A Gap of Sky
A)
In the short story “A Gap of Sky” we follow a young woman on her quest for the essence of life. Throughout the story, which stretches across an afternoon, she digs deeper into herself, through sleepiness, drugs, university and a general indifference towards life, until she sees herself, on a grey afternoon in the centre of London, “filled with something fizzing and alive and beautiful”. Ellie wakes up around 4 pm after a rough night with alcohol and various drugs that ended on a rooftop somewhere in London. She remembers that she felt happy that early morning, affected by the drugs and the surreal surroundings, but as she wakes up in her wretched little apartment, the joy of last night seems far away. She needs to hand in an essay on Virginia Wolf the next morning, so she rushes of to get some printer ink, cigarettes and possibly also some more coke. Ellie seems tired, worn out from last night and you understand that she has a hard time getting out of bed. You might get the impression that her life is a bit shallow, for instance when she tells that last night she was surrounded by people who laughed and had a good time, but now she is alone, coping with the harsh realities of a Monday morning. She seems tough, or wanting to seem tough, but she changes towards the end of the short story to a more real toughness of calm confidence. The core of Ellie's life isn't exactly to fulfil society's or her parent's wishes for a bright young woman. She has already had her extension from the university, and is therefore compelled to hand in the next assignment, but the city's many offers lead her curious nature astray. The river, the back entrance to the British Museum and a little shop – they all distract her, but at the same time serve as a means of reconciliation between the larger strings that pull her in opposite directions. A simple symbol that she