Jilting Essays - The Jilting Of Granny Weatherall, Granny

Jilting Of Granny Weatherall By Porter In Katherine Ann Porter's "The Jilting of Granny Weatherall," there are two prevalant themes. The first is self-pity. The second theme is the acceptance of her immenent demise. Both deal with the way people perceive their deaths and mortality in general. Granny Weatherall's behavior is Porter's tool for making these themes visible to the reader. The theme of self-pity is obvious and throughly explored early on. As a young lady, Granny Weatherall left at the alter on her wedding day . As a result, the pathetic woman feels sorry for herself for the rest of her life. She becomes a bitter old woman who is suspicious of everyone around her. This point is shown early in the story when the doctor is speaking to Cornelia in the hallway outside of Granny's room. Granny exclaims "First off, go away and don't whisper!" (p.1487) Granny was apparently under the impression that the two of them were speaking ill of her behind her back. Thoughts like these resulted from the trauma she suffered when the man she loved failed to show up on their wedding day. Granny Weatherall's self-pity gives the reader a negative initial impression of a woman the author eventually expects us to miss. The ailing octogenarian is so incredibly annoying at the beginning of the story that one almost welcomes the idea of her passing. The second theme is the acceptance of immenint death. At first, Granny Weatherall could not accept the fact that her days were numbered. She shows this when the doctor is summoned and she says "I won't see that boy again. He just left five minutes ago." (p.1490) Later on, she continues her denial when Cornelia calls on a priest to offer Granny her last rights. When the priest arrives, she would not speak to him. She said, "I went to Holy Communion only last week. Tell him I'm not so sinful as all that." (1491) As Granny's life was winding down with only minutes remaining, she finally began to show signs that she accepted what was happening to her. She bagan remembering those who were important to her and dividing her possesions among family members. Porter shows a loving side to Granny Weatherall that endears her to the audience before she is wisked away from the land of the living. It is reminiscint of The Flannery O'Connor story "A Good Man is Hard to Find." The Misfit has just executed a fast-talking grandmother. One of his evil cohorts offers that she was "a real talker." The Misfit interjects that "She would have been a good woman if it had been somebody to shoot her every minute of her life." So it is with Granny Weatherall, at her best while near the bitter end. The Jilting of Granny Weatherall gives us a brief overview of mortality. Porter gives us slightly deeper insight into self pity and the acceptance of death. Granny Weatherall's actions and thoughts give the reader an idea of how it feels as life draws to a close. Porter suggests that by succeeding in dying well, one can leave behind an image of themsleves that is more flattering than the legacy of their squandered lives. Bibliography Heath Anthology of American Lit., Third Edition, Vol II , Paul Lauter Ed.,

Word Choice Half vs. Halve

Word Choice Half vs. Halve Word Choice: Half vs. Halve Sometimes, seemingly simple words can cause problems. Take â€Å"half,† for example. It is a common term than any native English speaker should know. But wait! Are you sure you know the difference between the words â€Å"half† and â€Å"halve†? If not, read on to find out more. Half (50% of Something) We’ll start out with the more common word. â€Å"Half† is typically a noun that means â€Å"fifty percent† (or a similar amount). For instance: 750 is half of 1,500. Do you want the other half of this pizza? The plural of this noun form of â€Å"half† is â€Å"halves† with a â€Å"v.† This is because some words like  Ã¢â‚¬Å"half† that end in an â€Å"f† or â€Å"-fe† change their spelling in plural form (e.g., knife → knives or calf → calves). We can also use the word â€Å"half† to modify other words in a sentence. For example, we could use it in either of the following: The cake was only half baked. It should have been in the oven for another half hour. In the first sentence above, â€Å"half† is an adverb that modifies the verb â€Å"baked† (i.e., the cake was only partially cooked). In the second sentence, â€Å"half† is an adjective that modifies the noun â€Å"hour† (i.e., we’re discussing 50% of an hour). But regardless of how it is used, the word â€Å"half† is always related to the idea of being divided, incomplete, or half of something whole. Halve (Divide Something in Two) â€Å"Halve,† meanwhile, is a verb. It means â€Å"divide into two (roughly) equal parts†: I will halve the cake and give one part to my sister. A similar use is to mean â€Å"reduce by 50%,† such as in the following: The new road halves the time it takes to get home. All verb forms of this term are spelled with a â€Å"v† (i.e., halve, halves, halved, halving). As such, no verb form will be spelled with an â€Å"f.† Should I Use Half or Halve? â€Å"Half† and â€Å"halve† are related terms, but these words also have different uses: Half can be a noun, adjective, or adverb. As a noun, it means â€Å"fifty percent of something† (or a similar amount). As an adjective or adverb, it shows that something is divided, half of a whole, or half complete. Halve is a verb and means â€Å"divide into two equal or roughly equal parts.† One point of confusion is that the plural of â€Å"half† is â€Å"halves,† which is also how we spell the third-person present tense form of the verb â€Å"halve.† But as long as you remember that the singular noun â€Å"half† is always spelled with an â€Å"f,† it should be easy to avoid errors in your writing.