Preview

Imagery Behind Ann's Loneliness In The Painted Door By Sinclair Ross

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
724 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Imagery Behind Ann's Loneliness In The Painted Door By Sinclair Ross
Ms.Gargano
ENG3U1-02
February 27, 2011 The imagery behind Ann’s loneliness The Short story, The Painted door, by Sinclair Ross, follows the life of a woman and a man living on a quiet, secluded farm. The woman, Ann, is a very confused person who is seemed to be unsatisfied with her marriage. Her Husband, John, is a very hard working farmer who works his hardest so that he can provide for him and his wife. He enjoys the simpler things in life, yet his wife, Ann, cannot. Nothing is good enough for her. Her selfish ways are evident in her attitude toward the material things in her home environment and in the way she treats her husband. Through the heavy use of imagery in the story “The Painted door” Ross effectively shows how lonely Ann is.
…show more content…
“The sun was risen above the frost mists now, so keen and hard a glitter on the snow that instead of warmth its rays seemed shedding cold.” Ann also states it was time she got used to staying home alone. We see that the sun has risen, however, it is shown that it feels like the sun was shedding rays of cold. This sentence is paradoxical as the word sun has connotations of heat and happiness, and the word cold has connotations of loneliness. Both of these two terms are effective at affecting our mood and leaves the reader lost and unsure how to feel. By saying that the sun is shedding these waves of cold or loneliness Ross is actually using the sun to show the progression of Ann’s

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    The story: “The Painted Door”, is set in a cold, lonely, farmhouse, in the Canadian prairies, during a snowstorm. The story takes place in the 1930s, which happens to be the time period of The Great Depression. The time period and setting of the story is essential to the overall story, as it leads to the understanding of the characters traits. The couple’s cold, lonely, and isolated relationship is a clear reflection of the prairies during the Great Depression. As the reader begins to understand both Ann and John’s point of view, it becomes clear that both character’s make valid points.…

    • 199 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    As the only woman on a ranch surrounded by men that view her as a temptress, Curley’s wife faces little to no chance of friendship. Despite Steinbeck’s portrayal, Curley’s wife emerges as a complex character through the quotation, “‘I get lonely’” (82). This declaration to Lennie shows Curley’s wife as more than the stereotypical enchantress, but as an actual person who possesses feelings, particularly loneliness. The line becomes noteworthy as the reader begins to notice the character of Curley’s wife developing more depth and feeling.…

    • 85 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    All the characters in the novel have certain things in common, for example working and living on a ranch coupled with dreams of a brighter future. These men actually have jobs which they are thankful for, but suffer loneliness such as being away from home in the cases of Lennie and George. Curley’s wife is subject to 1930s America where a woman’s place is in the home, an object or possession belonging to her husband. Her loneliness stems from the discontent she feels with her abusive marriage and lack of attention from her husband. Focusing on the situation Curley’s wife is in, I will discuss how her loneliness is illustrated.…

    • 2018 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Davis begins the novella with an outline and description of the period and environment, dirty, unhealthy, and not very fair. The narrator then goes on to tell the story of a particular worker, Hugh Wolfe. Wolfe worked at a steel mill, and never got hurt before and was a very reliable worker, yet he still got paid extremely low salaries. One day his cousin, Deb Wolfe, goes to the Iron Mill to give Hugh his meal, she feels very drowsy and decides to rest before returning home. Her husband is at the same time making his "masterpiece," the hungry lady, right when the mill owners, followed by other friends take a tour of the factory. They see the statue and decide to comment Wolfe on it. Deb hears them speaking and conversation take a turn when the doctor says he is a good artist and art could solve all of his problems. Deb then decides to steal money from the cellars of the factories. They get caught and get sentenced 3 years in jail. When in jail, Deb and Hugh get separated and Deb does not know what has happed to her dearly beloved Hugh.…

    • 1830 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Gender Roles In Triffees

    • 892 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Susan Glaspel’s drama, Trifles, critically portrays gender roles and relations in early 20th Century rural America. Its female characters, Mrs. Hale, Mrs. Peters, and the unseen Mrs. Wright all exemplify this gender portrayal through their experiences and actions. Glaspel’s portrayal is one of women being confined by society, but also rebelling against and breaking out of this confinement. Mrs. Wright was confined by her lonesome house and hard husband, as well as the expectations that society had for a wife. Mrs. Hale said how the house “weren’t cheerful ... I dunno what it is but it’s a lonesome place and always was.” (1054). She also said that Mr Wright wouldn’t have been easy to live with. (“I don’t think a place’d be any more cheerfuller for John Wright’s being in it.” (1051) and “But he was a hard man, Mrs. Peters. Just to pass the time of day with him—(Shivers.) Like a raw wind that gets to the bone.”) She speculated that societal expectations confined Mrs. Wright: “Wright was close. I think maybe that’s why she kept so much to herself. She didn’t even belong to the Ladies’ Aid.…

    • 892 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Throughout the world, man families, rich and poor, have probably experienced rough times. However, some families experience it in different ways. It is best to keep an open mind and hope for the best, rather than give up and through a pity party. Just like those families, in Mary Oliver’s “The Black Walnut Tree”, a mother and daughter are faced with the struggles of paying their monthly mortgage. Oliver uses this poem to emphasize the relationship between a tree and a family trying to make ends meet.…

    • 457 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In ‘The drover’s wife’ Lawson creates powerful images by employing distinctively visual language that enables the responder to feel the hardships that others face. Concrete sensory description is effectively used to create a beautiful image when The Drover’s wife sits to watch the snake all night. ‘A green sapling club laid in readiness on the dresser by her side, together with her sewing basket and copy of the young ladies journal.’ The journal is symbolic of the approach she takes in not letting the bush take away her femininity. Juxtaposing to this, the club is symbolic of what she needs to do, it displays her innovative ways and her ability to be content with her lifestyle. The sewing basket acts as a ‘bridge’ between the two as it represents both sides of the woman. Images of a resourceful, cooperative and woman of sophistication are conjured up in the responders mind. One is able establish a relationship of commendation with the drover’s wife whilst despising the Australian Bush for what it puts her through.…

    • 769 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    This can be seen through the speech of Curley’s wife that reveals her innermost desire to have a companion. For instance, during an outburst between Curley’s wife and the farmers at the ranch, Curley's wife exclaims, “‘Think I don't like to talk to somebody ever’ once in a while? Think I like to stick in that house alla time?’” (Steinbeck 77). This instance of indirect characterization demonstrates how a lack of companionship can bring forth agony and frustration in one's life. Curley’s wife’s compelling need to converse with others exposes her complete solitude on the ranch. The men have an inability to see past the gender of Curley’s wife, look down upon her, and constantly shame her for her seemingly flirtatious actions. Because of this, Curley’s wife is filled with despair and is forced to face her issues alone. The suffering that Curley’s wife experiences makes her an emotional wreck, letting the men know of her true feelings. Her words, which are shocking to the men, show that she is more than what meets the eye, and will not let her gender categorize her and set her apart from others. Additionally, Crooks' speech shows how isolation and separation from others can be emotionally draining. For example, while explaining to Lennie why he lived in an isolated shack, Crooks says “‘’Cause I’m black. They play cards in there, but I can’t because I’m black. They say I…

    • 1457 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Robert Hayden’s, Those Winter Sundays, is what we would call a constantly changing climate. Throughout the poem, Hayden uses the theme of cold and warm to express his feelings about his relationship with his father. When he uses the word “cold,” in his poem, it seems that the emotions he’s feeling with his father are rather “cold” and disheartened. When he uses the word “warm,” in the poem, it seems that the feelings he shared with his father are mended a bit and their relationship seems to be better than it used to be, if his father is still alive. The warmth and the cold are more than just physical feelings in this poem: they describe Hayden’s inner feelings…

    • 1032 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Comparison Essay

    • 1127 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The Painted Door by Sinclair Ross is about a couple that has been married for 7 years, in which, they’ve lived on an isolated farm. The wife Anne seeks change in her boring life resulting in her committing adultery. Later in the story Anne comes to the realization that she’s truly in love with John but it didn’t matter because John had witnessed her sin. John is announced dead because while walking away from his home in dismay he froze to death. In comparison, Behind the Headlines by Vidyut Akulujkar the wife Lakshmi is tired of her repetitive life style which is cause by her husband Hariharan who was a “[]promised professor of economics in a respectable Canadian university.”(pg139) The couple were immigrants from India therefore they carried on a traditional marriage. Shortly after Hariharan leaves to a work conference his wife Lakshmi dropped her house keys into the mail slot showing that she was not coming back to him. These two short stories are similar in the aspects of conflict, plot, and characterization.…

    • 1127 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    References: Walker, Alice. Literary Cavalcade, Feb 2003, Vol.55. Issue 5, p32, 4p, 4 color photographs, 1 black and white (Short Story) The Welcome Table Literary Reference Center Plus. Retrieved May 19, 2013.…

    • 2387 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Kite Runner

    • 667 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Phrases such as sun sparkled and crisp breeze are the complete contrast of the frigid, overcast day which is described in the first paragraph. In the last paragraph of the chapter the use of the words there is a way to be good again makes me want to find out what it was that happened in the past that was so bad that someone has to return there and face their punishment for something that happened a long time ago.…

    • 667 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Identity

    • 926 Words
    • 4 Pages

    ‘The Young man sensed their disapproval’. This quote expresses the non acceptance within the neighourhood which Winton is writing about. It emphasises the point he is trying to convey as it is telling the reader thoughts the character is feeling about his identity and being accepted, by others in his neighbourhood. Not only that but, Winton used metaphors related to changing seasons to represent the transitions and moods of the characters. ‘As Autumn merged into Winter and the vermilion sunsets were followed by sudden, dark dusks touched with the smell of wood smoke and the sound of roosters crowing days end.’ The season of winter consists of feelings and emotions of coldness, isolation and sadness. In this case Tim Winton contradicts these emotions by using contrast. In his text he expresses a feeling of happiness, growth and coming together during the transition of autumn to winter. This…

    • 926 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The fifth stanza, she describes how time has stopped for her, metaphorically meaning that her condition has not gone better, frozen in time. Further, Dickenson writes "Or Grisly frosts - first Autumn Morns". Emily uses some wordplays, to darken the mood. For instance, the use of ´grisly´ or the word ´morns´ which means morning. Using this abbreviation permits setting a darker tone because it sounds like the word ´mourns´ as in ´grieving´. Mornings are being portrayed as dark, and cold by mentioning they are during Autumn. Autumn mornings, were plants begin to…

    • 680 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Alone in her room Mrs. Mallard takes in the news she has just received, she sinks into the “comfortable, roomy armchair” that faces the open window and stares out into the open square. There was something coming to her and she was waiting for it, fearfully. (307) after hearing of her husband’s death, Mrs. Mallard ironically awaken full of life as she embraces the world around her. She imagines her life full of freedom from an unwanted marriage, she has grown out of. “Free, free, free!” “Free! Body and soul free” she kept whispering. She sees her life as being absolutely hers and her new independence as the core of her…

    • 547 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays