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The Theme Of Isolation In The Lamp At Noon

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The Desert of Isolation

In modern day society, technology has often led to the isolation of human contact as well as human relationships. Individuals in various cases have either adapted to this concept of isolation or have not. This can often result in acting irrationally towards various situations. In the short story, “The Lamp at Noon,” the author Sinclair Ross develops the idea of the negative impact of isolation on individuals. The author suggests that isolation can cause an individual to feel emotionally detached and frustrated which may drive them to act irrationally. Isolation is a concept that can be felt in various aspects on an individual's life. The setting of the short story allows the author to present both physical and mental aspects of isolation on the protagonist. He has shown the demanding living conditions that society of the 1930’s has been put through. In this case, the short story shows the hardship farmers of this time have had to face. The farmer's wife Ellen shows the physical and mental conflict she is forced to face with these pressing times for her family. Ellen has been physically isolated from any other human contact specifically based on where she lives. She has left her life in the city to get married to her husband, now facing the consequences of those actions. Ellen has not been properly raised or prepared for the conditions she is presented with. Not only has she no contact with other families or individuals, she has also been isolated from her child. For fear that her child …show more content…

Isolated can then often cause an individual to feel frustrated and act irrationally as a consequence of that frustration. Individuals in society often reach an epiphany to which they realize conflicts cannot be solved. When individuals reach this realization, they often act irrationally in an attempt to defy fate that cannot be

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Fight or Flight Fight or flight; the instantaneous human reaction to any adverse predicament. It is one’s choice to battle or flee that speaks to one’s most deep-rooted fears and desires. In The Lamp at Noon Sinclair Ross, through the relationship of Paul and Ellen, depicts the outcome of these opposing fundamental values when promoted by a destructive environment. Initially, Paul is blindly optimistic to his situation; however, Ellen’s opposing desires to flee while they still can, pressures Ellen to take action, resulting is Paul’s sudden epiphany into the reality of his circumstance.

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Isolation often leads to insanity. Human beings without companionship and love from others are left alone. They get trapped in their own minds, and become a threat to themselves. Remoteness is evident in one of the characters in Ross’ Short story “One’s a Heifer”, where Arthur Vickers becomes a victim of isolation. Desolation is apparent in Ross’s two short stories “The Painted Door” and “One’s A Heifer”.

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In both of his short stories, Ross clearly shows how both of his characters suffer from alienation and loneliness. Particularly, in “ The Painted Door” , Ross shows how Ann is isolated in her marriage, as well as of social events. Ann is a farmer’s wife who lives isolated from civilization because of both the distance between her and her neighbours, as well as the harsh winter weather. Ann is often forced to stay alone, where “ the distant farmstead she could see only served to intensify a sense of isolation” (Ross 289) . This physical separation can be directly linked to social isolation.

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