”Do Lobsters Go to Heaven” is a short story about the boy, Ethan, who goes shopping at the supermarket, with his mother. I have chosen to focus a lot on Ethan’s personal development throughout the story. He does many different things to seem more grown up. In the beginning of the story, Ethan is presented as a young and childish boy. He wants to do everything on his own, but he is just a child and needs a lot of help. But as the story progresses, he becomes much more independent. Ethan wants to handle everything on his own, but he discovers that that might not always be as easy as he thinks. And as Ethan changes, it seems like his mother does not want him to change, or at least, she has to get used to that he gets older.
Ethan had always liked going to the supermarket with his mother. He always helped her finding the things they needed to buy. He had always enjoyed helping her. He always tried lifting the most heavy stuff, but after which he was only a child, he was not always able to do that. But as he grew up, that changed. He now did almost all of the heavy lifting. He does not want to be a child anymore. He tries to act more like a grown up. “He now did most of the heavy lifting. He did no(t) have to, but he preferred doing it.” (p.1 l.8) He will not just carry the small, light things anymore, because that might seem childish.
As Ethan gets older he starts feeling a little embarrassed about going shopping with his mother, even though he still likes to do it. “He still enjoyed going with her, but he would prefer it if she did not speak too loud to him, touch him or walk too close to him.” (p.1 l.26-27) His mother says that she likes going to exactly this supermarket, because she does not want to get disturbed when shopping (p.1 l.22-23), but what she really wants is for Ethan not to be embarrassed, if they meet someone they know. She does not want Ethan to grow up and find out that it may be childish of him to come with his mother to the