Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Response to "Margaret"
The short story "Margaret," although extremely short (ha) inspired me to write. In the five short paragraphs, I got a sense that the narrator, although annoyed with Margaret for a reason we do not know, is very fond of her. I feel that he even loves her. I love that he knows who it is just by the creak of the board on the bridge. I love that Richard Brautigan makes it so the narrator comes across as being annoyed at this habbit of Margaret's, but at the same time still manages to sound sentimental. He calls Margaret "they" throughout the whole story except for at the end, even though he knows right from the beginning who it is at the door. I feel that the narrator is mad at Margaret, maybe even hurt by her. But he still loves her. You can feel this. And that is what has inspired me to write, the fondness that the narrator holds for Margaret, despite unpleasant circumstances, whatever they may be.
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Yeah, he definately came across as being annoyed....I was thinking Margret could be some kind of ghost...like the way Margaret suddently appeared again in his other story, "My Name."
ReplyDeleteThe tension of opposites, annoyance and love, are interesting parts of real life though, huh!
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ReplyDeleteTypo ealier....
ReplyDeleteI know a Margaret (my stepmother) and I am annoyed by her all the time.
I am really glad you made the correlation between the speaker's annoyance and possible love for Margaret. When I first read this story, I was so curious who was there, and who Margaret was to the speaker, that I did not even look at how the speaker was talking about her (I feel that I often analyze problems too close to the situation, when I really need to back up and look at the situation as a whole.)
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the depth and wonder of the relation to Margaret intriguing as well. He loves her enough not to answer the door and thus confront her. He chooses to address the situation by examining a mood not telling us thus leaving room for ambiguity. It's wonderful!
ReplyDeleteI just wish I knew why Margret was annoying everyone. I kinda want to read the book now.
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting that you were inspired to write by such a unique piece. It makes me wonder the correlation to this relationship and how that inspired you to write. I want to know more about how it inspired you. I guess it's not important we don't know why Margaret has annoyed her, only the dynamic of the relationship.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy your outlook on Margaret. I took Margarett, the character, leass literally and interpreted her as an aparation and a metaphore for the main character's fear of... I liked your input too thou...interesting.
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