Tobias Wolff and

Short Story Writing

Two Boys and a Girl

You will discuss these questions in groups. You must take notes in your work book as you

are discussing each one.

• What is the significance of the title? Why do you think that he chose it?

• What views and values did he put forward through the story?

• What is he implying about human nature and society?

• What qualities, attributes and behaviours did he appreciate/critique?

• Consider the characterisation of the three characters: Think about appearance, dialogue, actions.

• What does this tell the reader about what Wolff did and did not value?

• What is the symbolism of painting the fence red?

• How does the story link to Wolff’s own context?

• 1. Describe the characterisation of Gilbert. How does Wolff cause the reader to feel both sympathy and dislike for him?

• 2. How did your feelings towards him change? What message was Wolff trying to say through him?

• 3. What is the importance of the supporting characters?

• 4. ‘Everyone’s always talking about the banality of evil – what about the evil of banality’. What is Wolff saying through this quote?

• What voice (point of view) is used? How is it significant?

• How is the story structured? What impact does this have on the development of ideas?

• How does the text begin and end? How are things introduced and concluded?

• Are sentences long and complex or simple?

• Consider the tone and style – what does it imply about social class?

• Are there many images, symbols, metaphors? How do these relate to ideas, views and values?

• What are the main settings? What do they reflect?

• Are there tensions between opposing ideas and impulses? (Good/bad, freedoms/social obligations, desire/restraint)

• What values and attitudes does Wolff endorse and question?

Wolff’s Characters

Quote: His [Wolff’s] characters are not modified by the customs of particular places, unpractised by the rest of the world; by the peculiarities of studies or professions, which can operate but upon small numbers; or by the accidents of transient fashions or temporary opinions: they are the genuine progeny of common humanity, such as the world will always supply, and observation will always find

….. we read Shakespeare, Johnson and Wolff not because they speak with one voice on any given subject – what a dull experience that would make for – but because they illuminate the infinite complexity of human nature and never allow us to forget that men and women can either be noble or foolish, self aware or self deceived. King Lear, The Rambler, and the Night in Question: each in its own way reminds us that one’s character determines one’s fate.”

Characters and Character’s RolesProtagonist: • main character. Events are presented predominantly from the protagonist’s

perspective.

• Minor characters and character functions:– informer– trickster– messenger– confidante– embodiment of a point of view or attitude, eg. racial prejudice

• Minor characters are not developed, and they generally do not represent the

complexity of human nature. Their purpose is to reflect aspects of interactions and exchanges in human society.

• They provide information about the protagonist and can provide a world view or perspective which the central characters can not give time to while they focus on their own individual concerns. Minor characters tend to be more stereotypical than the main characters.

• Characterisation: the ways in which a writer represents their characters• A character can be developed by using the following textual elements:

– character’s thoughts– what the character says or does not say– how the character talks- use of language, tone of voice– what others say about the character– the character’s appearance, mannerisms, clothes, environment– the character’s actions – importantly interactions with others– imagery to show the character’s inner life and to reveal or suggest the character’s

attitudes and opinions.– Character’s name – can suggest aspects of their personality, social status, views

and values

• Some characters are represented sympathetically – causing the reader to

feel affection and concern. Others are depicted more critically, causing the reader to feel horror and disgust

• Most celebrated characters in literature are usually a mix of many human qualities, flaws as well as virtues. The skill lies in making an unsympathetic character seem interesting and worthy of the reader’s sympathy, or in taking a very likable character and bringing out their flaws and contradictions.

• Can’t be as simple as a ‘good’ or ‘bad’ character – characters should be used to encourage compassion, understanding and sympathy in our relations with others.

• A short story will often focus on a particular incident or situation in a character’s life, a crisis point that that shows aspects of their broader life experience or personality.

• A novel often shows that people can change over time however short stories often suggest that life is fragmented and lacks any clear beginning, middle and end.

• A fragment of a character’s life may be shown in which a possible important event leads nowhere, leaving the character in the same place as they were in the beginning.

Narrative ViewpointNarrative voices can change within the same text – creating contrasting viewpoints

The narrative viewpoints often used is short stories or novels are:

Third-person omniscient• Omniscient narrator = all knowing. Knows everything about the characters and

everything that happens in the world of the text. Understands the private thoughts/feelings of all characters.

• Omniscient narrators don’t always reveal everything • Omniscient narrator can provide overall view of events or individual viewpoints of a

character

First person• Presents the world of the text exclusively from one characters perspective.• Uses the first person pronoun ‘I’ to refer to themselves, creating an intimate

understanding of the character.• Only gain understanding on information that the narrator would possess.

Third person limited• Presents characters and circumstances as they are experienced and

perceived by a particular character.• Limits our knowledge of events and the other characters to what the

character sees and to their perceptions of others.

Narrative TechniquesChronological narrationPlot arranged in chronological order – the order in which the events in the novel are related to the reader is the same as the order in which they occur in the world of the characters.

Interweaving narrative threads• Two or more interrelated narrative threads – set in different

periods• Alternating between both lets the writer cast light on the

other while holding back information or delaying plot development

• When the two narrative intersect key revelations or conflicts are played out

Moving backwards and forwards in time

• Moving the narrative backwards and forwards in time means that events are related out of order.

• The reader does not initially receive all the information necessary for comprehending why the characters think and act in certain ways

• Moving between the narrative present (‘now’ of the story) and the past allows the writer give reason for a character’s physical or emotional state

• Use of character’s memory is important for revealing information

• Moving between the present and future shows how a character’s actions affect their own/other’s prospects.

The Night in QuestionGroup discussion and presentation of ideas

Table 1: Key ideas about society

Table 2: Key ideas about humanity

Table 3: Key characterisation passages

Table 4: Key writing techniques

Time to write….• Try to incorporate some kind of moral dilemma that has to be resolved, or

overcome.• Decide what you are ‘exploring’ about society and mankind.• Are you exploring or ‘critiquing’?• Attempt to use one of the narrative techniques used.• Decide if you will use third person omniscient or limited• Carefully consider descriptions of characters and settings• Look carefully at Wolff’s sentence structures and use of metaphors and symbolism

Topics:. add to The Night in Question – eg. Francis’ perspective. return to a Two boys and a Girl and add another paragraph/perspective. Create a new narrative

You are aiming for approx one half to a full pageRemember: short stories are not complete! You don’t have to fill the gaps. They are merely ‘windows’ of a character’s life that reveal something.Lots of background info is implied.

• How would you describe the narrator in each story?• Why do you think Wolff utilized the same style of narrator for

each story?• How was irony and humour used in each story?• What was the importance of landscapes or detailed interior

settings?• What was the length and style of the sentences?• How was tone developed in each?• Interview: Student with Tobias Wolff regarding one of the

stories – his purpose• Hot seat – students as characters commenting on thoughts