The Widow (Masterplots II: Short Story Series, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Beth Lordan
- First Published: 1987
- Type of Plot: Magical Realism
- Time of Work: The 1990's
- Setting: The American Midwest
- Principal Characters: Warren Boyd, Ann Boyd
- Genres: Short fiction
- Subjects: Husbands, North America or North Americans, United States or Americans, Wives, Twentieth century, Supernatural, Midwest, Farms, farmers, or farming, Death or dying, Widows or widowers, Bereavement or grief, Afterlife, 1990’s
- Locales: Midwest (U.S.)
The Story
“The Widow” is a lyrical exploration of the secret magic of the individual when one is able to see it. The story begins by flatly stating that the morning Warren Boyd dropped dead, he was the only living person on his farm. The second paragraph just as flatly describes Warren's wife, Ann, who has been dead for three years, hovering in the upstairs bedroom watching.
After this somewhat unsettling opening, Beth Lordan's magically realistic fantasy then narrates the life of Warren and Ann, which is quite ordinary, except for those moments when Ann sees Warren...
[The entire page is 1358 words long]
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