Shiloh Group at eNotes

Norma Jean and Leroy have grown apart during their marriage, and now an...

Tue, 9 Sep 2008 17:41:58 PST

Norma Jean and Leroy have grown apart during their marriage, and now an inability to communicate clearly plagues them. Because of Larry's accident, he is now at home all the time, a fact that bothers his wife. She became accustomed to his long absences as a trucker, and she had begun to develop some independence. Her efforts to improve herself continue as she looks to the future. Leroy, on the other hand, is trapped in the past. He wants to...

What is the problem in Leroy and Norma Jean's marriage in...

Tue, 9 Sep 2008 15:00:41 PST

What is the problem in Leroy and Norma Jean's marriage in "Shiloh"?

Gender roles in this collection and beyond

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 14:10:42 PST

In Bobbie Ann Mason’s short story “Drawing Names,” Pappy’s comment about how “the womenfolks [used to] eat last, in the kitchen” receives the following response from his granddaughter, Iris: “Times are different now, Pappy. We’re just as good as the men.” This exchange touches on a predicament Mason shows over and over in her stories: old rules about gender have been toppled, but rather than this change being absolutely...

At the end of the book, Marty comments “…and I’m thinking how...

Mon, 9 Jul 2007 12:42:20 PST

At the end of the book, Marty comments “…and I’m thinking how nothing is as simple as you guess-not right or wrong, not Judd Travers, not even me or this dog I got here. But the good part is I saved Shiloh and opened my eyes some. Now that ain’t bad for eleven.” I believe that the significance of this statement is simply that Marty has learned that life is not easy. He has, up until this point, observed life as a child;...

At the end of the book, Marty comments “…and I’m thinking how...

Sun, 8 Jul 2007 18:29:21 PST

The final line of Bobbie Ann Mason's much-anthologized short story...

Mon, 2 Jul 2007 12:54:42 PST

The final line of Bobbie Ann Mason's much-anthologized short story "Shiloh," is: ""They were moving like this along the beach, crunching the fragments of skeletons." It is a ending that recalls all the pair have gone through in the past: the grief, the losses, the hurt, the anger. Mickey has left his family and his future with Donna does not seem all that sound, since it has such...

In Ann Mason's short story "Shiloh," what is the significance...

Mon, 2 Jul 2007 10:19:52 PST

In Ann Mason's short story "Shiloh," what is the significance of the last line?

What is the significance of the final line in the story?

Sun, 1 Jul 2007 09:01:18 PST

What is the significance of the final line in the story?