Death of a Traveling Salesman (Masterplots II: Short Story Series, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Eudora Welty
- First Published: 1936
- Type of Plot: Psychological
- Time of Work: The 1930's
- Setting: Rural Mississippi
- Principal Characters: R. J. Bowman, Sonny, A countrywoman
- Genres: Psychological fiction, Short fiction
- Subjects: Psychology or psychologists, Rural or country life, Death or dying, Sick persons
- Locales: Mississippi
The Story
The crucial action of “Death of a Traveling Salesman” takes place in the mind of the protagonist, a shoe company representative, in the last hours of his life. Feverish and weak, R. J. Bowman has sought shelter in the home of a simple country couple. His initial misperceptions about them eventually give way to a recognition that they possess some vital knowledge about life, knowledge that he has been denied.
Bowman has been a traveling salesperson for fourteen years, living alone in hotels as he drives from one city to the next with his sample case of...
[The entire page is 1408 words long]
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