fathers.doc

Course: Selected Readings in American LiteratureThe differences between two fathersSherwood Anderson describes an image of father in his short story “The Triumph of the Egg”, and William Faulkner presents the other image of father to us in his short story “Barn Burning”. Although these two images of fathers are all American fathers and described by two male writers, there are still some differences between them. Father in “The Triumph of the Egg” is ambitious, tender and eager to succeed in career, while Father Abner in “Barn Burning” is satisfied with the current situation, strong and anxious for whatever he can get immediately.The first obvious difference between the two fathers we can get after read these two short stories is that the father in “The Triumph of the Egg” is ambitious and full of American dreams, but Father Abner in “Barn Burning” thinks that the current life is fine and seeks no improvement and progress. In “The Triumph of the Egg”, influenced by fathers wife who is a school teacher so she can read books and magazines and knows something about how “Garfield, Lincoln and other Americans rose from poverty to fame and greatness”, the father becomes ambitious and anticipates to do something to “get up in the world.” So, he quits his job as a farm-hand and launches into chicken raising business. In order to fulfill his American dream, he works hard and tries his best to make his business work well. However, one does not get what he wants in this world. Although father is anxious to be successful, he fails to succeed in his chicken business. This failure does not make father discourage to pursue his American dream, he still believes in himself. He decides to embark in the restaurant business. He is passionate to run his restaurant and does his utmost to make it profitable.By contrast, Father Abner in “Barn Burning” prefers to maintain his current living conditions. He does not seek any improvements for his living conditions. He even can not give a permanent place for his family to live. Again he and his family have to move. The wagon carrying their possessions, “the battered stove, the broken beds, chairs” and clock “which would not run” brings them to somewhere nobody knows except Father Abner. As for the destination, none of Father Abners family knows, and they ever “did or ever asked, because it was always somewhere, always a house of sorts waiting for them a day or two days or even three days away.” When they arrive a certain place, one of Father Abners son says that “the wagon stopped before a pointless two-room house identical almost with the dozen others it had stopped even in his ten years, and again.” From these details, we can see that Father Abner does not have any thoughts to improve his living conditions.The other difference we can easily get is that one father is mild and tender while the other Father Abner is strong and aggressive. The father in “The Triumph of the Egg” is an easy-going person, though he is ambitious. He never yells at his son or his wife even when his career does not work well. When the father runs the chicken farm, there is a vicious circle from egg to chicken and full of death and tragedy. Faced with such a discouraged and depressed situation, father does vent his bad mood on his family but just tries to make it work. After a long time of struggling, he gives up and turns to another business rather than immerses in his sorrow of failure. His is passionate to start his new business but it is not as well as he expected. When he failed again, he just comes to upstairs to his wife and son with an egg in his hand. He lays the egg gently on the table and drops on his knees by the bed, then turns off the light and mutters to his wife. He chooses talking to his family not yelling or fighting. However, Father Abner is totally different. He prefers to show his macho characters and puts himself in a dominant position in his family where every one should subject to him. When they are ready to move to another place, his son hurts himself and his wife wants to get some water to clean the wound. But Father Abner says “get back in the wagon.” And all of them get into the wagon without any words. When his son does not answer him at once, he strikes him with his hand; When his daughters argue and reluctant to help their mother, he just says “get out of the chairs and help your mama unload” and his daughters get down and help their mother immediately; When he has some unhappy thing with his neighbor, he burns his neighbors barn without thinking of the result. Compared with these two fathers, this difference can easily catch our eyes.And also, the two fathers focuses on life are different. Father in “The Triumph of the Egg” is eager to succeed in his career but Father Abner in “Barn Burning” just focuses on what he can get at sight. The father in “The Triumph of the Egg” is so absorbed in success that he ignores whether his dream is pragmatic or not. He just sees the great achievement some people achieved who was used to be a poor and nobody, such as Garfield and Licoln, rather than notices how they get the fame and success. Some book says that raising chicken can get rich and declares that “much may be done by simple ambitious people who own a few hens”, so he goes into this business without giving any second thoughts because he is so anxious for rising in the world. Unfortunately, his business does not go well and a lot of tragic things happen to the chicken. Many chicken die without producing any profit. Facing the chicken disease, father tries every way he can get from the magazines and books. All his efforts can not save the life of the chicken and his business. Father decides to give up this business, but his dream is still alive. He is going to run a restaurant because he supposes that this is a profitable business. Filled with hopes, father starts to run his dream. However, the result is not as good as he supposed to be. Poor father, he is solely addicted to his dream and does not know that ambition can not work alone. Compared this father with Father Abner, Father Abner is more practical and mainly concentrates on short-term interests. When he has some little troubles with his neighbor, he thinks that he is offended and burns his neighbors barn. He solely wants to get the immediately happiness and satisfaction without thinking what kind of result it may cause. For private purpose, he is in the “Colonel Sartoriss war “in the fine old European sense, wearing no uniform, admitting the authority of and giving fidelity to no man or army or flag, going to war as Malbrouck hi