards the different situations in the story. An example of this is when she repeatedly says that she will move because everyone else will be better off without her there. From my own personal experience, I have learned that this type of phrase is the result of the want for attention, and, in this case, the mother wants the attention. The son's wife, Jill, also has a relationship with his mother that is only one-sided compared to her husband's two-sided feelings. She and his mother have a great relationship, and she likes his mother. They get along, and in the end, she does not understand why she would want to move away. This shows that they are not very close individuals and their good relationship may not be as authentic as it seems.
ReplyDeleteIn the story Boxes, the main character is trying to help his mother move out. It is a very emotional thing yet he tries to cover it up by acting very cold towards her. Throughout the whole story there is a dark sense of emotion and we can assume that the main character is a depressed individual. Jill, the main characters wife, also has some problems with depression. She has a history of abuse in her life. Another thing that comes up in the story is the topic of death. He is always talking about how one day he will not see his mother and that is very true because she is about to die. The reader can read this and obtain the fact that his mother and him do not have a good relationship at all. Throughout the whole story it seems like he is trying to kick her out rather that help her move.
ReplyDeleteIn the short story, Boxes, by Raymond Carver, the narrator tries to shelter his emotions. He also has trouble speaking his mind. Twice he had a mental blank and couldn’t think of anything to say to his mother when they were all together. This could be because of the depression that is always tormenting him. His wife had been abused multiple times. His mother is leaving (as he has many times before). His father has past. He finds himself asking, what does he have to live for? However, some of that depression is his mothers fault. She always tells him how she hates living there. How cold it is, how rude people are and so on. She wanted nothing more but to move back to California. So the narrator isn’t to blame for his depression.
ReplyDeleteThe narrator is going through a experience that about everyone must go through, separation. The narrator has to separate from his mother and it is hard for him. Death is suggested a lot through the story. This gives us a feeling that the narrator will not see his mother again, witch is a hard thing to accept. Most students have to go through the same thing when the separate from their parents and go off to college. It is a life changing experience. It has its good sides and also its bad sides. Just like us the narrator has to cope with these hardships, but it is also a growing up experience.
ReplyDeleteIn the story “Boxes”, the main character has a lot of emotions that he is keeping trapped inside of him. To begin with he is helping his mother move out and doesn’t show one bit of sadness towards this situation. These locked up emotions could have a great deal to do with the amount of depression the author deals with. We also find out that the author’s wife, Jill, has a history of abuse and also suffers with depression. The author’s mother could have some part in his pain for she has told him time and time again how she hates living with him. That might contribute a lot to his ill-mannered feelings toward her and the rest of the world.
ReplyDeleteIn “Boxes” the main character carries a lot of emotions. These emotion are mostly sad and dark feelings. The main character never lets go or expresses these feelings to anybody all he does is bottle them up inside of him. The main character's mother is moving out and he is helping her with very bitter feelings. She always complained how she hated living with him yet never would move out. Jill, the main character's wife, herself also deals with a great bit of depression issues. These issues have to deal with the amount of abuse she has had to put up with in her past. The main character talks about how someday his mother will die, he expresses some amount of sad feelings because he will never see her again. He must feel some remorse for how the way he treats her. As the reader, I can tell that the main character does not have a strong backbone of a family background.
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