Paul's Case Analysis

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The short story, “Paul’s Case,” by Willa Cather, portrays a clinically depressed young man, Paul, who misunderstands money. Paul was born into the middle class, but he desires a lavish upper class life. Paul’s desires cause him to despise his own community and turn him into an outcast. Due to monetary constraints, Paul cannot fulfill his desire to be a member of the upper class community either. Therefore, Paul believes money is the answer to his problems. Unfortunately, Paul does not understand the correlation between money and hard work, so he sees himself as trapped where he is in society. Whereas, the successful business tycoons he idealizes are able to work hard and amass great riches that advanced their position in society. In “Paul’s Case,” Willa Cather uses symbolism, diction, and an omniscient third person point of view to examine how misunderstanding money is dangerous. This misunderstanding of money is Paul’s demise at the end of the story. Vivid symbolism is distributed throughout “Paul’s Case” in an impactful way. The most important symbol in “Paul’s Case” is the red carnation. In the beginning of the story, Paul is at a hearing regarding his eventual expulsion from High School. “His teachers felt this afternoon that his whole attitude was …show more content…

This enhances the reader’s understanding of Paul’s isolation by illustrating his disconnection and lack of communication with others. Furthermore, the distance Paul experiences from those around him is displayed in the titles allotted to the supporting characters. Paul’s sisters are mentioned briefly and never given names, his father is merely referred to as “father,” and Paul is never identified with a surname. Moreover, the isolation Paul experiences amongst the middle-class causes him to idealize money all the more because of his desire for acceptance amongst the

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