In the short story, “A Family Supper,” Kazuo Ishiguro depicts a family of three reuniting after the death of their mother, and having dinner together. Ishiguro creates an atmosphere of suspense in the short story, which throws doubt on the father of the family. Ishiguro uses imagery, dialogue, and symbolism to build suspense in the short story.
Kazuo Ishiguro begins by introducing the fugu fish to the short story, when he explains the death of the narrator’s mother. The fugu fish contains poisonous glands and, “Any clumsiness will result in the poison leaking into the veins,” and the only way to tell is by coating it, therefore the fish symbolizes risk and death. Ishiguro uses the symbolism of the fugu fish, as the family sits down to eat dinner. He is purposely vague as the father only mentions that they will eat with fish, but he does not elaborate on what type of fish. This makes the reader uncertain of the father’s motives, and wonder if the father could commit murder-suicide like his friend Watanabe.
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The narrator’s father is described as, “A formidable looking man with a large stony jaw and furious black eyebrows,” which reveals he is a serious character. His facial expression doesn’t reveal what he is feeling over his wife’s death, so the reader doesn’t know the father’s motives. Ishiguro builds suspense when he describes how, “One side of his face had fallen into shadow,” giving the father a sinister look as he offered the fish to his son. The fish’s symbolism and the father’s hidden facial features builds suspense and makes the reader question the father’s