Short Story Reviews
In Half a Rupee Worth by R.K. Narayan we have the theme of persistence, greed, corruption, materialism and desperation. Taken from his Under the Banyan Tree and Other Stories collection the story is narrated in the third person by an unnamed narrator and from the beginning of the story the reader realises that Narayan may […]
Read moreIn Hungry Child by R. K. Narayan we have the theme of escape, loneliness, innocence, trust, dissatisfaction, gender roles, independence and paralysis. Taken from his Malgudi Days collection the story is narrated in the third person by an unnamed narrator and from the beginning of the story the reader realises that Narayan may be exploring […]
Read moreIn The False Prophet by Sembenè Ousmane we have the theme of identity, selfishness, self-importance, dishonesty, generosity, faith, justice and conflict. Narrated in the third person by an unnamed narrator the reader realises from the beginning of the story that Ousmane may be exploring the theme of identity. Mahmoud changes his name in order to […]
Read moreIn My Lord, the Baby by Rabindranath Tagore we have the theme of sacrifice, guilt, responsibility, gratitude, letting go, selflessness and shame. Taken from his Collected Stories collection the story is narrated in the first person by an unnamed narrator and after reading the story the reader realises that Tagore may be exploring the theme […]
Read moreIn Subha by Rabindranath Tagore we have the theme of fear, isolation, loneliness, connection, selfishness, innocence, tradition and control. Taken from his Collected Stories collection the story is narrated in the first person by an unnamed narrator and after reading the story the reader realises that Tagore may be exploring the theme of fear. Subha’s […]
Read moreIn Once There Was a King by Rabindranath Tagore we have the theme of innocence, story-telling, escape and respect. Taken from his Collected Stories collection the story is narrated in the first person by an unnamed narrator who is looking back at an incident when he was seven years old and after reading the story […]
Read moreIn The Home-Coming by Rabindranath Tagore we have the theme of conflict, control, responsibility, love and isolation. Taken from his Collected Stories collection the story is narrated in the third person by an unnamed narrator and from the beginning of the story the reader realises that Tagore may be exploring the theme of conflict. Makhan […]
Read moreIn The Auspicious Vision by Rabindranath Tagore we have the theme of commitment, beauty, honour and paralysis. Narrated in the third person by an unnamed narrator it becomes clear to the reader after reading the story that Tagore may be exploring the theme of commitment. Kanti is fully aware of the mistake he has made […]
Read moreIn The Lost Jewels by Rabindranath Tagore we have the theme of equality, materialism, control, trust, appearance, selfishness and independence. The story itself is a frame narrative with a merchant calling himself Bhusan Saha narrating the opening section of the story while the narrative is then taken over by an old schoolmaster. It is also […]
Read moreIn The Castaway by Rabindranath Tagore we have the theme of mercy, kindness, jealousy, control, abandonment, honesty, shame and loyalty. Taken from his Collected Stories collection the story is narrated in the first person by an unnamed narrator and after reading the story the reader realises that Tagore may be exploring the theme of mercy. […]
Read moreIn The Postmaster by Rabindranath Tagore we have the theme of loneliness, happiness, gratitude, connection, memories and guilt. Taken from his Collected Stories collection the story is narrated in the first person by an unnamed narrator and after reading the story the reader realises that Tagore may be exploring the theme of loneliness. The postmaster […]
Read moreIn Kabuliwala by Rabindranath Tagore we have the theme of connection, love, escape, trust, friendship, sadness and charity. Taken from his Collected Stories collection the story is narrated in the first person by an unnamed man (Mini’s father) and after reading the story the reader realises that Tagore may be exploring the theme of connection. […]
Read moreIn Little Girls Wiser Than Men by Leo Tolstoy we have the theme of connection, friendship, fear, conflict, shame and control. Narrated in the third person by an unnamed narrator the reader realises from the beginning of the story that Tolstoy may be exploring the theme of connection. Both Akoulya and Malasha share a connection […]
Read moreIn Fritz by Satyajit Ray we have the theme of memory, innocence, worry, control, letting go, friendship, fear and conflict. Taken from his The Collected Short Stories collection the story is narrated in the first person by a man called Shankar and after reading the story the reader realises that Ray may be exploring the […]
Read moreIn The Invisible Japanese Gentlemen by Graham Greene we have the theme of hope, failure, conflict, independence, innocence and fear. Taken from his Complete Short Stories collection the story is narrated in the first person by an unnamed narrator and after reading the story the reader realises that Greene may be exploring the theme of […]
Read moreIn The End of the Party by Graham Greene we have the theme of fear, conflict, connection and innocence. Taken from his Complete Short Stories collection the story is narrated in the third person by an unnamed narrator and after reading the story the reader realises that Greene may be exploring the theme of fear. […]
Read moreIn On Her Knees by Tim Winton we have the theme of pride, dignity, honesty, struggle, independence and class. Narrated in the first person by man called Victor the reader realises after reading the story that Winton may be exploring the theme of pride and dignity. Victor’s mother is a proud and dignified woman. Despite […]
Read moreIn Examination Day by Henry Slesar we have the theme of fear, suppression, control, freedom and acceptance. Narrated in the third person by an unnamed narrator the reader realises from the beginning of the story that Slesar may be exploring the theme of fear. Dickie’s mother is anxious. She knows how important the Government test […]
Read moreIn The Battler by Ernest Hemingway we have the theme of struggle, generosity, loyalty, control, connection and equality. Taken from his The Complete Short Stories collection the story is narrated in the third person by an unnamed narrator and after reading the story the reader realises that Hemingway may be exploring the theme of struggle. […]
Read moreIn A String of Beads by W. Somerset Maugham we have the theme of appearance, class, jealousy, materialism, equality, independence and morality. Taken from his Collected Short Stories collection the story is narrated in the first person by an unnamed male narrator and after reading the story the reader realises that Maugham may be exploring […]
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