Wednesday, April 13, 2011
The Used-Boy Raisers
I love the way that Paley plays with the names in this story. The two men in this story have been named Livid and Pallid. The names immediately show that the men are completely different, yet they have lived the same family life. The title itself, "The Used-Boy Raisers," confused me until I got to the end. There is an implication that there's something wrong with these boys because they are "used," and it is natural to think that something that is new is better than used. There's nothing actually wrong with the boys. They are just average boys. The story is about the two men that are a part of these boys lives. It seems as though it should be an awkward situation, but for this family it isn't. It is awkwardly natural for this family. These boys have two dads and these men accept their fate sharing these boys and, in a way, their mother as well.
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Read The Used-Boy Raisers for first time this morning. Enjoyed it. The Norton Anthology of Short Fiction asks:
ReplyDelete1. Is Faith better matched with her present husband than with her former one? If not, what does this seem to say about the source of her marital problems?
If you can help me answer this I'll follow up with Norton's questions 2-6, one at a time. I can never answer Norton's questions. But I love a good short story.
I did notice that Livid, who has not seen his kids in a year, has seen enough of them already! And neither of these guys is interested in taking up Faith's hint that the boys might need their attention. When she asks the boys to see their real father one boy selects one, the other boy the other---as if neither father is real when he shows such little interest in the boys.