Analysis Of Little Things By Raymond Carver

903 Words2 Pages

Raymond Carver’s “Little Things” tells a short story about a failing relationship between a man and a woman. While sounding simple enough, many aspects of the story such as the role of “the baby” and the social standing of the couple remain very vague and are only hinted at through the story. This makes the reading very emotionally intensive and open to interpretation.
At face value, the story is simply about a woman and a man fighting over a baby. However, it is difficult to leave the story there. The ending remains extremely inconclusive, leaving the reader with many questions. There are many themes present. The story could be interpreted as a story about domestic abuse or perhaps serve as a warning to keep emotions in check. It could be …show more content…

Anger is the most dangerous emotion, and if gone unchecked, can make a person say and do things that they cannot take back. Already, it’s obvious both characters are easily controlled by their anger, yelling at each other and taking it to a physical degree when the baby is being fought over. And it heightens to a degree that the reader begins to fear for the child’s life, which is not made any better by the ending. The couple, in letting themselves be consumed in their rage, could have very well hurt or killed their own child. It is easy to frown upon the two main characters and condemn the lack of care for their child, but that could be any one of us. Humans tend to get carried away and let their emotions take control. This leads to regret and can be avoided if checked and controlled.
In a whole, the story is eerie, saddening, and extremely interesting. It is well written and heavy, clutching the reader’s interests and emotions. It penetrates through many levels of thought and makes the reader think and analyze. The message is strong, the plot is deep, and the characters are complex, especially for a short

Open Document