Once Upon A Time By Nadine Gordimer: Is That A Symbol
Julie Nguyen
Mrs. Lee
AP Literature
17 September 2017
CH.12: Is That a Symbol? In the short story “Once Upon a Time” by Nadine Gordimer, the wall which the family(in the story she tells herself) attempts to reinforce around their house represents protection from the outside world where everything isn’t always perfect and safe. The wall may not be a straightforward demonstration of symbolism, however the way I personally view it, is that it represents the only form of security they have. Those who simply don’t understand that life won’t always be that easy, the moment they get a wake up call, (when their son ends up dying) it shatters the wall they considered as a shelter from outside issues. The wall symbolizes a gradual build-up of
fear by people who believe the only way to live is by ignoring matters right in front of them due to its complexity. They do everything they can to shut them out continuing their simplistic lifestyle. The problem with this, is that it’s not so straightforward as it may seem. Life will always throw curve balls such as the undermined racial issues in the story which led to burglary. And no matter how hard we try to knock them away or pretend they don’t exist, it’ll eventually hit us one way or another, resulting in much worse consequences. Thus, if they faced their fears from the start, they could’ve avoided the death of their son.
Mrs. Lee
AP Literature
17 September 2017
CH.12: Is That a Symbol? In the short story “Once Upon a Time” by Nadine Gordimer, the wall which the family(in the story she tells herself) attempts to reinforce around their house represents protection from the outside world where everything isn’t always perfect and safe. The wall may not be a straightforward demonstration of symbolism, however the way I personally view it, is that it represents the only form of security they have. Those who simply don’t understand that life won’t always be that easy, the moment they get a wake up call, (when their son ends up dying) it shatters the wall they considered as a shelter from outside issues. The wall symbolizes a gradual build-up of
fear by people who believe the only way to live is by ignoring matters right in front of them due to its complexity. They do everything they can to shut them out continuing their simplistic lifestyle. The problem with this, is that it’s not so straightforward as it may seem. Life will always throw curve balls such as the undermined racial issues in the story which led to burglary. And no matter how hard we try to knock them away or pretend they don’t exist, it’ll eventually hit us one way or another, resulting in much worse consequences. Thus, if they faced their fears from the start, they could’ve avoided the death of their son.