“THINGS THAT FLY”, DOUGLAS COUPLAND 1 Re-read the story looking for specific clues as to what may have happened in the narrator’s past to make him so upset. Describe your feelings. Though the writer hasn’t directly stated, it is very obvious that the narrator is emotionally destroyed and has probably been through a rough divorce. The narrator is upset with the norms of the human life and wants to escape. His thoughts and actions represent the state of an escapist who find facing the reality difficult and thus tries to hide away into the subconscious or by embracing solitude. Both these aspects of escapism are evident in the narrator’s life, who is fond of the flying objects and has a desire to fly away himself so as to be free. The narrator specifically sought this freedom because he seemed to have undergone something that had seriously affected his psyche: “My brains felt overheated. So much has happened in my life recently” Though there could be several reasons behind this state of the narrator however a rough divorce seems the ultimate reason behind this disturbed state of mind and heart of the narrator. In the story it is very obvious that the narrator is struggling with a bad break-up with a profound sense of loneliness and that too while reflecting upon Superman’s death.
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Transcript
“THINGS THAT FLY”, DOUGLAS COUPLAND
1 Re-read the story looking for specific clues as to what may have happened in the
narrator’s past to make him so upset. Describe your feelings.
Though the writer hasn’t directly stated, it is very obvious that the narrator is emotionally
destroyed and has probably been through a rough divorce. The narrator is upset with the norms
of the human life and wants to escape. His thoughts and actions represent the state of an escapist
who find facing the reality difficult and thus tries to hide away into the subconscious or by
embracing solitude. Both these aspects of escapism are evident in the narrator’s life, who is fond
of the flying objects and has a desire to fly away himself so as to be free. The narrator
specifically sought this freedom because he seemed to have undergone something that had
seriously affected his psyche:
“My brains felt overheated. So much has happened in my life recently”
Though there could be several reasons behind this state of the narrator however a rough divorce
seems the ultimate reason behind this disturbed state of mind and heart of the narrator. In the
story it is very obvious that the narrator is struggling with a bad break-up with a profound sense
of loneliness and that too while reflecting upon Superman’s death.
“And then I got just plain lonely and just so fed up the badness in my life and in the world and
I said to myself "Please, God, just make me a bird -- that's all I ever really wanted -- a white
graceful bird free of shame and taint and fear and loneliness, and give me other white birds
among which to fly and give me a sky so big that if I never wanted to land I would never have
to."
The narrator here might be implying the theory that the animals, especially birds are better than
humans as they observe mutual harmony and understanding more than us, the humans. Whereas
that is not the case, the humans have the capability to achieve much more than birds. Man has the
power, ability and sense to do as he wills, whereas all animals lack this sense. If at any postion in
life a grave accident or incident occurs it does not mean that one starts finding refuge in
impractical or impossible outlets rather one should have the courage to face the reality and get
past it by looking at the brighter side of life, for there always is one.
2 How do birds and Superman function as symbols in the story? What meanings
do they have for the narrator?
“Things that fly”, is a combination of depressed imaginations of an escapist. The narrator has
mixed some melancholic interpretations of his broken down world with the badness around him
or the sins committed by man. Throughout the short story, “Things That Fly” Douglas Coupland
refers to birds and Superman; or in other words there is a recurrent theme of “things that fly” in
the story. Upon analysis, these references to birds and flying objects symbolise the desires of n
escapist. For instance in the story when the narrator asks God to
“just make me a bird – that’s all I ever wanted – a white graceful bird free of shame and taint
and fear of loneliness”
he is demonstrating that birds, or anything else for that atter with the privilege to fly, are truly
free; they
“are a miracle because they prove to us there is a finer, simpler state of being which we may
strive to attain”
The symbolism goes so far as to imply that perhaps humans have devolved, as opposed to
evolved, from animals. That humans have become creatures that are inferior to those of the skies.
Perhaps when we look to heaven, to God, we are really looking to the birds, and “things that fly,”
and that is what we strive to become. That is why humans have
“I have always liked the idea of Superman, because I have always liked the idea that there is
one person in the world who doesn’t do bad things. And that there is one person in the world
who is able to fly”
The reason why Superman is idolized is because he has achieved this state that is devoid of
humanly worries and arbitrary possessions, in other words Superman is free.
“people are interested in birds only in as much as they exhibit human behaviour- greed and
stupidity and anger- and by doing so they free us from the unique sorrow of being human..
Humans are tired of having to take the blame for the badness in the world”
3 The story begins and ends at nearly the same point in time. Has the narrator
learned anything through the process of his story? Are there any clues that
indicate he has found a possible solution to his despair?
The story’s multiple references to “things that fly” create a philosophical discussion based on the
symbolism of flight and escapism. The narrator has recently experienced an emotional shock in
his life and thus want to find solace in something, “things that fly”. He is so sick of the life he is
leading and the world around him that he wants to escape into someplace where even the shade
of humankind is unreachable and he idolises birds and other things that can fly for this reason:
Birds are a miracle because they prove to us there is a finer, simpler state of being which we
may strive to attain
The narrator is so mesmerised by the act of flying that he takes up looking at birds as a pass-time
activity and whenever he sees a bird or anything that can fly he starts longing for a life like that
object / bird. This desire to be able to fly is basically to escape the miseries and drawbacks of
human life. He is guilty of whatever wrong he has done and is also sick of all the wrongdoings
that occur around him and just wishes to escape into an unreachable world:
If only I could be a whooping crane and was able to float and fly like them, then it would be
like always being in love
No matter who or what he sees flying, he is more than willing to take up their life, to become like
them and forget the sorrows and miseries of his human life because he now acknowledges that
man is a statue of sins. Likewise when the thought of Superman came to his mind, he again
entered the escapist mode and started desiring a similar privilege to be able to fly because
according to him when a person will be able to fly, he would realise that this life and its
materialism is all temporary and there are more important things to contemplate over in the
world:
There is one person in the world who doesn’t do bad things
He wants to escape subconsciously as well:
I myself often have dreams in which I am flying… Needless to say it is my favourite dream
Though the most favourite escape of the narrator is flight, he nonetheless is awe-struck by all
sorts of states of being that enable him to be anything but human. This indicates how fed up the
narrator is of his life.
And I was glad for this activity because there is something about the animals that takes us out
of ourselves and takes us out of time and allows us to forget our own loves.
Till the end the narrator remained entangled in his desires to escape, to develop wings or gain the
power to be able to fly in just anyway as long as it promises to make him go away from his
current human life, another moment of which is hard for him to bear:
And then I just got plain lonely and fed up of the badness in my life and in the world and I
said to myself “please God just make me a bird– that’s all I ever wanted – a white graceful
bird free of shame and taint and fear of loneliness
4 Consider the narrator’s voice and level of language; consider the line-drawings
that accompany the story. What do these stylistic elements convey about his
character or attitude?
Postmodernism has been the central tool of Douglas Coupland for the creation of a story that is
insightful as well as engaging. By using structure, symbolism, tone, diction, and numerous other
tools, Coupland has acquired a postmodern opus. Postmodernism can be defined as something
untraditional, or even revolutionary or rebellious. Postmodernism comes at the spot where
modernism has departed, and the author uses anarchic construction and casual tone while
conveying a message or story. One of the most common feature of postmodernism is the
combination of cartoons and philosophy, because this means the author is ignoring the class-
barriers of rich and poor and writing in a completely new dimension. In this story, Coupland
wrote in an informal tone while still representing exceptionally complex matters. The casual
diction and line drawings both represent a conversational tone in addition to a contribution to the
postmodern school. The diction of Coupland is displayed in the first paragraph of the story where
he notes:
“having just woken up from a deep deep sleep on a couch shared with pizza boxes and crushed
plastic cherry yogurt containers”
This informal diction represents the mind-set of the author, who instead of using academic slangs
or structured formality preferred a children story type narration.
Coupland uses a writing style for his stories which is far from the modern planned and orderly
writing methods. Instead the author follows a disordered structure with no coherence between the
paragraphs and parts. Rather than confusing the readers, this method engages them more. This is
because the conventional writing style is followed by most writers and is often boring for the
readers. The unconventional method of writing followed by Coupland makes reading it
interesting.
. For example, the flow of the first and second paragraph is like a boat floating through ice:
“let me describe what happened today”
This dialogue ends the first paragraph, and is immediately followed by
“today went like this: I was up at noon; instant coffee”
In the above dialogues, there is a slight connection but even if one of them would have been
omitted, the meaning would not have changed the readers since the relationship between the two
paragraphs was almost inexistent. Conversely using such a writing style using mayhem makes
the story readable and provides room for imagination and questions for the readers. In the end of
story, use of “Things That Fly” embodies in an untraditional way the principles of
postmodernism and conveys a meaning. The tone, use of symbols, casual articulation, following
no structure all makes children’s’ story, a piece of well written art.
HILLS LIKE WHITE ELEPHANTS – ERNEST HEMINGWAY
1- Re-read the story carefully looking for clues about what “operation” the couple might
be discussing. What evidence can you find to support your answer?
In the story Things That Fly, the two characters, the American and Jig are talking about
abortion. The man (the American) is trying to convince the woman (Jig) to undergo an abortive
operation, for he thinks that the reason behind the prevalent discontentment between them is due
to the prospect of a baby. He believes that an abortion will free them of all and any type of
responsibility and will help them return to their previous lives. The male character seems
possessive about his lady and does not want to share her with anyone, including the baby. He
believes that having a baby might lead them to fall apart and is therefore trying to convince Jig
to drop the baby. He tries to convince her that the abortion is a highly insignificant and minor
operation and that it will be over in no time. When Jig protests against it and considers having
the baby, the American says:
"That's the only thing that bothers us. It's the only thing that's made us unhappy."
Whereas Jig was bored of the monotony in their lives and wanted to embrace the new change
that was coming towards them in the form of a baby. According to Jig, all they had done in their
lives was see things and have drinks: “That's all we do, isn't it—look at things and try new
drinks?"
Jig is guilty and unconvinced that what if the abortion was a mistake and they would never be
happy afterwards however on the persistence of the man, Jig finally gives in. She asks him if he
guarantees that their relationship or lives will not be affected:
“If I do it you'll be happy and things will be like they were and you'll love me?... if I do it, then
it will be nice again?.. I f I do it you won't ever worry?"
On constant reassurance, Jig has somewhat started reconsidering her option of abortion. Though
the male protagonist believes that this operation will solve all their problems, it is evident that
they have deeper issues than the prospect of a child.
2 How does the symbolism in the description of setting relates to the major dilemmas
in the story?
There are numerous symbols employed by the author, eminent amongst them are the following:
Hills like elephants:
The reference of Jig to white elephants could symbolise the baby. The American was rejecting
the idea of white elephants because he did want to raise the baby while the girl saw an
extraordinary addition to her mundane and predictive life in the form of a baby. The view was
similar to the choice that the girl faced; abortion or to have the baby. The disparity between
barren valley and the white hills in her view were same as the difference between sterility and
fertility. The girl was at a crossroads, on one side was green beautiful hill while on the other was
emptiness and a brown dessert. The girl then started walking towards the end of the station
moving towards the greener view, trees and fields along Ebro. Beyond Ebro, were the hills and
when she saw the river, she said to herself
“And we could have all this...And we could have everything and every day we make it more
impossible.”
This dialogue of Jig indicates her desire to have a baby.
Barren surrounding:
Aside the hills, the rest of the setting provide symbolism that expresses conflicts and tension in
the relationship of the couple. The description of the surrounding is depressing and barren which
can be related to the state of the relationship of the American and Jig. The landscape includes a
railway station in the barrens of a desert with no greenery or shade. This scenery indicates the
infertility, barrenness and desolation of the couple's life. The relationship of the two is as sterile
as the landscape surrounding them.
Railway Lines
The view on either side of the train track represented the choice faced by the two main characters
in the story. It was a line on one side of which was a vast barren land while on the other was
green beautiful trees and fields. The dilemma of pregnancy was being compared with the two
views differently by the two characters. The girl and the American like the lines of the train track
were parallel yet did not meet at a point. They did not know if they would stay together for long
or will move away with time. However at the moment, they were together and thus it is in a way
similar to the relationship between the American and Jig.
Railway Station
The greener view on one side of the station represented life, a beginning, a life, the baby while
the other arid side represented death and debauchery. The author, Hemingway uses the setting of
the story to represent the crossroads in a relationship. The railways station was just a stopping
point for the two characters the girl and the American man and not the final destination. They
were at a point where they had two opposite and very different choices and had to choose one.
They also had to decide if they should go together continuing their relationship or go alone on
different paths.
3 Hemingway is famous for his “iceberg” style of writing in which nine tenths of the
story occurs beneath the surface of the words and only one tenth is directly explained.
In this story he gives no names, descriptions of character, nor any explicit indications
of what the characters are talking about. Explain how this style of writing might be a
fitting way to deal with a story like this, and more effectively convey the feelings of the
characters by not directly stating them.
Hemingway’s story “Hills Like White Elephants" depicts his use of omission or theory of ice
berg in which the story is presented by its subtext. For example, the author has not used abortion
word in the story even when one character is convincing the other for it. This style of writing lets
the reader interpret the story differently according to his or her thinking. Some readers especially
those reading it for the first time might not find it anything more important than a conversation
between two characters that were waiting for train on a station. Every reader will not interpret is
as two people deciding to go different ways and talking about a decision of baby or abortion.
Hemingway though his style gives only the important details and leaves rest to the imagination
and interpretation of the readers. This style is said to be similar to an ice berg. The ice berg
covers a large ice mass in an ocean similar in his style; Hemingway does not use dialogues and
words to convey the unstated tension in the moment.
Hemingway like other journalists avoids the irrelevant and surplus details but only focuses on the
main event. He mostly writes short stories pointing or hinting at the main point only and more of
a surface story. This way the real meaning and lesson is not obvious but depends on the
interpretation of the readers. The core of the story for Hemingway lies under the surface. He
provides several hints as he did in “Hills Like White Elephants” and does not give the main
details. He does not write about the occupation, names or appearance of the characters but just
the important details related to them such as their disjointed conversation, different thinking and
them being in a relationship. He does provide enough information to explain the situation e.g. the
girl Jig refusing to accept American’s suggestion of abortion. Through the dialogues of the
characters he explains their different visions and different ways to look at life and their
relationship. The conclusion of the story is not at all clear and is criticised by several literary
critics. The outcomes can be several with some being more likely such as Jig taking the train for
Madrid and going for abortion and others like giving birth to the child. The author started the
story by describing the landscape and view of the Ebro view and then Jig’s poetic smile. The
author uses several symbolic expressions rather than being direct and detailed. Here indirectly
what Jig implies is that the American lacked the insight required to see what the baby would
behold if allowed to become part of their lives. The author uses the smile of Jig several times that
represents the conceit at the core of the argument. For fertility the author has used the symbols
like green fields, trees and hills, the baby as white elephant etc. Later when she stops smiling, it
implies that she might just go for abortion and would avoid the green hills and life.
DRESSING UP FOR THE CARNIVAL- CAROL SHIELDS
1. Each character sub-story in Carol Shields’ story is a variation on the same thematic
ideas. Making reference to three of the characters in the story, explain the connections you
see from character to character that point towards the overall theme of the story.
Carol Shield’s story has some twelve sub-story characters, who are comical in nature but mainly
because of Carol Shield’s masterly ironical style of writing, they look serious and engrossed
people. These characters are utterly obsessed with their own being and often do things that are
otherwise foolishly hilarious. The most common feature of all these characters is their powerful
imaginative flight. They keep dreaming and indulging in illusions while doing things. As they
think, they become oblivious of the world outside and care too less for what others would think
about them. With some under-confidence in their sub-conscious, they try to attach extraordinary
importance to themselves and to what they do.
In the first sub-story, the character of Tamara behaves strangely. She is not bothered about the
weather outside; she would wear dresses that she opts to wear of her own free will. Shields puts
it likes this:
“She never checks the weather before she dresses; her clothes are the weather, as
powerful in their sunniness as the strong, muzzy early morning light pouring into
the narrow street by the bus stop, warming the combed crown of her hair and
fueling her with imagination”.
The Borden sisters, another duo of characters, also remain unmindful of the changing
season. They keep wearing on their chest the plastic cards that reflected their
participation in a winter sport – the Ski in the Happy Valley. Shields observes:
“The Bordens wear them all over town, at the shopping centre, in the parking lot.
It's spring, the leaves are unfolding on the hedges in front of the post office, but the
Borden girls, Karen and Sue, still carry on their bodies, and in their faces too, the
fresh wintry cold of the slopes, the thrill of powder snow and stinging sky”.
Yet another character is Mr Gilmann. His daughter-in-law poses him a lot of indignity by
inviting him every month to dinner of ‘leftover’; still he buys her three or four bunches of yellow
daffodils and then very strangely carries them all day along:
“He takes them along to the bank, the drugstore, to his appointment with the foot
specialist, his afternoon card club at the Sunset Lodge”.
These characters have so many commonalities: they are self-centred, egotistical and
doggedly in demeanour. They pursue what pleases them most. They do not care too
seriously about the onlookers or the social propriety of their acts. They are
individualistic and hilariously awkward people. They indulge in loud thinking and
self-talking, lost in their illusions as if they were all going to attend a freak show or a
circus – indeed, a carnival. A wide range items that these characters carry along relate them to
a carnival. The list includes a bouquet of daffodils, a mango, an English pram, a violin case, a
football etc. These are not merely testamentary pieces. These are deliberate expressions, pointing
at carnival preparations.
2. Take one character’s story and write a paragraph in which you conduct a close-
reading. This means focusing on the author’s use of specific words, images symbols,
literary devices (like metaphor, simile, hyperbole, etc.) or other elements to convey an idea /
theme.
Carol Shield’s character, Tamara, is a powerful, imaginative and an overly passionate person.
Her ability to describe is exceedingly rich and covers even some of the minutest details.
Describing her own skirt, she recounts:
“The yellow cotton skirt with the big patch pockets and the hand detail around the
hem. How fortunate to own such a skirt. And the white blouse. What a blouse!
Those sleeves, that neckline with its buttoned flap, the fullness in the yoke that
reminds her of the Morris dancers…”.
The writer makes, through her character, a beautiful wordy picture, making excellent
use of visual and tactual senses. She lays special emphasis on yellow colour that
symbolizes joy, happiness, idealism, and imagination. She uses the jargon of a typical fashion
designer while describing her dress. The expressions, ‘big patch pockets’, ‘the hand detail
around the hem’, ‘neckline with its buttoned flap’, ‘fullness in the yoke’, ‘string of
yellow beads, etc speak of the author’s insight into apparel designing.
Carol Shield includes some beautiful adjectives to embellish her thoughts. Tumbled