Zachary Graff, in Joyce Carol Oates’ Life after High School, exemplifies the gothic elements in the short story. His decaying physical appearance to emotional, or mental, standpoints shows the uneasiness of his character forcing him to live a double sided life. Oates uses the gothic element of masks by turning Zachary’s fixation into obsession, ultimately taking over his life, as he cannot escape it. This creates an uneasy undertone in the story that results in relative death of the main characters. Zachary Graff, an unattractive fellow, sets an uneasiness amongst the characters in the story by his uncomfortable and unstable personality. His physical sight gets labeled as unattractive and ugly. “His oversized head...massive body… skin was tallow colored, and blemished, in wavering patches like topographical maps.” A sense of decay travels with him, “his breath, oddly for it one whose father was …show more content…
When Sunny inevitably denies Zachary again, and for the last time, he runs off. Later on, they find Zachary dead in his garage, as he killed himself. Sunny lets the situation eat her from the inside, and dies, figuratively. She decides she does not deserve her fun and healthy life. She reverts back to Barbra Burhman. She becomes quiet, and put to herself as she focuses on her education throughout the rest of her life. The overall death in this story takes place within those two character, as the physical death of Zach, and the death of Barbara's happy persona, Sunny. Life After High School portrays how something can drive someone to the brink. In this case, unattractive Zachary Graff struggles with an obsession with a pretty and smart girl named Barbara Burhman, also known as Sunny due to her personality. This creates the gothic atmosphere throughout the story; foreshadowing with decay and ambiance, the story results in some type of death amongst the two main