In the short story “Star Food” by Ethan Canin, a young man named Dade repeatedly encounters a woman shoplifting at his family’s grocery store, Star Food. On the fourth offense, Dade managed to catch the woman, but he became conflicted about what to do. Dade let the woman go because he realized he was becoming too much like his father, so he decided to make his act on his own accord.
Dade is frequently pressured by his father to work hard and contribute to the family business. Dade’s father is a hard working individual, himself, so he expects the same level of dedication from his son. Dade claims that “for years [his] father had been trying to teach [him] competence and industry” (P. 45). However, this contrasts Dade’s personality, which is more focused on thinking and daydreaming. …show more content…
Most kids that would come through were “kids usually, in sneakers and coats too warm for the weather” (P. 25). Because they were kids that were younger than him, he would feel little remorse for catching them and taking them to his father in the back room. The woman however, gave Dade a different feeling. She was older, more relaxed, and even kind to the other shoppers. Dade recounts the feeling he had after he saw her steal for a third time: “What was between us at that moment was an idea we has created ourselves. When she left with a carton of milk in her hand I couldn’t speak” (P. 76). Dade saw that the woman was different from the other shoplifters that would come to the store and felt bad about taking her to his father.
Ultimately, Dade realized that the best solution was to let the woman go, actively going against what his father would have wanted. After years of simply following his father’s orders, Dade decided to become his own man. Ethan Canin’s “Star Food” is not a story about a woman stealing from a grocery store, but a story about a young man learning how to be independent and grow beyond what his father expects of