Shiloh

The central idea in "Shiloh" by Bobbie Ann Mason is the disintegration of a marriage, with the conflict arising from Leroy and Norma Jean's inability to adapt to changes and communicate effectively....

In "Shiloh," Bobbie Ann Mason uses literary devices such as symbolism to enhance the narrative. The log cabin symbolizes the deteriorating marriage of Norma Jean and Leroy, reflecting their isolation...

In "Shiloh," Bobbie Ann Mason employs a great many similes, comparisons of two unalike things where one is said to be like or as the other. There are metaphors as well, comparisons of two unalike...

The ending of "Shiloh" leaves Norma Jean's fate ambiguous. Although she gestures in a way that Leroy cannot interpret, there is no explicit indication that she kills herself. The narrative's...

Bobbie Ann Mason's "Shiloh" is set in rural Kentucky and uses a third-person limited point of view. This narrative perspective allows readers to closely follow the protagonist, Leroy Moffitt, and his...

At the end of "Shiloh," Norma Jean tells Leroy she is leaving him, symbolizing her quest for independence. Despite standing on a bluff over the river, it is unlikely she intends to jump, as she has...

Leroy Moffitt, in "Shiloh" by Bobbie Ann Mason, is a truck driver who struggles with his identity and purpose after an injury leaves him unable to work. He becomes increasingly introspective and...

While it might not be clear whether "Shiloh" ends on a hopeful or hopeless note, it's possible to imagine both outcomes, depending on the reader's own interpretation of the text. It is certain that a...

Norma Jean's final statement in "Shiloh" highlights her feelings of entrapment and frustration in her marriage to Leroy and under her mother's constant scrutiny. Her words, expressing a desire to be...

A feminist critical approach to “Shiloh” could address the ways that the characters conform to or challenge gender stereotypes, and it might also comment on the social context of Norma Jean’s...

The deterioration of Leroy and Norma Jean's marriage in "Shiloh" is due to a combination of factors, including Leroy's injury and subsequent unemployment, which shifts the dynamics in their...

In Bobbie Ann Mason's "Shiloh," the location symbolizes a romantic getaway for Mabel Beasley, Leroy's mother-in-law. She suggests a trip there for her daughter and son-in-law, hoping it will help...

In the short story "Shiloh" by Bobbie Ann Mason, Leroy has several initial reasons for wanting to build a log cabin, including providing his wife with a real home, the cheap construction cost, and...