Comparing Paul’s Case and A Man who Was Almost a Man
Comparing Paul’s Case and A Man who Was Almost a Man
Cather and Wright have both written stories about young adults who could not fit or did not want to fit in their environments. Both stories show how the conflict between the young men and their environments develops and what they do deal with it. Their actions may seem similar; they both run off somewhere in hopes of finding a better life. But despite the similarities the two stories use space and time very differently to prove their points. And the points themselves are very different. So A Man Who Was Almost a Man and Paul’s Case are two very different stories that seem similar on the outside because of the way they are written and the way their authors used plots.
In Paul’s Case Paul has many spaces. The story starts off with showing his school space. It is oppressing. The teachers hate him and want to get rid of him. He cannot study well because he cannot focus. The school also gets to him by being blank plain and ordinary. The teachers have no real physical reason not to like him. He is not paying any attention, but most of the students are like that. It is just his attitude that puts them off and he cannot change it. His other space is his home. That space is so poor and colorless it is almost intolerable for Paul. He cannot learn to like it, he cannot learn to get along with his father because his goal is money and it comes before his quality of life or his son. So Paul’s home space is also intolerable for him. Paul does have some spaces he likes. The theatre where he works as an usher is not as poor as everything else around him. It has color, it has class and it has magic. The problem with the theatre is that every time Paul visits it he finds it even harder to go back to his usual gray world. Another little space Paul has is with his actor friend. His company gives him a glimpse of the life he longs for. But generally the spaces he has are very far from what he wants them to be. Paul wants color and life but all he can only have it in small doses and at a great price. So he cannot change...