A Formalistic Analysis of A Short Study, by George Bowering
"A Short Story Examined through Formalism"
"A Short Study" by George Bowering is about a young woman who was raped as a child by her step-father. Her mother who has knowledge about it opted out in abetting her. Donna, the protagonist left home as quickly as she could. However, her past continues to haunt her to which she has no choice but to return home. Formalism is the literary criticism that has been chose to deconstruct the story. "Formalism views texts as complete and isolated entities." This means the interpretation of the text has no hidden meanings, and is very straight forward and easy to understand. The elements of formalism such as the characteristics of the protagonist, the setting and the theme can be applied to "A Short Story" by George Bowering.
The Protagonist, Donna Michaels is a young, attractive woman who decides that after ten years of running from her past. She has had enough; she decides to go back home to face her fears. "Donna Michaels...was about four kilometres from the Jacobsen house" (281). Donna grew up in a town, where everything was perfect, or so everyone would like to think. It was all a big cover up, even if something was known to the town, they would not do anything about it, because it was not in their nature . "She had not been home during blossom time for seven years.... splotches of brown weeds under the surface of the lake." ( 282). Donna describes the town do beautifully with "sunlight sparkled lake" (279); but then she talks about how the government is dumping in the lake and no one notices or care enough to do something about it. This symbolises how everyone thought there was nothing wrong with her life, but in reality her innocence's was snatched away from her.
The setting of the story emphasis the trials that Donna goes through after returning home after all these years. “The orchards…and sunlight sparkled...brown weeds dying underwater, where the newest poison had been dumpt by the government two weeks
"A Short Study" by George Bowering is about a young woman who was raped as a child by her step-father. Her mother who has knowledge about it opted out in abetting her. Donna, the protagonist left home as quickly as she could. However, her past continues to haunt her to which she has no choice but to return home. Formalism is the literary criticism that has been chose to deconstruct the story. "Formalism views texts as complete and isolated entities." This means the interpretation of the text has no hidden meanings, and is very straight forward and easy to understand. The elements of formalism such as the characteristics of the protagonist, the setting and the theme can be applied to "A Short Story" by George Bowering.
The Protagonist, Donna Michaels is a young, attractive woman who decides that after ten years of running from her past. She has had enough; she decides to go back home to face her fears. "Donna Michaels...was about four kilometres from the Jacobsen house" (281). Donna grew up in a town, where everything was perfect, or so everyone would like to think. It was all a big cover up, even if something was known to the town, they would not do anything about it, because it was not in their nature . "She had not been home during blossom time for seven years.... splotches of brown weeds under the surface of the lake." ( 282). Donna describes the town do beautifully with "sunlight sparkled lake" (279); but then she talks about how the government is dumping in the lake and no one notices or care enough to do something about it. This symbolises how everyone thought there was nothing wrong with her life, but in reality her innocence's was snatched away from her.
The setting of the story emphasis the trials that Donna goes through after returning home after all these years. “The orchards…and sunlight sparkled...brown weeds dying underwater, where the newest poison had been dumpt by the government two weeks