The story is not someone else’s, but my own, for I am almost 71 and around the characters’ ages. I understand Grant’s disappointment when he finds out Fiona’s inability to recognize him. Moreover, he is embarrassed to see her being close with Aubrey. At the end, however, since he loves Fiona, he asks Marian to bring Aubrey back to the hospital.
Munro describes Grant’s psychology well. I have learned how to present a protagonist to the reader. The writer must describe concretely and precisely what he or she is thinking about. Munro describes how Grant thinks about Marian in detail. After listening to her recorded message from her, his thought goes: “A tremor of nerves there, an affected nonchalance, a hurry to get through and a reluctance to let go. . . . And what would become of him and Marian after he’d delivered Aubrey to Fiona? . . . Too stiff, too professorial.”
The description of Grant’s mind lasts about 80 lines. While the reader is reading it, they inevitably feel identified with him. This is Munro’s technique. A mere description of what the character does is not enough for good story writing. Good writers invite the readers into a deep and universal part of the characters and make them identical with them.
The ending is mysterious. Fiona says, “You could have just driven away without a care in the world and forsook me….” What does it mean? Does it mean, “You didn’t have to take all the trouble to visit me”? or “Why didn’t you just drop Aubrey here and drive away?” The readers probably want Fiona to remember Grant, but she seems not to be able to recognize him. The interpretation of the last words, “Not a chance” depends on each reader. Muro does not clarify the ending. Grant said that sincerely or out of courtesy.
The relationship among the four characters: Grant, Fiona, Aubrey, and Marian, is intriguing. If Fiona likes Aubrey, why not Grant and Marian become intimate friends?
Lastly I don’t understand whey Munro gave “The Bear Came Over the Mountain” to this story. The lyrics goes: The bear went over the mountain, / To see what he could see. / And all that he could see, / And all that he could see, / Was the other side of the mountain. Is Grant the bear? Did Grant see the other side of what?
Munro describes Grant’s psychology well. I have learned how to present a protagonist to the reader. The writer must describe concretely and precisely what he or she is thinking about. Munro describes how Grant thinks about Marian in detail. After listening to her recorded message from her, his thought goes: “A tremor of nerves there, an affected nonchalance, a hurry to get through and a reluctance to let go. . . . And what would become of him and Marian after he’d delivered Aubrey to Fiona? . . . Too stiff, too professorial.”
The description of Grant’s mind lasts about 80 lines. While the reader is reading it, they inevitably feel identified with him. This is Munro’s technique. A mere description of what the character does is not enough for good story writing. Good writers invite the readers into a deep and universal part of the characters and make them identical with them.
The ending is mysterious. Fiona says, “You could have just driven away without a care in the world and forsook me….” What does it mean? Does it mean, “You didn’t have to take all the trouble to visit me”? or “Why didn’t you just drop Aubrey here and drive away?” The readers probably want Fiona to remember Grant, but she seems not to be able to recognize him. The interpretation of the last words, “Not a chance” depends on each reader. Muro does not clarify the ending. Grant said that sincerely or out of courtesy.
The relationship among the four characters: Grant, Fiona, Aubrey, and Marian, is intriguing. If Fiona likes Aubrey, why not Grant and Marian become intimate friends?
Lastly I don’t understand whey Munro gave “The Bear Came Over the Mountain” to this story. The lyrics goes: The bear went over the mountain, / To see what he could see. / And all that he could see, / And all that he could see, / Was the other side of the mountain. Is Grant the bear? Did Grant see the other side of what?
