Shaving By Leslie Norris Analysis

Identity goes hand in hand with self-growth and self-reflection. In the journey of maturity, there is a consistency of both emotional and physical growth. As a person ages, they are slowly moulded into the person they were always meant to be. Often how a person is raised and the events they experience ties in with the timespan it takes for them to reach that point of self-growth. In the story Shaving written by Leslie Norris, Barry is a seventeen year old boy struggling with the inevitability of his father dying. He is forced to grow up and become the man of the house at a young age in the eventual absence of his father. Leslie Norris shows Barry’s transition from adolescence to manhood using symbolism in Barry’s physical appearance, the seasons

It can also be argued that Barry’s transition from a boy to a young man is no more than an act of guilt that often surfaces in a person when they realize they are about to lose someone. In the story, the author uses symbolism to prove Barry’s development. However it is never explained as to whether or not he has actually experienced self-growth. The symbol of Barry’s physical features show his physical growth and his change from a small boy to larger jock. As opposed to showing that Barry is now becoming a man, his physical changes could be inferring that he plays a lot of sports to keep his mind off of his father’s sickness. The symbolism in the month of April implies rebirth but it can be inferred as rebirth in the sense of the circle of life. It can be interpreted as the darkness of winter, or the worst times of the father’s illness, are now coming to a close as he does not have much time left. The