The theme of William Carlos Williams The Use of Force William Carlos Williams The Use of Force is a short story that depicts the variety of feelings of a doctor who visits a home call. The main theme of the story is the use of force in the interpersonal relations of people. But the force is not something that is used meaninglessly and brutally, it is rather something by the means of which one party attempts to defend own beliefs, judgements, and acts. The Use of Force is a story that employs the use of connotative language to convey its socially relevant theme within a brief conflict. William Carlos Williams uses situational irony to support his theme as seen in the quote, Then I grasped the childs head with my left hand and tried to get the wooden tongue depressor between her teeth. She fought, with clenched teeth, desperately! But now I also had grown furious – at a child.
I tried to hold myself down but I couldnt. The rage the doctor feels towards his young sick patient is a representation of Williams message, which is the user of force loses his humanity in the minds of others. While irony is used to contrast the loss of humanity the use of symbols reinforces the main theme. The splintered tongue depressor is a contextual symbol of the doctors tolerance level. However once the wooded depressor is broken so is the doctor, which is when is asks for a spoon. This spoon represents the rage he feels towards this girl seen here, I could have torn the child apart in my own fury and enjoyed it.
The Essay on Consult Your Doctor Child Pregnancy Make
How To Prepare For The Birth Of Your Child 1. Record the beginning date of your last menstrual cycle. Try to remember if it was a cycle consistent with the pattern of your regular cycles. Was it a heavier or lighter blood flow than usual? Was it late? Did it last as long as your usual cycles? What are your symptoms of pregnancy? Have you had sexual intercourse lately, or has it been five years? ...
It was a pleasure to attack her. My face was burning with it. The damned little brat must be protected against her own idiocy, one says to ones self at such times. The use of the two different symbols clearly shows the irony of the situation and how they contrast each other while trying to achieve a humanitarian goal which is too cure a little girl. The theme in The Use of Force as stated earlier is the user of force loses his humanity in the minds of others. While this theme may not be applied universally it is intended to show through the story that ones means cannot always justify their ends.
This simple story set in a house with two conflicting characters and does not delve into an imaginary world, but it does allow the reader to look into the mind of the doctor. However the lack of quotation marks might imply that this battle between the doctor and the child is in the mind of the doctor rather then reality. Wherever this story takes place it does illustrate an issue that all societies deal with, which is whether force is an acceptable method to attain ones goal or a savage instinct humanity should discard. These conflicting ideas can be seen when Williams writes; In a final unreasoning assault I overpowered the child’s neck and jaws. I forced the heavy silver spoon back of her teeth and down her throat till she gagged. And there it was – both tonsils covered with membrane.
As seen the girl is sick and now the doctor will be able to save her but was it worth the blood the girl bled, the answer to this question is Williams theme and he conveys it in an insightful manner. The Use of Force utilizes conflicts to encompass its message. The simplest conflicts are of the doctor fighting a natural disease and of the doctor fighting social misconceptions held by the young girls parents. However a more relevant conflict consist of the doctor fighting his urge to impose his own beliefs onto the parents of the child he was examining. This idea is clearly seen when the doctor say in response to the mothers threats Oh yeah? I had to smile to myself. After all, I had already fallen in love with the savage brat, the parents were contemptible to me. It is seen that the doctor although fighting the little girl admires her strength and disapproves of her parents tactics; this social difference is the underlying inner conflict that affects the doctor. Finally the main conflict consists of the doctor and the parents of the sick girl fighting their conscious and forcing her to open her mouth.
The Essay on Short Story About a Girl
Short story: Title: One girl’s life In some village there is a one girl who did not have her father. Her father left her family at her childhood itself because her mother gave born to two girls so he left them. From then onwards the girl started to work hard and to feed their family. She became the topper of the class in every standard from her childhood. She joined in an engineering college which ...
This man versus man struggle is what is most apparent to the reader, since it relates to various situations on a global scale as well as to personal conflict. This storys conflict can be summed up by the passage My face was burning with it. The damned little brat must be protected against her own idiocy, one says to ones self at such times. Others must be protected against her. It is social necessity. It is clear that no matter how the doctor felt about using force he had to do his job for the greater good. The action taken by the doctor seems appropriate for the situation but resolution is not part of the message of the story, rather it is the actions leading to it that hold the theme of the story.
William Carlos Williams The Use of Force is a compact insightful story that does not spend time on frivolous descriptions instead focusing on its message. Although the interpretations are few this story does pose a question to which man has still not answered. This story can be applied to anytime in history and to any social class, which makes it timeless. So in conclusion this story is a fast paced, insightful and thought provoking read..
