"Emergency" & "Home"

I found this story to be quite interesting. This story was full of irony to me. With the story located in an emergency room/hospital, I found it very ironic that the characters all seemed to have so many problems - some with drugs, one that shakes. With the hospital being the one that should be helping the patients coming in with problems. Another thing that I found ironic is how the staff was just sitting around trying to figure out how to handle the man with the knife with his eye and Georgie comes in and just lays "the knife on a chart and [bends] down to fix his shoe. How did a man on that many drugs handle a problem that was such a mystery to the rest? Another thing that I found ironic was Georgie's desire to go to church. Although the men instead go to the county fair, I found it weird/contradicting that this was his place of desire when he was at the same time on drugs. This made me think of several instances in life with different people. I, myself, grew up in a very religious family and more than one acquaintance of mine struggle with a problem and go to drugs, but end up realizing that church was much more of a mender than the drugs. Although this may not be what the story was intending to get across, it was a part of the story that brought a life connection for me.

This story was one that really left with me with several questions. What was the reasoning for the man with the knife in his eye having the other eye being artificial? I wondered if this was possibly a play on people not seeing life fully. With the setting of the story in a hospital, I thought that possibly this was an ad to a theme of not realizing what you have until you're on the edge of losing it - like the man who came in on the verge of losing sight in his other eye as well. Another question that I had was why Georgie was so upset at the beginning. Was it because of the pills? Or because he wasn't a doctor and instead an orderly? Or something that I did not pick up on?

"Emergency" was definitely an interesting story and definitely one that I will be interested to discuss in class for these answered questions.

"Home" was also a very interesting story and one I personally enjoyed. I found this story to be one that could be very relatable to several girls. I understood this story being about a relationship help between a mother and a daughter. They are not necessarily happy with one another, but they do love each other. The mom assures the daughter as she is handing her a towel that "she is always behind her"and the daughter remembers a time that the mother was doing stuff for the family (washing dishes) and she didn't help. I think that a large theme of this play would be dealing with past occurrences. The mom had cancer. The father was not the best dad/husband/person. The boy had been burned. The daughter was afraid of love. All of these things are shown greatly holding each of the characters back in their presents lives. I took it as a reminder that yes, you must learn from your past, but at the same time, it is important to let it go and move forward.

The ending of the short story was not what I would have expected. Again, the love of the mother for her daughter is shown by her pleading her to stop sleeping around and to understand the importance of sex being with one that you really love. The story wrapping up with the daughter being caught and the mother and daughter being silent together was not seen coming, but I think it is very powerful. With the two women looking in the water, it is as if they are looking into their reflections - possibly with the mother disappointed with her life and seeing her daughter heading towards the same horror ending. I think this could also possibly indicate to the readers that the relationship between the two women is not one that can be resolved.

shellac (p 415 "Home") - to thrash soundly
"The Lady Auxiliary turns them inside out, stiffens and shellacs them."