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What are some possible themes in "Runaway"?
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Possible themes in "Runaway" include the struggle with truth, as Carla fails to recognize her abusive relationship with Clark, and the complexity of freedom and happiness, as illustrated by Sylvia's realization that they are not inherently linked. The story also explores the theme of running away, both physically and emotionally, as Carla and Sylvia each flee aspects of their lives, and Flora, the goat, symbolizes the consequences of failing to confront harsh realities.
One theme present in Alice Munro's "Runaway" is truth. Carla, the protagonist of the story, refuses to face the truth regarding the abuse she faces at the hands of her husband, Clark. While it is apparent to others, especially Sylvia, Carla refuses to truly accept the fact that Clark is not good for her. At one point, Sylvia convinces Carla to run away from Clark, and yet she calls him to come and pick her up.
The theme of truth lies in Carla's inability to see the same truth that those around her see. Instead, she has created her own truth about the life and world she exists within. Her truth is very different from the truths of others.
One could also argue that strength is a theme. Carla fails to possess the strength to leave Clark, although she knows she should. Although Carla constantly feels like...
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she should take a stand against Clark, she simply does not possess the internal strength to do so.
An additional theme you might like to consider is the complex relationship between freedom and happiness. Not unreasonably, Sylvia assumes that they're intimately connected. When Carla unaccountably goes back to her abusive husband, however, Sylvia comes to realize that this is most certainly not the case. Carla was certainly free when she hopped on board a bus bound for Toronto, but she was never happy. It turns out that humans, no less than goats, are unpredictable—certainly a good deal more so than Sylvia had thought.
It would seem that freedom only truly equates with happiness in the case of those individuals mature enough to handle freedom. It's abundantly clear to Sylvia that Carla doesn't fall into this category. For someone like Carla, freedom is scary and dangerous and as such can never truly be a source of lasting happiness, hence her seemingly incomprehensible decision to return home to an abusive relationship.
I think that one of the central themes to this excellent story is actually indicated in its title, as it points out the various ways that we all run away from aspects of our life. Let us remember the ways that this is shown through the three characters who "run away" in the tale. Carla runs away from her abusive husband, Clark, and her neighbour, Sylvia, helps act as a catalyst for this running away. Sylvia herself runs away later on in the story when Carla returns to Clark, rejecting her formerly strong relationship with Carla. Finally, there is also Flora, Carla's pet goat, who runs away, then returns in time to save Carla from being beaten by her husband, only to disappear again. The way in which Flora's bones are found later on acts as a constant threat to the kind of fate that Carla could meet if she does not accept Clark's abuse in her life. Finally, the biggest act of running away in this story comes at the end, when Carla decides to flee the truth as she forgives her husband from all wrong doing and then settles down to live a life filled with violence in an attempt to escape the same fate that Flora met. Running away is something that dominates the thoughts and minds of the two major female characters, and Munro shows in this story that sometimes the biggest acts of running away do not necessarily involve motion.