...In Raymond Carver’s “What We Talk About When We Talk About Love” there was one theme that was consistent throughout the whole story. It is that not one of the four characters of the story could explain what love is. Each character in the story each had their own ideas to what they wanted love to be but not what it actually was. Whether it was suicidal love, abusive love, or just physical love, each person in the story held fast to what they believed love to be, even if they could not explain why. One of the main characters, Mel, attempts time and again to identify the meaning of love, but he never forms any clear conclusion. Each time he is about to say something important he gets sidetrack or forgets for a little while what he was about to say. For example, he tells a story about an old couple who almost die in a car crash, but half way through he gets distracted. When he finally gets to the conclusion of the story—the old man miserable because he could not see his wife—confuses the others. When he tells everyone that he will explain what exactly love is, he instead strays into a jumbled reflection about how it is bizarre that he and the others have been in love repeatedly. His efforts to illuminate the nature of love tapers off into a bitter lecture against his ex-wife. He spends a lot of his time saying what love is not and not saying what it actual is.In the story Mel says “There was a time when I thought I loved my first wife more than life itself. But now I hate her guts...
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...through our mind when we think about love. Whether it is a person or an object that we adore, we all have different ideas of what love is, but love varies in different relationships. The short story “What We Talk About When We Talk About Love”, written by Raymond Carver, entails two couples talking about love and we discover what love is from the main characters, Mel and Terri. This couple has had quite a few road bumps in their past relationships. Mel’s perspective on love is that abusive love is not real love; I agree with his conceptualization. Terri’s concepts of what love is leads her to believe that being in an abusive relationship is acceptable. Carver’s story is believable because people have different...
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...2014 Theme In Literature What is the meaning of a theme in literature? A theme or moral of a fable is the lesson that is being portrayed within the story. It is a message that can be taken from a story and personified into one's life. Theme is immensely important in literature due to its ability to share the author's opinion and understanding about life and human experiences. It is impossible to tell a story without letting out one's views and attitudes toward a subject of the story. By sharing these views, it helps someone distinguish or open up to new ways of thinking and feeling. To demonstrate, the theme in Raymond Carver's short story "What We Talk When We Talk About Love" portrays multiple themes, which are love, language and communication, marriage, drugs and alcohol, and violence. Although themes are not directly presented, you can derive an idea or the evidence of what the theme may be from the characters, actions, and settings that formulate the story. For example, based on the what the characters of What We Talk About When We Talk About Love are trying to define as love, you can formulate that one of the themes are the elusive nature of love. For instance, Mel says, " I was going to tell you something. I mean, I was going to prove a point. You see, this happened a few months ago, but it's still going on right now, and it ought to make us feel ashamed when we talk about love like we know what we're talking about when we talk about love" (p. 729). He is saying that...
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...Agony Article What makes a relationship fresh? Hi my name is Sandra I come from a town close to Sheffield which is called Rotherham it’s a small town which can only hold a few thousands. I am aged 25 and I have recently met this Gentlemen aged 27 I have fell in love with him he was is so sweet to me and kind and I have always trusted him for the past few years he’s been miserable please tell me how to make him love me again? Imad Says: Take advantage of new technology; text and send e-cards. With so many of us pressed for time, why not use technology to “keep in touch” during the day. A compliment, an affection or a quick “Hello, You are being thought of” via text can spark anyone’s day. E-cards are fast, and convenient. There are many sites that allow you to send them for free. You can find any type of sentiment from cute and funny, to serious and romantic or teasingly sexy. The bonus is that you can include a personal message along with it if you’d like. Hold hands, hug and give quick kisses often. Nothing is as good for the soul and the emotional health of a person as the human touch. As teenagers, we hold hands, give quick kisses as hello and goodbye and cuddle as we sit close. Why not keep that sense of youth no matter how old we are or how long we have been have together as a couple? Holding hands keeps a connection and closeness, no matter what we are doing. An enthusiastic hug uplifts us; a quick kiss says “glad to see you”. You must convince your husband to take you...
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...between men and women have always been a widely talked about subject. Each gender wonders what it would be like to be the other and experience things the way that the other would.” Communication is a big part of marriage” in an essay by Tannen (407)”. Without communication where would the world would be quiet. Men and women most likely will not ever understand each other and sometimes will not be able to love the person that loves them because of the communication. The relations between men and women are often times very complex, but they can also be simple. Understanding how anyone thinks and acts is difficult, even when that person is your spouse or loved one. We grow to believe that we know someone and it turns out that they are completely different. Tannen is her essay writes “men and women have different styles and expectations “(407). I have met a true friend and soul mate his name is Ed. He is more than my mentor is. He is my best friend. I disagree with Tannen on the different styles and expectations. I do not see anything different in Ed and I except he has show me laughter and smiles that are important in a relationship. He is always in a good mood, always has something pleasant to say, and no matter what be going on, he can get you to smile. Everywhere he is, there will be laughter, smiles, and happiness spreading out like some sort of delightful virus. He is always calm, patient, and even tempered when faced with people whom were less than pleasant to be around...
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...Pillow Talk Katherine Courtney January 26, 2012 COM 200 Interpersonal Communication Aisha Meeks Every night before we sleep, a little secret we must speak. Imagine your relationship based off that philosophy and how much better it might be. Couples speak to each other all the time, but how often do they truly communicate? What is communication to you? I am sure that you are one of those couples who think hey, we talk all the time so there’s no communication problems with our relationship, but think about it, what do you say when you think you are communicating? Do you talk about what needs done when and how, or do you talk about each other to each other? Who is doing the talking and who is doing the listening, are you both talking and listening? What you have to say to each other is so much more important than how often you say anything at all to them. How can you say you love someone, if you don’t even know who he or she is? Communicating with your partner goes deeper than just talking about your day, although it is a start. In order to keep your relationship healthy and strong you both have to take the time to see who each other truly are, and what you both truly want or need. Before reading the article Can We Talk, I knew that communication was important, and I knew what communication was. What I did not realize was that maybe all this time my partner and I have not been communicating effectively like we thought. When I sit back and think about what...
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...relationship. We have read many interesting short stories and I found that the theme of love kept appearing also with Tartuffe. Love comes in all different ways. I will discuss the theme of love in Winter Dreams by F. Scott Fitzgerald and What We Talk about When We Talk about Love by Raymond Carver. I saw that there was Lust and Love in these two stories. The word lust is defined as an intense longing or unbridled sexual desire.(lust). The word love is defined as a feeling of strong or constant affection for a person. (love). The difference between them is very simple, love is constant and lust is just an intense longing that can end anytime. A person is blinded when they lust for someone but true love is based on respecting each other and understanding each other’s likes and dislikes giving it a better chance to last longer. In Carver’s story, there are two relationships present that I want to go into more detail that will help show whether love or lust is stronger. In Fitzgerald’s story, one man is in love with a woman who doesn't love him and ends up losing a woman for his future. I chose these two stories because they were able to give a variety of love that is present in our world today. Raymond Carver’s title to his story, What We Talk about When We Talk about Love, just seems like a dead end already before you can even start reading. It already gives an obvious idea of what the story is about. Throughout the story Mel does his very best to figure out what love is, while...
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...After reading an article on “can we talk? Researcher talks about the role of communication in marriages”. I feel that self disclosure in relationships is important to know where your partner stands or feels about certain issues that might come up. My wife and I sometimes have discussions with one Another to try and find out ways to make each other happy because according to her I am a grouch. We try our hardest but it’s like everyday there is always something different. I believe that self disclosure is important because it relates to having a good intimate relationship. I believe it is a blue print to one’s emotions and it bears great weight on intimate relationships. In regards to gender similarities, I notice that woman are more sensitive when it comes to intimate communication they need to verbally hear “I love you” and desire a great deal of attention. I know this first hand my wife is telling me that all the time and I say ok. She wants me to kiss and tell her that I love her all the time. On the other hand, men seems to cater more to non verbal body language; they desire to be depended on and be ask for their guidance and their leadership in most major decisions. This is so true instead of hearing my wife tell me that she loves me a million times I would rather see her cook me a meal. That lets me know that she loves me. I tend not to say I love you that often but I think she gets the hint by me doing things when she asks me to do things. This type of action makes men...
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...Response Title: what we talk about when we talk about love Author: Raymond Carver Theme Compose a complete sentence that states the author’s purpose (meaning or main point) in the story. What we talk about when we talk about love, written by Raymond Carver, talks about what true love is in everyone’s mind. Setting Describe the occasion, time, place, atmosphere, etc. Give details. The setting is very casual. Two couples are just talking during their spare time in the kitchen of one’s home. It is a good sunny afternoon, relaxed, and also not an annoying rainy or windy day. “My friend Mel McGinnis was talking.” “The four of us were sitting around his kitchen table drinking gin. Sunlight filled the kitchen from the big window behind the sink. There were Mel and me and his second wife, Teresa-Terri, we called her- and my wife, Laura.” Language Cite some quotations (at least three) that are particularly meaningful or interesting. Explain why you chose each. “He kept saying, ‘I love you, I love you, you bitch.’” Terri was memorizing what Ed said to her when he beat her. What Ed said was kind of contradictory. Did he hate Terri, or did he love Terri. In Terri’s mind, this is a different way to show his love, but as I know, this is love, while a sick way. The contradictory way he said can show this very completely. Just a several words, but readers can feel what kind of person Ed is. “‘Terri’s a romantic. Terri’s of the kick-me-so-I’ll-know-you-love-me school. Terri...
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...components that contribute to the theme of the short story “What We Talk about When We Talk about Love” by Raymond Carver are plot and character. The main character of the story plays a big role in creating the theme and the symbols that are prominent also contribute to the theme. This author used these key components to help the readers understand the main point of the story. The main character Mel and the symbols love and gin are all important to identify the theme in this short story. The theme in the story is the complicated meaning of love. The character Mel is a round character in the story. His character is sometimes hard to understand and figure out and also is shown to have more than one side. He is a very confused character...
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...A++PAPER;http://www.homeworkproviders.com/shop/com-200-week-3-assignments/ COM 200 WEEK 3 ASSIGNMENTS COM 200 Week 3 Assignments, Can we talk? Researcher talks about the role of communication in marriages I thought the article was great and I enjoyed reading it. It puzzled me to know that a couple that has been together for 50 years has little or nothing to talk about I think that is so sad. Yes I can relate to the on self-disclosure in relationships sharing with my partner my private feelings. Me and my partner always talk and tell each other how we are feeling and we always tell each other we love one another and we always show love in front of our children and kiss we let our children know that we love each other no matter what. We always keep our relationship open it help keep the love and understanding between the both of us and we always think of one another when we are out we always check in when we are out doing the shopping or what ever we have family time we sit and talk with the children and grand children make sure ever body is find with what ever may be going in our lives at that time. We work different shift so we always communication with each other and the children on a daily and let the other know what the other is doing or how we maybe feeling about the job or just life in general. Dear Bob and Sue, All throughout your marriage you will have to face trails and tribulations, so my advice to you Bob and Sue for a successful...
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...Peter Roskam once said, ”Everywhere we look, technology has changed our daily lives - from the way we pay our bills, to the way we buy plane tickets or keep in touch with friends and family.” In society everywhere, technology is present, taking over lives. Occupied by parlours and toys, humans lose reality and go into a state of ‘silence’. Love and memory are factors of the use of technology over a period of time. In the novel Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, the overuse technology affects the way people act and think. The people in society are isolated by technology and sound around them. The actions people are making relate back to them using technology. On the way out of the city, “He stopped for breath, on his way to the river, to peer...
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...Available At: http://hwsoloutions.com/?product=com-200-week-3-assignments Visit Our website: http://hwsoloutions.com/ Product Description COM 200 Week 3 Assignments, Can we talk? Researcher talks about the role of communication in marriages I thought the article was great and I enjoyed reading it. It puzzled me to know that a couple that has been together for 50 years has little or nothing to talk about I think that is so sad. Yes I can relate to the on self-disclosure in relationships sharing with my partner my private feelings. Me and my partner always talk and tell each other how we are feeling and we always tell each other we love one another and we always show love in front of our children and kiss we let our children know that we love each other no matter what. We always keep our relationship open it help keep the love and understanding between the both of us and we always think of one another when we are out we always check in when we are out doing the shopping or what ever we have family time we sit and talk with the children and grand children make sure ever body is find with what ever may be going in our lives at that time. We work different shift so we always communication with each other and the children on a daily and let the other know what the other is doing or how we maybe feeling about the job or just life in general. Dear Bob and Sue, All throughout your marriage you will have to face trails and tribulations, so my advice to you Bob and Sue for a successful...
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...That Good Night, are both great examples of the process of death. When you hear about death, it is not necessarily something that is beautiful or happy. There is a lot of grief when it comes to death, but there is also a lot of love. I think love and grief comes when death is around, whether it is for an animal or family member. A Dog's Death talks about the death of a dog. They were not sure as to what had happened with the dog, they think that he may have been kicked or brushed by a car. They took the dog to the vet and the autopsy showed that she had a rupture in her liver. The dog had apparently been young and just learning to go potty on the newspaper. They tried to take the dog to the vet the next morning and in the car ride, she tried to bit her owner and had tied. The dog was only learning to live and yet she was already dying. The last act this dog had made was try and hide the diarrhea she didn't have any control over, she covered it with her newspaper. What I found very intriguing about this poem, is that the dog was treated as if it were one of the family members. It is evident that the family who owned the dog, had no idea what had happened, but you can almost feel their pain (Sherwood, 2001). And that is exactly how the author wants you to feel. I can tell that the author wanted me to feel empathy for the family's loss. I felt myself really connecting to this story because, we owned a husky and we had to put him down because he was getting so old, he couldn't control...
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...SIMPLE THINGS WHY I LOVE MY BOYFRIEND ♥ •I love his eyes. •I love his smile. •I love the way he laughs. •I love moments when we can finish each other’s sentences. •I love it when he holds my hand. •I love it when we look into each other’s eyes and the rest of the world disappears. •I love it when he looks at me, talks about me and touches me as if every part of me is precious. •I love the fact that we dream of a grand adventure together. •I love the fact that he values my opinion. •I love it when he kisses me on my forehead; it is the deepest feeling of love and peace. •I love the fact that though we have tough times together, he still chooses to be with me. •I love that he loves taking stolen pictures of me. •I still look beautiful in his eyes no matter how bad I think I look. •I love when he said he’d still love me even I get SO FAT! •I love that he gets jealous with other guys. •I love that I am his reason why he wake up so early. •I am myself when I am with him. •I don’t need to clean the house before he comes over. •I can tell him every little thing about me. •I can ask him a dumb question without feeling dumb. •I love the fact that when I’m around him, I can be myself and not worry about what he may think of me because I know he loves me for who I am. •He is very patient even when I’m yelling. •He is overflowing with confidence. •He can handle adversity and come out stronger. •He is Intelligent. •I feel so secured and loved when he hugs me tight. ...
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