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Raymond Carver The Bath

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1. What is the title of the text and what is the text about? The title of the story is "The Bath" and it was written by Raymond Carver. The story is about a family that is in deep distress following a car accident involving eight year old Scotty and how the family is managing to work through the accident and resulting injury. 2. What is the author’s view? How do I know? The author presents a view about the challenges of managing real life throughout a crisis. The author shows a number of normal human responses to crisis, but shows these in an extreme form. “The Bath,” shows the conflict that arises in people who are under significant stress and the battle that exists for people in trying to maintain some semblance of reality when reality seems to be falling apart. …show more content…

What is the evidence presented by the author to support ideas? A number of examples are provided in the story to support the view that crisis changes human behavior from the man in khaki and a baseball hat who has completely sunk into his own reality (Carver, 1989) to the father for whom “fear made him want a bath.” (Carver, 1989) Another example, of this is the struggle of Ann. While her husband continues to encourage her to go home and take some time away, it is only when it occurs to Ann that Scotty may wake up if she leaves. (Carver, 1989) This is not a rationale viewpoint, however it seems quite natural in the context of the story and seems like a normal understanding to have come to under the circumstances. 4. Is the evidence valid? How do I know? The evidence is valid within the context of the story. The story created a unique world and this world exists solely within the world of Ann and her husband. The author also creates a world within the hospital that is inhabited by people who are also in distress and grieving. Due to the powerful world that is created the reader appreciates and understands that the evidence is real for those

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