Errand | Essays and Criticism

  • Concepts of Originality and Literature

    Semansky is an instructor of English literature and composition and writes regularly on American literature and culture. In this essay, he explores how Carver’s short story relates to the concepts of originality and literature.

  • A Stylistic Tribute to Chekhov

    Walker teaches courses in poetry and fiction at the University of Washington. In the following essay, he considers Carver’s short story as a stylistic tribute to Chekhov.

  • Mastery and Continued Growth: Where I'm Calling From

    In the following essay excerpt, Campbell analyzes how "Errand" both departs from and retains elements of Carver's other fiction.

  • Raymond Carver: Errand

    In the following essay, Meyer presents an overview of "Errand."

  • Reality in the Modern Short Story

    In the following essay excerpt, May explains how Carver shows ‘‘that complex human meaning can be communicated by the simplest of gestures and the most trivial of objects.’’