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Literature Analysis
Student Writing # 1
The following is a student analysis of the elder
tale, The Shining Fish, from Allan B. Chinen's
book, In the Ever After: Fairy Tales and the Second
Half of Life. (Chiron Publications, Wilmette, IL,
1992)
His tales reinforce the belief that despite
inevitable declines associated with aging, the possibility
of psychological and spiritual renewal remains. His stories
convey the message that elders are a source of wisdom, inspiration,
and guidance for the next generation.
The student interprets the story as follows:
"I chose "The Shining Fish" which
has a lot of symbolism. An old man and his wife live in a
house that overlooks the sea and borders a forest (sea and
forest symbolize the boundary between the unconscious and
the conscious).
The elderly husband, while gathering wood in
the forest, meets a stranger with a long beard. The husband
journeys into the forest, or the unconscious, where he confronts
the stranger (self), and comes out of the forest with gold
coins and frogs. The stranger symbolizes the process of self-exploration,
or introversion. The gold coins symbolize human culture and
civilization. The frogs are a symbol of transition from the
unconscious to the conscious, or transformation of the material
into the spiritual.
The husband follows the stranger's advice and
sells the frogs to buy a large fish, and then hangs the fish
out overnight. This act saves fishermen at sea, because the
light that reflects from the fish enables the fishermen to
find their way home safely. The husband and his wife become
heroes and are honored by the townspeople. This elder tale
relates to a developmental task of aging, by demonstrating
that having a sense of accomplishment later in life wards
off despair. The aged husband, in his final years, found happiness,
honor and wealth."
Literature Analysis
Student Writing # 2
The following is a student analysis of the short
story, Good Housekeeping, from Bailey White's
Mama Makes Up Her Mind and Other Dangers of Southern
Living (Addison-Wesley Publishing Co., Reading, MA,
1993).
This charming tale features an elderly mother
and her two adult daughters, who are preparing for an upcoming
Thanksgiving feast, to include guests who have never before
visited. The mother lives alone in her house that is filled
with "stuff" that has great meaning to her, but
which embarrasses her daughters. Her children embark on a
massive pre-holiday-dinner clean-up, including several trips
to the dump, and in fact, achieve creation of a clean and
orderly house. The joke is on these daughters, however…
The student interprets the story as follows:
"The elderly woman in this story is portrayed
as set in her ways, out of touch with today's generation,
and slightly eccentric. While she is proud of her life accomplishments,
her daughters are embarrassed and ashamed by her lifestyle
and interests….The mother remains social by inviting
new friends for Thanksgiving dinner. In anticipation of the
feast to take place at their mother's home, the daughters
throw away many of their mother's possessions that they perceive
to be worthless, disallowing their mother's expression of
her true identity…
The new guests arrive for Thanksgiving dinner;
their mother develops an instant bond with one of the elderly
male guests, with whom she has everything in common…The
next day, the daughters, proud of the work they've done toward
the previous evening's successful holiday meal, arrive to
visit their mother. She has left them a note, without revealing
her whereabouts-she has gone to the dump with her new friend,
to retrieve her precious possessions, and to share stories
about them with him.
This elderly woman is struggling to maintain
her self-worth, and to justify past accomplishments…She
attempts to convince her daughters to refrain from altering
her environment, and to allow others to accept her for who
she is. She lives independently in her own home…She maintains
her health and her ability to care for herself. She appears
strong mentally, confidant…She is also able to discover
kindred spirits to whom she can relate and from whom she receives
reinforcement for her life choices. Her daughters' actions
attempt to undermine all of these positives, but her strength
of character continually defies them."
Student Comments on Discussion
Board
Student Writing # 3
3 Students spontaneously exchange their
ideas about Renoir:
First Student:
"Pierre Auguste Renoir's love of art started after
his family moved to Paris in 1845 and he had access to the
great masterpieces in the Louvre Museum, where, inspired
by these paintings, he began to draw.
By the age of 30 he had experienced many years of poverty,
evident in the portrait painted of him at that age, already
with grey hair and looking gaunt, by his friend Claude Monet.
During the last three decades of his life Renoir experienced
the most success, even though he suffered with arthritis…
During the next few years of his life he would experience
great bouts of pain followed by periods of remission. As
his condition deteriorated his bones became deformed and
his skin dried up.
In the painting, "The Boating Scene," people on
a boat seem to be having a good time, although they are
quite distant and not in the foreground…It is as if
he is watching them from afar, longing to join in. Although
this is a happy scene, his brush strokes are bold and vivid
in the foreground.
Even though Renoir was old and sick, there was never any
despair in his artwork. He never allowed his work to be
purposely invaded by feelings of envy or anger toward others
in better health. The main themes of his work at the end
of his life were of happiness and joy, hiding the pain he
was experiencing himself."
Second Student:
"Renoir sounds a lot like Picasso when it comes to
how his work never depicted sadness near the end of his
life. They did not let growing old or being ill stop them
from painting happy or beautiful pictures. And I think we
all could learn a thing or two from them."
Third Student:
"I think it is incredible how he was able to keep
his paintings so joyful and happy despite what he was going
through. Many of the other artists let their illnesses affect
their work, but Renoir seemed to continue on and stay positive
with his outlook on life. I think we could all learn from
his example. Just because life may be rough, or we may be
struggling, it doesn't mean our whole life has to be affected
by it. There is always a positive side to everything."
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