Uncovering Alcoholism In Chef's House By Raymond Carver

In the short story "Chefs House," the author Raymond Carver, introduces a recovering alcoholic named Wes, whose friend, a recovering alcoholic named Chef, allows him to live in his house. Wes invites his wife Edna to come stay with him, even though the two are separated. Edna agrees to stay with Wes for the summer, and she leaves her boyfriend, who also appears to be a recovering alcoholic. They both begin to live their lives together again, but this is interrupted when Chef needs them to leave at the end of the summer so his daughter can move in. Wes appears to be a weaker willed person than Edna and gives into his anger, and does not seem reluctant to go back to alcoholism when things are not going well.

Wes's character appears to be dependent and is shown to be irresponsible. His marriage with Edna did not work out and they are now separated and have moved on. Wes is an angry and careless person. He gives up easily, and this can be seen when "Wes was drunk and threw his ring into a peach orchard"(28), and when he returns to alcoholism when he becomes desperate or distressed. Although he tries to be strong and tries to keep control of his life, his personality does not allow him to do this and drinking seems like the only way out. Wes's
Edna is a co-dependent person, and she allows the drinking and bad behavior because she needs that in her life. After separating from Wes, she moves on to someone that also has problems with alcohol. She may appear to be the stronger one, but perhaps is not because she seems to need someone that engages in bad behavior to depend on her. After they find out they will need to leave the house Edna tells Wes to "go easy"(31), because she can tell that Wes is thinking too and too negatively about the situation. Edna handles the circumstances better than Wes and does not seem to think as