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Can "This Is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona" even be called a short story?

According to literary critic Brander Matthews, it can't. If you were to ask Matthews what the definition of a short story was, he would tell you that the short story “shows one action, in one place, on one day” and “deals with a single character, a single event, a single emotion, or the series of emotions called forth by a single situation.” While there are many short stories that fit this strict definition, a notable exception to this rule is Sherman Alexie’s “This Is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona”. Despite the fact that Alexie’s story is much shorter than traditional novels and would be referred to by many as a “short story”, Matthews would argue that it cannot be classified this way as it not only focuses on two characters, but the relationship of said characters is a result of several events that occurred in the past. However, I would argue that Alexie’s story is in fact a short story and that Matthews’ definition for short stories is far too narrow. If “This Is What It...
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What is the most significant theme of “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge”?

Calling “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge”, by Ambrose Bierce, a confusing story would be an understatement. The story constantly switches between periods of time and even between reality and fiction, and while several other short stories do this as well, they are normally more overt about it. For example, part I of the story describes a man being hanged for an unspecified crime during the Civil War, while part II shows a man named Peyton Farquhar asking a soldier how he can contribute to the Southern cause. However, it is not until part III that it is revealed that Farquhar and the man being hanged are in fact the same person. In addition, the fact that almost all of part III doesn’t actually happen in the reality of the story is not revealed until the very last sentence. In my opinion, the most significant theme of “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” is the blending of what is real and what is not real into one. Part I immediately sets the stage for the reader, introducing the main ...
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Running Away

The Tlic are a heartless race of monsters and a scourge upon all known forms of life. Although my mother, brother and sisters grew to trust the Tlic, I experienced a particularly traumatic event when I was young that solidified my hatred for them. Ever since then, I have consumed T’Gatoi’s eggs for no reason other than that their intoxicating taste is the only way to escape from this living dystopia. Which is why the arrival of the unfortunate Bram Lomas served as yet another reminder of how evil these creatures could be. When T’Gatoi ordered me to run to the call box, I followed without hesitation. Ordinarily, I would never take orders from a Tlic; however, I needed an excuse to get as far as possible from this sad scene. As I ran to the call box, seeing countless Tlic gave me a sudden moment of clarity. Am I afraid of them? Fear would be completely natural in this situation; my entire purpose in this life is to either give up my life to create a new generation of aliens, or create a ...
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An Analysis of "The Machine Stops"

Although the title of this post is “An Analysis of ‘The Machine Stops’”, I do not intend to analyze the entire story; rather, I will be analyzing the sentence, with those exact words, that is present in the story. Although it may seem strange to write about a sentence that is also the title of the story, this sentence is surprisingly important to the story, causing a complete shift in its tone. For context, this story takes place in the distant future in which there is a mass of people living underground that follow the rule of the “Machine”, a little-known yet omnipotent force that seems to control everything. This may be one of the most perfect examples out there of a dystopian story; although it is quite hyper-exaggerated, it was relevant for its time, in which machines were relatively new and feared by many. However, one thing that is uncommon in most dystopian stories but present in “The Machine Stops” is a drastic change in overall tone as a result of one short sentence. From the...
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