Analysis of Our Secret by Susan Griffin
The Meaning Of The Title “Our Secret”, A Chapter From “A Chorus Of Stones” by Susan Griffin
Truth is possibly one of the most powerful forces in humanity. Truth has the power to set people free, change lives and end them. Because of this, the truth is usually feared and often concealed. In Susan Griffin’s “Our Secret”, the concealing of the truth become a major theme in the advancement of the plot, and also carries the meaning to the work’s title. The title of “Our Secret” refers to the secrets that the individual characters in the story keep from others reference to the fact that humanity is keeping secrets from itself. As the story opens, already the reader is confronted with the topic of concealing the truth. The narrator speaks to a woman who discusses her abnormal childhood. The woman claims formal speech was not possible in her household due to her father’s profession and also due to the time of war. Griffin writes, “There were nuclear missiles standing just blocks from where she lived. But her father never spoke about them. Only after many years away from home did she learn what those weapons were.” (Griffin, 299). This family’s secrets affected this girl’s childhood dramatically to the point where normal, casual conversation was unusual for her as an adult. As a result of this, the family ended up keeping secrets from themselves about who they truly were. A close family relationship could not have been possible under those conditions. A big theme in “Our Secret” is the subject of homosexuality. The idea of homosexuality during WWII was not accepted at all, and homosexuals were outcasted and even condemned as if their practices were a crime. Because of this, homosexuals often kept their lifestyle a secret and lived with great caution at all times. In “Our Secret” Griffin discusses an instance in which her sister came out as a lesbian to her family. The family is shocked, and even Griffin feels like she no longer knows her sister and that the person
Truth is possibly one of the most powerful forces in humanity. Truth has the power to set people free, change lives and end them. Because of this, the truth is usually feared and often concealed. In Susan Griffin’s “Our Secret”, the concealing of the truth become a major theme in the advancement of the plot, and also carries the meaning to the work’s title. The title of “Our Secret” refers to the secrets that the individual characters in the story keep from others reference to the fact that humanity is keeping secrets from itself. As the story opens, already the reader is confronted with the topic of concealing the truth. The narrator speaks to a woman who discusses her abnormal childhood. The woman claims formal speech was not possible in her household due to her father’s profession and also due to the time of war. Griffin writes, “There were nuclear missiles standing just blocks from where she lived. But her father never spoke about them. Only after many years away from home did she learn what those weapons were.” (Griffin, 299). This family’s secrets affected this girl’s childhood dramatically to the point where normal, casual conversation was unusual for her as an adult. As a result of this, the family ended up keeping secrets from themselves about who they truly were. A close family relationship could not have been possible under those conditions. A big theme in “Our Secret” is the subject of homosexuality. The idea of homosexuality during WWII was not accepted at all, and homosexuals were outcasted and even condemned as if their practices were a crime. Because of this, homosexuals often kept their lifestyle a secret and lived with great caution at all times. In “Our Secret” Griffin discusses an instance in which her sister came out as a lesbian to her family. The family is shocked, and even Griffin feels like she no longer knows her sister and that the person
Cited: Griffin, Susan. "Our Secret." A Chorus of Stones: the Private Life of War. New York: Anchor, 1993. Print. Batholomae, David, and Anthony Petrosky.