According to Ricardo Piglia, “a short story always tells two stories”, the second story is constructed in a fragmented form hidden in the first story and the surprise comes to the readers when the ending of this second story emerges (63). The emergence of the second story creates what Poe called “the single effect” of a short story, and reveals to the readers the “undercurrent of significance” (Marler) that is concealed in the obvious plot. The second story brings new and deeper meaning to the apparent plot and poses new questions to the readers, instead of giving final answers about its significance.
The short story “The Dead” by James Joyce presents the readers with what appears to be a very simple plot: a traditional family and friends’ party that goes on as it had the previous years. The characters Gabriel and Gretta seem to be a common loving couple as their easy banter and the support they give each other lead the readers to think. However, the mood of the short story changes after the song “The Lass of Aughrim” and that is the point where the second story emerges. From this moment on it is clear to the readers that “The Dead” is telling more than the story of a party. After listening to his wife’s love story and to her description of the passion that moved her former lover, Gabriel reflects about his own life and the fact that “he had never felt like that himself towards any woman”. The realization comes to him that he has been dead in life, that he and everyone else were “becoming shades”, and this gives new meanings to his earlier discomfort in the midst of the merry making at his aunts’ party. It is only after this epiphany that the readers can see the subtle hints for this second story wreathed in the entire plot, such as the constant mentions of dead people and Gabriel’s insecurity and hesitance in expressing himself.
In a similar way, “The Chrysanthemums” by John Steinbeck has a very simple plot: a couple that lives in the countryside and a tinker that passes by their farm offering his services while the wife is gardening. Elisa initially seems to be happy and satisfied with her life; she tends to her chrysanthemums garden with great care and is very cheerful about dining out with her husband. When the tinker shows up the readers encounter some hints as to the truth of her feelings, for she is initially dismissive of the visitor, but when he pays attention to her flowers she glows as if he had shown an interest in her and she expresses a desire to live a life like his: “It must be very nice. I wish women could do such things.” The turning point is when Elisa sees the chrysanthemums she had given to the tinker abandoned on the road; apparently he discarded the flowers, but kept the pot. Elisa’s epiphany happens at this moment because she is finally able to see her life clearly; she understands that she cannot have the life of the tinker, she feels trapped just like her flowers are limited to their garden bed. The sense of entrapment is present in the story from the beginning, for example in the description of the valley as “a closed pot”, but the significance of this undercurrent meaning is only made completely clear when the second story emerges with Elisa’s epiphany.
Another example of the “single effect” can be found on “Desiree’s Baby” by Kate Chopin. This short story is unlike the two mentioned before because the second story does not emerge through an epiphany of one of the characters, it has more to do with the readers than with the characters. In “Desiree’s Baby” what reveals the hidden nuance of the short story is an ironical reversal of the readers’ expectations for its ending. “Desiree’s Baby” begins by making the readers believe that a happy ending is to come by using a narrative form reminiscent of fairy tales. When Desiree “awoke one day to the conviction that there was something in the air menacing her peace”, it becomes clear that this expectation will not be fulfilled. Yet, the readers are once again misled for they believe that Desiree is the one with black ancestry. At the very ending of the short story, it is finally shown that Armand was the one with black blood in his veins. This ironical change of direction finally justifies all the half spoken hints that appear throughout the story, such as Armand’s description as “dark, handsome”. The single effect is created by the readers’ ultimate perception of the irony of the story and the dangers of judging by appearances.
Finally, it is interesting to notice that the three stories end without a defined closing. The readers are not told if the epiphanies from Gabriel and Elisa are going to bring about any changes in their lives. Likewise, the readers are not told what happens with the characters of “Desiree’s Baby” after the events narrated in the short story. The readers are left with the varying possibilities of what could come next; there is the potential for many different outcomes, but the short stories do not clarify what happens and this maintains the “single effect” alive for the readers. These short stories provide the readers with a second story that is underneath the obvious plot and it is this second story that contains the main meaning and leads the readers to reflect on the story and what it is telling. The “undercurrent of significance” (Marler) and its revelation is what involves the readers in the narrative and creates the “single effect”.
Bibliography
Chopin, Kate. “Desiree’s Baby”
Joyce, James. “The Dead”
Marler, Robert F. “From Tale to Short Story: The Emergence of a New Genre in the 1850's”. American Literature. 46.2 (1974): 153-169. Web. 26 Jun. 2013.
Piglia, Ricardo. "Theses on the Short Story". New Left Review 70 (2011): 63-66. Web. 26 Jun. 2013.
Steinbeck, John. “The Chrysanthemums”
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