So Much Water so Close to Home - 1493 Words

Jordan Williams Sara Howe English 101 17 September 2010 â€Å"So Much Water So Close To Home† In So Much Water So Close To Home, Raymond Carver explores the hardships that society brings upon us by using dialogue and character development to reveal that men and women alike have difficulty reconciling the differences in ethical and moral values. Carver is able to do this by relating to topics that demonstrate the character’s difference in morality. These include such things as death, gender stereotypes, and relationships. While discussing these topics, Carver reflects upon society’s social standard and compares that with the roles of the characters throughout the story. Raymond Carver, as an author, is known for his broad use of minimalism†¦show more content†¦As the narrator, Claire creates an emotional and compassionate tone throughout the story. Her dialogue constantly consists of words such as â€Å"honey†, â€Å"mommy†, â€Å"love†, which constitutes to the overall mood of the text (C arver 363). Additionally, she is constantly catering to her husband and child by cooking, cleaning, and performing tasks of the typical â€Å"stay-at-home† mom. Her affectionate personality, want for control, and mother-like performance plays a role in Carver’s explanation of the stereotypical mother and wife. Both Stuart and Claire’s personality and characteristics serve as prime explanations to Carver’s view on marriage. With both characters fitting into the typical stereotypes of men and women, the author depicts the standard marriage that is present nowadays. With the constant arguing and disagreements between Claire and Stuart, Carver is suggesting that marriage is very complex and difficult. Because Carver explains that marriage is â€Å"something that [he] feels [he] knows about†, he defines his perspective of marriage as being an â€Å"indelible experience† (Kellerman). It is possible that Claire and Stuart’s relationship is a reflection of Carver’s past love life. In general, however, the author describes marriage as a difficult task but something worth fighting for. This is explained by theShow MoreRelatedAn Analysis Of So Much Water So Close At Home 924 Words   |  4 PagesIn Carver’s short story, â€Å"So Much Water So Close to Home,† three men go to Naches River for a fishing trip and encounter a dead young woman in the river. Aware that the corpse is in the river, they continue on with their fishing trip, not reporting it until they travel back home. Carver illustrates the story through the eyes of Claire, the wife of the fisher. Carver depicts the differences in male and female roles of a marriage and their psychological similarities, associated with why there was aRead MoreGender and Identity in Raymond Carvers so Much Water, so Close to Home1088 Words   |  5 PagesMen are from Mars, women are from Venus. Weve all heard the saying, but what does it mean? We are differen t, that goes without saying. As evidenced in Raymond Carvers So Much Water, So Close to Home, men and women differ on many key issues of morality, perception, and judgment. The two do have something in common, believe it or not, and that is the expectation of the opposite gender to communicate, think, and react in the exact way they do. Hence, frustration. 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