Fiesta

I did not read the entire story, "Fiesta", but the little that I did read, and what we discussed in class, was quite interesting. And not to mention enjoyable. It's definitely different from any other story I have read before. In a strange way, it reminded me of my family; when I lived in New York. Everyone's Dominican and a large part are actually visiting from the Dominican Republic. The drive to the party was similar to ours. We'd drive a few miles; we always lived a little far from our family members. The eating and drinking are also a common aspect. In those types of parties, the food and alcoholic beverages are the main elements, along with music and dance. Anywho, I really did like this story. Many things about it make it very realistic; a big part of that being the language.

Araby

The story Araby is about a very young little boy who likes his friends' older sister. We can conclude that the kid is about eight or nine years old, and the girl he likes is about fifteen; possibly a high school student. He pretty much stalks the girl. Any chance he gets, he sits out staring at her every move. Then it comes time for the annual bazaar and he finds out that she won't be able to make it. He, however, decides to ask his uncle for money so he can pass by and pick up something for her. My opinion on the story is that it's cute and romantic. Though it's just a child infatuated with one he will never have, he truly does attempt to satisfy her by purchasing something for her at the bazaar. He never tells her how he feels for her; he simply gives up after realizing that she'll never lay eyes on him.

A&P

Of the stories we've read so far, I think A&P has been my favorite. I'd have to say that is because of all the stories, it's the most I can most probably relate to. Not that I have ever walked into a grocery store wearing just a bathing suit, but since it is based on young people. The way that everyone at the store behaves toward the three, practically naked, young ladies is quite comical. The two, potentially youngest cashiers, were frozen; they just stared and barely made any movements. The narrator liked one of the girls. He described her as the leader of the group. He stated that she was tall and thin. The others he described very well in detail also. One of the things that I really enjoyed about this story was how it ended. The narrator truly believed the girls would react after he quit his job because of he did not approve of the way the manager embarrassed the girls. I wouldn't say that situations like this happen all the time in real life, but young men always try to do things similar to what happens in the story, to sort of show off or prove a point in front of a girl they like.

Cathedral

The story "Cathedral" by Raymond Carver can be described with the word interesting. I think a lot of things happened that we did not expect to occur. In my opinion it is normal that a husband act that way about the idea of a man coming to visit his wife. Although they are just friends, men tend to behave this way due to jealousy and insecurity. Robert, the blind friend, and the wife, have known each other for many years. They have always kept in contact with each other through audio tapes. All of this happened even before she married her current husband. I believe her husband acted a bit jealous because of their history. Also because of the fact that he'd once heard a tape she made for him, in which she states that she'd settled for him; she did not think at her age, she'd meet anyone else, after having left her first husband. Overall, I enjoyed this story because it involved real-life situations.