Millhauser's Short Story 'Miracle Polish'

In a great short story, authors must have a captivating idea, unique language, and at least one element that separates it from other stories. A common phrase when writing is “show not tell”, but in the short story “Miracle Polish” by Steven Millhauser, Millhauser does the opposite. The story is mostly narrative, with a half scenes and a majority of the dialogue buried within the paragraphs. The effect of this writing style is a theme that reflects the title, a story where a life is lived not in the present, but as one reflected through mirrors. “Miracle Polish” a narrative driven story, and often contains details that could have been inferred by the readers instead of told directly by the author. Millhauser uses the first-person narrative
Monica’s confrontation occurs after the couple’s Sunday picnic and causes turning point for him. He can pick either the “real” Monica and the outside world or mirrored Monica and his own self-obsession. Millhauser’s first-person narration intensifies the narrator’s self-obsession. In the end, he chooses the physical Monica, but ironically she “[does] the only thing she could do: she fled[s]” (Millhauser 9). While he learns that, he can destroy the glass, but not the perceived mirrored truth; the narrator still waits for “the stranger [who] is bound to come again… [with his] brown bottles” (Millhauser 10).
A great writer must balance between showing and telling. Physical action is best shown and a story with too much external plot would contain too much narration. A story with deep insight into a character’s inner conflict is different from a physical story. By allowing readers to see the character’s inner conflict readers feel emotion through the inference of other character’s or even the main characters actions and dialogue. In “Miracle Polish”, Millahuser expertly decides when to tell and when not to tell creating a story of a character’s inner conflict who cannot stop living a life stuck in a