Fusilli By Graham Swift Analysis
Death can be one of the hardest things to deal with, especial the loss of your own kids. The battle between acceptance of death and the constant reminding of them can drive even the strongest to a state of insanity. Or so it can seem.
This is one of the main themes in Graham Swift’s short story “Fusilli” from 1996. In this story we meet a father who has lost his son, a soldier, in Afghanistan . The father is out grocery shopping thinking about his son, and how his own actions might have influenced him. He then thinks back upon the last time they talked, and tries to find a way to accept his son’s death.
Before we get into the father as a character, we have to look at the narration technique used in the story. The narration is a third person …show more content…
Him going grocery shopping is a symbol in itself. It is described as his job, and it is something he feels comfortable doing . This is why the call from his son is crucial. It breaks the father illusion of his comfort zones, so when he returns to the mall after his son’s death nothing is the same.
The changes that are happing in the mall serve as a symbol as well. The father is frustrated with this , because it symbolizes societies quick acceptance of his son’s death. He has not yet accepted it, but the mall, which somehow symbolizes society, has moved on to the next thing. These symbols help the reader understand the father’s emotions, and make us sympathize with him even when he lets his anger out on indecent people .
If we look beyond the father’s emotions, and look at the relationship between him and his son, then there is a symbol, which keeps coming back throughout the story. That is the pasta. The pasta is the talking point between the two, when the son calls. Through this conversation we see an indication to the dynamics of their relationship, which is shown with the pasta. So when the son recommends fusilli, the fusilli pasta therefor becomes a symbol for the son . This is also why the father buys some fusilli at the end and hides it. He wants to keep the memory of his son alive through the
This is one of the main themes in Graham Swift’s short story “Fusilli” from 1996. In this story we meet a father who has lost his son, a soldier, in Afghanistan . The father is out grocery shopping thinking about his son, and how his own actions might have influenced him. He then thinks back upon the last time they talked, and tries to find a way to accept his son’s death.
Before we get into the father as a character, we have to look at the narration technique used in the story. The narration is a third person …show more content…
Him going grocery shopping is a symbol in itself. It is described as his job, and it is something he feels comfortable doing . This is why the call from his son is crucial. It breaks the father illusion of his comfort zones, so when he returns to the mall after his son’s death nothing is the same.
The changes that are happing in the mall serve as a symbol as well. The father is frustrated with this , because it symbolizes societies quick acceptance of his son’s death. He has not yet accepted it, but the mall, which somehow symbolizes society, has moved on to the next thing. These symbols help the reader understand the father’s emotions, and make us sympathize with him even when he lets his anger out on indecent people .
If we look beyond the father’s emotions, and look at the relationship between him and his son, then there is a symbol, which keeps coming back throughout the story. That is the pasta. The pasta is the talking point between the two, when the son calls. Through this conversation we see an indication to the dynamics of their relationship, which is shown with the pasta. So when the son recommends fusilli, the fusilli pasta therefor becomes a symbol for the son . This is also why the father buys some fusilli at the end and hides it. He wants to keep the memory of his son alive through the