The Burning House (Masterplots II: Women’s Literature Series)
At a glance:
- Author: Ann Beattie
- First Published: 1979
- Type of Work: Short stories
- Genres: Psychological fiction, Social realism, Short fiction, Domestic realism
- Subjects: 1970’s, Self-discovery, Parents and children, Homosexuality or homosexuals, Sex or sexuality, Marriage, Alienation, Friendship, Women’s issues, Adultery, Drugs, Ethics, Popular culture, Masks, Gossip, Middle age, Marijuana
- Locales: Connecticut
Form and Content
Of the sixteen stories in Ann Beattie’s short-story collection The Burning House, twelve are rendered in the present tense by a first-person narrator. The present tense remains intact even when past events are being recounted; there is a regular movement between an immediate present and a past made present. The effect of this technical choice is to impart great immediacy to the conflict in each story. Moreover, the narrator is always an interested rather than a neutral party, which further heightens the pressure of the conflict and the search for its...
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See Also:
Ann Beattie (Cyclopedia of World Authors)Ann Beattie (Short Fiction)Ann Beattie (Long Fiction)Ann Beattie (Identities and Issues)Theory of Short Fiction (Topical Overview--Short Fiction)
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