Why I Live at the P.O. - 1157 Words

Why I live at the P.O. was written by Eudora Welty in 1941. Sister, the first person narrator, who is a flat character in the story, causes external conflicts within her family as a result of her inner-conflicts. Such as lack of self-confidence and a demanding need to be the center of attention. Due to the conflicts she deals with inside herself, she is driven to move out of her family’s home and into the post office. In the beginning of the story the reader has sympathy for Sister due to the conflicts that are going on, but later on in the story we start to see that these conflicts were perpetuated by Sister herself. As this occurs the story takes on a comedic aspect from the view of the reader, and we lose our sympathy for Sister.†¦show more content†¦It’s clear that Sister is greatly taken aback by the arrival of her sister and also harbors some ill will toward the situation when she states, â€Å"Now if it had been me that trotted in from Illinois and brou ght a peculiar-looking child or two, I shudder to think of the reception I’d of got, much less controlled the diet of an entire family.†(597). It’s at this point that Sister shows herself as being a bias narrator who is clouded by her jealousy and need for attention; this makes it necessary for the reader to have to fill in the blanks of what is really happening. It’s also interesting to note here the sibling rivalry that is going on between Sister and Stella-Rondo, Sister obviously keeps close track of what Stella-Rondo has gotten away with over the years and clearly she doesn’t want her to get away with such things again. Sister is already starting to lose the battle of attention from her family, but more so that she has now lost the spotlight and nobody is paying attention to her. Instead, they’re focusing their direction and attention on Stella-Rondo and her child which infuriates Sister and drives her to make the statement â€Å"†¦ Whoever Shirley-T. was, she was the spit-image of Papa-Daddy if he’d cut off his beard†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (594). The attempt being made by Sister to get into the family’s good graces by using Stella-Rondo’s untimely return as a spark to get her family’s attention, was thwarted when Stella-Rondo came back andShow MoreRelatedWhy I Live At The P.o.777 Words   |  3 PagesChina Grove In Eudora Welty s story, ?Why do I Live At The P.O., the main character directs the focus of the reader through her own point of view. The story is set in a small Mississippi town, sometime after World War II. The time and the place have a significant effect upon the language used. This helps to create an overall mood that is dominated by Southern prejudices, interpersonal ignorance and simplicity; for example, Sister says ?Nigger girl? (1031) words that now demonstrate racism but atRead MoreWhy I Live at the P.O1143 Words   |  5 PagesRashawn Venters Eng 101 Mrs. Davis Why I live at the P.O The character in this story, Sister, seems to be in a way jealous and a little selfish, but with good reason, she has a sister, Stella-rondo, who has always been everyones favorite and everyone would believe everything she said, from her saying that Sister was one-sided to her,( Stella-Rondos ) adopted child. Sister has every reason to not like Stella-Rondo. EveryoneRead MoreSisters Jealousy in Why I Live at the P.O.902 Words   |  4 Pagesmaterializes because one of them feels overshadowed by the other. For girls, this results in a lack of confidence. If a girl loses to her sister, younger or older, insecurity builds underneath often causing hostility between them. In Eudora Welty’s â€Å"Why I Live at the P.O.,† Sister’s resentfulness towards her sister hinders her ability to become independent. Stella-Rondo brings out jealousy in Sister that causes tension between them. Sister hates that Stella-Rondo married Mr. Whitaker since Sister supposedlyRead MoreEssay on The Dysfunctional Family in Why I Live at the P.O.1329 Words   |  6 Pages Everyone wants a perfect family, but nothing is ever perfect. The family in â€Å"Why I Live at the P.O.† is most definitely less than perfect. When Stella-Rondo returns to her old home after leaving her husband and bringing her small child who she claims is adopted, much conflict in the family increases. Stella-Rondo turns every family member living in the household against Sister, her older sister, and every family member betrays Sister by believing the lies Stella-Rondo tells about Sister to themRead MoreEudora Weltys Why I Live at the P.O. Essay1018 Words   |  5 Pages Favoritism The story I chose to analyze is â€Å"Why I Live at the P.O.† by Eudora Welty. The author, Eudora Wetly, is originally from Mississippi from a prosperous family, she was born in 1909 and passed away in 2001.During her early days she worked at small places involved with writing until she launched her literary career. ‘Why I Live at the P.O’ is about sibling rivalry and favoritism among family. My thesis states that this story shows a good example of favoritism among families and good insightRead MoreIndependence in Updike’s AP and Welty’s Why I Live at the P.O.945 Words   |  4 Pages Why do many strive to become independent or just do something bigger in life? With Updike’s â€Å"AP† and Welty’s â€Å"Why I Live at the P.O.†, we get a first person look into two similar but different people’s lives and struggles. In â€Å"Why I Live at the P.O.† sister is the main character and the narrator. The same is for â€Å"AP† but Sammy is the main character and narrator. Sammy and Sister throughout the stories battle with their want of being independent. Sister is jealous of her younger sister Stella-Rondo’sRead MoreEssay about Family as Theater in Eudora Weltys Why I Live at the P.O.898 Words   |  4 PagesFamily as Theater in Eudora Weltys Why I Live at the P.O.      Ã‚  Ã‚   The outspoken narrator of Eudora Weltys Why I Live at the P.O., known to us only as Sister, intends to convince us--the world at large--that her family has turned against her, led on by her sister, itella-Rondo. To escape her family, she explains, she has left home and now lives at the P.O., where she is postmistress. As she delivers her monologue, the narrator reveals more about herself than she intends. We see herRead MoreA New Edition Of A Textbook Should Not Be Weighed Down By Subpar Literature904 Words   |  4 Pagesbe removed starts with the two stories of A Good Man is Hard to Find and Why I Live at the P.O. The first, a twisted tale of a family’s vacation. The second, being a boring tale of a family’s favoritism of one child over another. The expectation of this paper is to convince the editor as to why A Good Man is Hard to Find should be kept, rather than, Why I Live at the P.O. A Good Man is Hard to Find and Why I Live at the P.O. both have a storyline that follows two families. The families share a similarRead MoreWhy I Live At The Post Office Short Story Summary1098 Words   |  5 PagesSister Sister was the narrator from â€Å"Why I live at the P.O. Sister is the protagonist in the story, because the main action was about her. She is the central character because the story is told by her and from her prospective. She can also be described as a round character because we know quite a bit about this character. Her personality is described in depth and in detail in this narrative. Sister is still young and she is still living with her family in a town called China Grove, MississippiRead MoreEudora Welty Essays1088 Words   |  5 Pageswho memorably assert their unique identity.† (May) Whether Welty purposely crafted the females in her stories to go against the stereotypes or not, the women in her stories show society a new idea of females. In one of Weltys short stories Why I Live at the P.O., a girl says, â€Å"And if Stella-Rondo should come to me this minute, on bended knees, and attempt to explain the incidents of her life with Mr. Whitaker, Id simply put my fingers in both my ears and refuse to listen.† (Welty 10) Today, this