Isolation In The Dead Child By Gabrielle Roy

To what extent does the setting affect the psychology of the characters?

In what circumstances do you feel isolated? People feel isolation on a large spectrum. Some may feel the most isolated when in public surrounded by people they know well and others may feel isolated when surrounded by no one at all. The meaning of isolation varies considerably. However, I believe many can find common ground in how Merriam Webster defines isolation. According to Merriam Webster isolation means: the state of being in a place or situation that is separate from others : the condition of being isolated. I think the most severe form of isolation is where you have been separated from the rest of the world. In the short story “The Dead Child” written by Gabrielle

The teacher responds by helping the children in the grieving process. I think the reason why the characters respond in such different manners is the geographical setting. In the short story “The Dead Child” Gabrielle Roy develops the idea that the physical setting has a massive impact on the psychology of the characters. This is shown initially by how the teacher responds to the death of Yolande, which in turn affects how the children respond to Yolande’s death, this reason consequently leads to the fact that isolation is dealt with differently by individuals. In the fictional story of The Dead Child the teacher is informed by the children that one of her pupils passed away the night before, in the children’s minds this is something that occurs frequently. We can assume from the story that it takes place when Tuberculosis was rampant in Canada, isolation had a large impact on the mortality rate because of the lack of access to medical services. Isolation also had a large impact on how the teacher and classmates dealt with the death. The

The children have not been exposed to the outside world where in such places, death was not taken lightly because it was not accepted as a norm. Also in the larger more connected city centers, there were places to go and people to speak to about how they were feeling. The children soon realize that the teacher which has been sent to them cares about their wellbeing and grief process, where the three previous may not have put so much regard into the topic. As the children and the teacher reach Yolandes grave, the teacher feels the isolation in a literal sense, “We came to a wooden cabin standing in isolation among the little trees.” the teacher saw how many of the children lived and realized how detached the children really are. The children however, know that this is where Yolande lived and have accepted it because it is how most of them live. The children evidently grieve and accept death much differently because of the isolation. The teacher observes the child “The child had a delicate little face, very wasted, with the serious expression I had seen on the faces of most of the children here, as if the cares of the adults had crushed them all too early.” The teacher immediately connects with the child and decides to ask the children to pick roses in order to