The theme of making others happy is shown by the indecisiveness of the woman about the operation in “Hills like White Elephants”. While on a break from traveling at a train station bar the woman and man are at opposite ends in their conflict of having an abortion. Jig is very indecisive yet she still wants to at least consider having the baby, while the man has already made up his mind against the baby. The man tries to persuade Jig to have the operation by downplaying it, saying it is “simple” and that he knows many people who have gone through with it. He tells Jig the baby is the “only thing that bothers” them and that he only wants her and her only. Jig is either too amenable or she’s afraid to lose the man because she’s willing to have the operation to make him happy. She asks ““but if I do it you’ll be happy and things will be like they were and you’ll love me?”. She thinks she’ll find happiness after giving hers up for the man. The man is selfish and wants to influence Jig for his happiness meanwhile Jig will give up her potential happiness for him. The indecisiveness of the woman and her willingness to be persuaded about the operation to make the man happy is shown in “Hills like White Elephants”.
The aftermath of the storm shows Calixta’s and Alcée’s willingness to make their families happy when they are happy themselves. Both take the selfish approach to obtaining happiness by having an affair when they are away from their families. Calixta’s husband and son are stuck at the store during the storm and Alcée’s wife is in a different town with their children. They’re selfish in the fact that they know an affair is wrong, but it allows them to be happy and it reflects on how they act with their families. It could be their happiness or maybe guilt that drives them to be over loving to their spouses. After the Alcée leaves Calixta she is preparing dinner for her family and “sprung up” when they enter the house. She “express[ed] nothing but satisfaction at their safe return”. Alcée writes a “tender, loving” letter to his wife to tell her he misses her but if staying in another town makes her happy, he’s happy as well. The last line of the story “and so the storm passed and everyone was happy” shows that Calixta and Alcée make their spouses happier within their marriages only after making themselves happy.
Andy giving up his childhood toys to make Bonnie happy shows the theme of making others happy in the ending of Toy Story 3. Although he has the choice to store his toys away, Andy decides to give them to Bonnie. Andy finds his favorite childhood toy Woody at the bottom of the box and wonders how he got in there, since he was supposed to be packed away to bring to college. Bonnie is excited to see Woody and goes to grab him but Andy pulls him out of her reach. As Bonnie is visibly upset Andy tells her “now Woody, he’s been my pal for as long as I can remember”. He then decides to give Woody to her, knowing she’ll be just as happy with him as he was. Andy is selfless in giving up his toys with sentimental value becoming happy from Bonnie.
The theme of making others happy is shown through Jig’s struggle with the operation in “Hills like White Elephants” and Calixta’s and Alcée’s drive to make their marriages better in “The Storm”. Recently in pop culture the ending of the movie Toy Story 3 reinforces this theme as Andy gives up his childhood toys for the happiness of Bonnie. Happiness is something everyone wants and can be selfishly or selflessly obtained.
No comments:
Post a Comment