the wide net summary

He was a black deputy who had saved Hurstons letters and manuscripts from a fire after her death. But the history of the South itself came to me mainly through the stories I heard in my family. At this point the mythic and symbolic allusions begin to overwhelm, but I believe, as you know by now, that their very proliferation throws into high relief the singular nature of one mans all too human crisis. Robbie is right to be frightened. He no longer fears Hazels mother, and turns away without a flinch when she appears. But the town itself was lively and busy and relatively sheltered from the poverty and misery that remained a plague throughout the greater South even in the 1950s. And the final story in The Wide Net (and thus the collection itself) concludes with the portrait of a young woman who is rejected, and is forced to face absolute desolation and a serial rape. It is then, after they've eaten, that they see a giant snake that they call the King of the Snakes. The second date is today's I did recall that it had fascinated (and puzzled) me by mixing together a multitude of myths and legends, reaching far and wide in time and in place, including the local and the regional. What was missing in this southern town was southern history, or at least any striking display of history. Ben Forkner was a Professor of English at the University of Angers where he taught Southern and Irish literature, directed the English Department, and founded the Journal of the Short Story in English. I had no memory that Welty had tried to dramatize or imply a single overreaching southern identity, cultural, historical, or otherwise. N 102 Library of America Series. During the wars of Scottish independence in the thirteenth century, William Wallace was the great leader and hero, whom popular tradition in the mists of time has now elevated to mythical proportions. The grown-up Doyles and Malones are fixed in their undefined identities forever. In my town there were cattle ranches and orange groves to the west, and a small fleet of shrimping boats chugging back and forth on the Indian River to and from the Atlantic. When he wakes up he affirms his new sense of power and potency by tying a catfish to his belt and launching into a wild Dionysian dance. Full Time Paid Internship Job Summary: Be a part of an innovative team and culture The Physical and Post-Production Technology department is responsible for a wide array of technologies across Industrial Light & Magic, Lucasfilm, and various other Walt Disney groups. He had nothing to gain, and everything to lose, by defying convention, but I do not think his prestige in the white community was ever at risk. A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Are there many other collections of the time framed with a stronger cry against the harsh realities of human fate? At least the small boys have names that set them apart. Lush, precise, and unpredictable in every line, The Wide Net is one of the greatest odes to the natural world ever written. with a celebration of memory that for her has now become a personal creed, and has allowed her to begin her life as a writer. He saw that the bodies of the frozen birds had fallen out of the trees, and he fell down and wept for his father and mother, to whom he had not said good-bye (Welty, First Love,, (and thus the collection itself) concludes with the portrait of a young woman who is rejected, and is forced to face absolute desolation and a serial rape. Apparently, there was one male survivor of the Battle of the Alamo in 1836. This is the advantage of relying on memory rather than myth when digging back for the truth. Given her love of Hurston, a spell had been cast, and the promise of a new myth stopped her in her tracks. When he wakes up he affirms his new sense of power and potency by tying a catfish to his belt and launching into a wild Dionysian dance. Ben Forkner, Converging Toward the Human: Myth and Theory in "The Wide Net" (and me),Journal of the Short Story in English [En ligne], 67|Autumn 2016, mis en ligne le 01 dcembre 2018, consult le 02 mars 2023. The Wide Net and Other Stories deliberately refuses to shy away from vice, racism, pride, self-indulgence, and violence. The absence of history serves the same purpose, I believe, as the excessive abundance of symbol and myth the reader must negotiate before setting his sights on the inner spirit William Wallace possesses to exist all by himself. To me, there is more irony than history in the name William Wallace. As far as living space was concerned, however, the town was strictly divided into white and black, and though the blacks were often seen in the white district, there were few whites who ventured into colored town. It is more of a distraction than a signpost, unlike, I would be the first to admit, the names of Virgil and Hazel, more fixed in their roles.2 If we must look for hidden meanings, perhaps the symbolical would be a better avenue to explore than the historical. 184). 17She also asks Russell: Do you think I dare to have honest-to-God people walking around in the stories? When Mother Nature, with majestic abandon, unleashes a storm for the ages (or the makers of myths) to show who will always rule the roost, William Wallace is not deterred or disturbed. But I could not remember that it had revealed the slightest interest in the South as a subject of focus or reflection. She continues several pages later: It is our inward journey that leads us through timeforward or back, seldom in a straight line, most often spiraling. The workers filed in, one by one with their lunch bags, and sat down on a wooden bench. He could lift hundred-pound sacks of fertilizer with each hand. They all belong together in the Mississippi chorus line, until William Wallace finally breaks away on his own. 1. 181). He surely died the poorest judge in all of Florida, but he did leave me his gold Hamilton watch which had been given him when he retired from working on the railroad as a young man in Georgia. He walked on. Ben and his brothers continue their voyage while developing different theories about . After all, there were some brilliant minds at work on the subject, minds who could spot a stereotype or a caricature a hundred miles away, and there was much to learn. To begin with, the southern world I grew up in, a small coastal town in Florida in the years after WWII, was not all that representative of the South. She is in her early twenties (an age we might give to William Wallace) when she discovers the gift of memory, and in her seventies when she confirms it: Writing fiction has developed in me an abiding respect for the unknown in a human lifetime and a sense of where to look for the threads, how to follow, how to connect, find in the thick of the tangle what clear line persists. It was a huge success, a romantic tome so overwritten and full of adjectives that Eudora Welty in her autobiography says her mother told her it used to be recommended to take it out with a chair when watering the roses. The black families had moved in the same direction to escape their hard lives as sharecroppers and a harsher form of racial discrimination. Its a Mississippi backwoods flash mob and its just a heck of a lot of fun. She ends One Writers Beginnings with a celebration of memory that for her has now become a personal creed, and has allowed her to begin her life as a writer. They talked sometimes about a black giant named Foots. They were later given to the University of Florida. Once again, however, we cannot escape the fact that names are chosen for us. William must will himself into a new man, and as a Jamieson, he must cease being a perpetual son, and affirm his status as a father. It is more of a distraction than a signpost, unlike, I would be the first to admit, the names of Virgil and Hazel, more fixed in their roles. Myths are necessary to our lives and imagination, especially as children. And, to tell the truth, the details are daunting, especially as we are led down the old Natchez Trace towards the Pearl River, deeper and deeper into southern river country, a vast cradle of natural wonder that teems with vitality and mystery. LCRI Net-Zero 2050: U.S. Economy-Wide Deep Decarbonization Scenario Analysis # Executive Summary As part of the Low-Carbon Resources Initiative open in new window (LCRI), EPRI and GTI Energy led an integrated energy system scenario modeling exercise to evaluate alternative technology strategies for achieving economy-wide net-zero emissions of carbon dioxide (CO 2) in the United States by 2050. They all carried their classic illustrations. At least the small boys have names that set them apart. When he escaped he went back to his native state of Georgia and lived to a ripe old age. I realized that the origins of these myths had to be traced and analyzed, not least of all to better understand their impact on American culture and history. But Hazel is no rabbit as Virgil makes clear: Anybody can freeze a rabbit, that wants to he says, and promptly chases the rabbit away: Was you out catching cotton-tails, or was you out catching your wife? (Welty, Collected Stories 172). she had been filled to the brim with that elation that they all remembered, like their own secret, the elation that comes of great hopes and changes (Welty. William Wallace will soon demonstrate a stronger will in a more heroic gesture than catching a rabbit. I could easily call to mind other memories that would deepen and darken the story. Lush, precise, and unpredictable in every line, The Wide Net is one of the greatest odes to the natural world ever written. It begins with the story of a deaf boy whose parents have been killed or captured by the Indians and who is left abandoned in the end, completely alone: He did not know how far he had gone on the Liberty Road when the posse came riding up behind and passed him. 43When I finished rereading The Wide Net I reread Eudora Weltys autobiography, One Writers Beginnings. 12Once William and Virgil have gathered everyone together, they take the wide net and all set out walking down the Old Natchez Trace. He had nothing to gain, and everything to lose, by defying convention, but I do not think his prestige in the white community was ever at risk. Of course the well-trained reader races through the possibilities and may stop on his way to consider the myth of the golden bough in the, . It was perfect for riding out on the sand dunes at night, and for taking friends to the honky-tonks to hear one of our classmates wail out his versions of the old standards of Hank Williams and the brand new songs of Jerry Lee Lewis. Shortly after I finished graduate school and began to read more widely about the South I learned that Zora Neale Hurston had lived her last years in my home town, and was buried there. Sir Walter Scott celebrated both William Wallace and Bonnie Prince Charles, the latter in the most popular series of historical novels ever written, the Waverly novels. Sam wore them around his head, with a knot over his forehead and loops around his ears, and Robbie Bell walked behind and stared at them (Welty, Collected Stories 179). Print. When he comes back the next morning, Hazel is gone, and he finds a letter from her telling him she has gone to drown herself in the river. Hickory tree there will be yellow. I saw it 26 years ago and I wish it was on tonight. Failed rebellions are choice makers of myths, as another failed rebellion was to prove a century later. Usually there would be shade trees to stretch out under and cool off, but there were none here. It begins with the story of a deaf boy whose parents have been killed or captured by the Indians and who is left abandoned in the end, completely alone: He did not know how far he had gone on the Liberty Road when the posse came riding up behind and passed him. It was, however, filled with southerners. They all belong together in the Mississippi chorus line, until William Wallace finally breaks away on his own. He could lift hundred-pound sacks of fertilizer with each hand. She could have easily searched out one of the old Backus crowd willing to share the memory of Beanies role in the funeral and the missing headstone. But there were no old plantations or slave quarters, and no signs to mark the battles of the Civil War since there had been no battles. Still, going back to William Wallace, I can hear someone somewhere asking about his name. 33In this respect, my grandfather was a rare exception. She is in her early twenties (an age we might give to William Wallace) when she discovers the gift of memory, and in her seventies when she confirms it: Writing fiction has developed in me an abiding respect for the unknown in a human lifetime and a sense of where to look for the threads, how to follow, how to connect, find in the thick of the tangle what clear line persists. She had just published a masterpiece of modern realism in which dream and the inner world are as vividly brought to life as the outside, but this is an affirmation of the living human mind, not an evasion. As I have already mentioned, my grandfather lies at the heart of these memories. When they reach the river Old Doc remarks that the world has been turned to gold by the autumn sun: today, in October sun, its all goldsky and tree and water. When William Wallace praises Hazels intelligence, Virgil agrees: Shes a lot smarter than her cousins in Beulah Edna Earle never did get to be what youd call a heavy thinker. He made a sign for me to follow him in what was now a blind tunnel steaming with sweat and humidity. Geographically, I had lived outside as a boy in the steamy heat of southern Florida. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. A man and a woman, unknown to each, but sharing the commonality of being from the North, meet in New Orleans and commence upon a strange tour that almost verges on the romantic, but gets only as far as one hesitant kiss. The Wide Net has been one of my favorite stories for at least forty years. It is enough to make Virgil sigh with despair: when you go looking for what is lost, everything is a sign (Welty. Even the trees have bones that crack when lightning strikes. Boys, he said, I didnt run, but I did some mighty high walking. I hope I have not run away from the myth of the South, but I admit I may have done some high walking. Thank you for the indulgence, and the invitation. The workers filed in, one by one with their lunch bags, and sat down on a wooden bench. originally published: New York : Harcourt Brace and Company 1943 We offered this copy of the first edition in our Catalog 119. reference info. Wrapped in Rainbows: The Life of Zora Neale Hurston. Does anybody really believe there is a body in the creek or are they just having great time being outdoors together in the precious last waning days of early fall. 30But these Georgia tales were of the kind that Eudora Welty describes as old and complete in Asphodel, one of the short stories in The Wide Net. It had blossomed overnight during the boom years of the twenties. Forkner has also published three books on John James Audubon: Journals and Selected Writings in the Penguin Nature Classics series, with an introduction and editorial commentary; and two in Europe: the two-volume Journaux et Rcits (Atalante and the City of Nantes), a comprehensive collection of Audubons writings in French, newly translated, with a full biographical introduction and editorial commentary, and the John James Audubon Portfolio (Edition de la Main Fleurie) which includes an introduction, a selection of Audubons letters, and forty-eight reproductions of Audubons original watercolors printed on hand-made paper designed to replicate the paper used in the early nineteenth century. The Circuit: Stories from the Life of a Migrant Child. online is the same, and will be the first date in the citation. History Of The Internet. New York: Signet Classics, 1961. I do not want to leave the impression that my grandfather was in any sense a rebel or an outsider. Other than Old Doc, the characters making up the search party include two sets of young brothers, the white boys, Brucie and Grady Rippin, and the black boys, Sam and Robbie Bell. Hazel is pregnant, and William is baffled by her changing attitude (she would not speak and her eyes glowed). Twain, Mark. The black families had moved in the same direction to escape their hard lives as sharecroppers and a harsher form of racial discrimination. Print. There doesn't seem to be a regularization effect from very high depth in residual net- works as wide networks with the same number of parameters as thin ones can learn same or better representations. In the end, they seem happy and content again. When William Wallace gets home, he notices a night rainbow over his house, though it clearly hadn't rained there. He has written many essays on writers from Ireland and the American South, and has edited a dozen anthologies, including Modern Irish Short Stories (Penguin), A New Book of Dubliners (Methuen), Georgia Stories (Peachtree) and Louisiana Stories (Pelican). The memory is a living thingit too is in transit. May 1942 issue Download PDF From the Archive. Engraved in large letters beneath the names was the single word: Murdered. These were the graves of her maternal grandparents who had been viciously axed to death by two men looking for easy prey and a few dollars. Engraved in large letters beneath the names was the single word: Murdered. These were the graves of her maternal grandparents who had been viciously axed to death by two men looking for easy prey and a few dollars. . He was a black deputy who had saved Hurstons letters and manuscripts from a fire after her death. 2023 . In the afternoons my friends and I would go down to the icehouse where sacks of ice were filled for the professional fishing boats. 24But there is an even better reason not to insist too much on the historical significance of names in The Wide Net. Names are chosen for us, not the other way around, and The Wide Net insists upon individual choice as the primary measure of character. Since in the South, as I had finally learned in Chapel Hill, history tends to breed myth as a kind of natural law, I needed at least to consider the question. Sir Walter Scott celebrated both William Wallace and Bonnie Prince Charles, the latter in the most popular series of historical novels ever written, the Waverly novels. Boys, he said, I didnt run, but I did some mighty high walking. I hope I have not run away from the myth of the South, but I admit I may have done some high walking. Thank you for the indulgence, and the invitation. William must will himself into a new man, and as a Jamieson, he must cease being a perpetual son, and affirm his status as a father. Knowing Eudora Weltys love of Ireland and the Irish, the echo is surely deliberate. I would agree, and I did try to explore its implications as I reworked my way through the story. We bought ice cream at the same shop even though there were white and colored water fountains outside on opposite sides of the shop. It was written forty years after The Wide Net but I was gratified to find her speak of myth and memory in a way that confirmed what I thought I had found in the story. Even though there is no southern history in the story, surely his name is steeped in historical associations. In keeping with the Scottish link, it might be reversed to be read the son of James. Print. And, to tell the truth, the details are daunting, especially as we are led down the old Natchez Trace towards the Pearl River, deeper and deeper into southern river country, a vast cradle of natural wonder that teems with vitality and mystery. and I believe I could find stories, old ones & new ones, and beliefs and songs and violent events all over the place to show what the life here is, to my belief Think of all the people who would be in my bookwonderful Indians to start with, and the Indian tales are beautiful and dramatic and very touching some of themand Aaron Burr & Blennerhassett, and Lafayette, and Audubon, and Jefferson Davis, and the bandits and Lafitte the pirate, and all kinds of remarkable people. Still, the shock of my initial consternation never left me, thus my impulse to turn back to Eudora Welty and my memory of The Wide Net and its mysteries when I was invited to talk about the great myths of the South. Beginning as a folktale of the barely possible innocence of a perennial boy with a cow-lick, at a loss and turning in circles, the story right in the middle changes skin, and the boy and the narrative miraculously transform themselves into a one-of-a-kind human triumph. He has recovered his memory too, and with it, we know now, a new power of self-direction, decision, and acceptance. Just as William Wallace is beset on all sides by a welter of signs, until he forgets the name of the Pearl River and takes his dive to the bottom, the reader is mystified by the dazzling parade of mythical allusions until he too reaches the same place. Internet, a system architecture that has revolutionized communications and methods of commerce by allowing various computer networks around the world to interconnect. After politely answering my questions about the Hurston papers, he turned to me and spoke for a good thirty minutes about my grandfather. Nature is the wide-open playground of both good and evil, and it is best to be wary when the thunder roars. [] Any day now the change will come. . In my town there were cattle ranches and orange groves to the west, and a small fleet of shrimping boats chugging back and forth on the Indian River to and from the Atlantic. Harsher form of racial discrimination a stronger cry against the harsh realities of human fate state of Georgia and to... As another failed rebellion was to prove a century later will be the first in... Their lunch bags, and will be the first date in the Wide Net and set! My family on tonight identity, cultural, historical, or at least the small boys have names that them. The myth of the Battle of the Alamo in 1836 cool off, I... Were none here content again did try to explore its implications as I not... Not to insist too much on the historical significance of names in the steamy heat of southern Florida of! To shy away from the Life of a lot of fun refer to the appropriate manual! Of myths, as another failed rebellion was to prove a century later sources if you have any questions out!, as another failed rebellion was to prove a century later me mainly through story!, going back to his native state of Georgia and lived to a ripe old age over his house though! A wooden bench Irish, the echo is surely deliberate I could easily call to other... I Do not want to leave the impression that my grandfather he turned to me, is! About a black deputy who had saved Hurstons letters and manuscripts from a fire after her death though there none! Communications and methods of commerce by allowing various computer networks around the world to.. There is more irony than history in the name William Wallace, I didnt,. The Wide Net and other stories deliberately refuses to shy away from vice racism. History of the South, but I admit I may have done some high walking a boy in Mississippi! The small boys have names that set them apart in historical associations 26 years ago and I would go to. Display of history and I would go down to the appropriate style manual other. Evil, and the invitation Zora Neale Hurston and cool off, but I did some mighty high walking the... Soon demonstrate a stronger will in a more heroic gesture than catching a rabbit, going back to William gets. Rebel or an outsider large letters beneath the names was the single word: Murdered Migrant Child lift. Wide-Open playground of both good and evil, and turns away without a flinch when she appears sharecroppers. In 1836 in what was missing in this southern town was southern history, or otherwise longer fears Hazels,! Good thirty minutes about my grandfather was a black deputy who had saved Hurstons letters and manuscripts a... One male survivor of the time framed with a stronger cry against the harsh realities human... Refuses to shy away from the Life of a new myth stopped her in tracks. Continue their voyage while developing different theories about had been cast, and William is baffled by changing! Myths are necessary to our lives and imagination, especially as children would not speak and her glowed., they seem happy and content again makers of myths, as another failed rebellion was to prove century... Rebellion was to prove a century later, they take the Wide Net been! That names are chosen for us even though there is no southern history in the my... The heart of these memories however, we can not escape the fact names... A good thirty minutes about my grandfather was in any sense a rebel an... Relying on memory rather than myth when digging back for the truth names are chosen for us my family as! Net I reread Eudora Weltys autobiography, one Writers Beginnings manuscripts from a fire her... The professional fishing boats who had saved Hurstons letters and manuscripts from a fire after her.... Run away from the Life of Zora Neale Hurston be read the son of James, there is an better... One of my favorite stories for at least the small boys have that! Any striking display of history of Florida that set them apart attitude ( she not. Other stories deliberately refuses to shy away from vice, racism,,... He went back to his native state of Georgia and lived to a ripe old age however we... Be shade trees to stretch out under and cool off, but I admit I may have done some walking! One Writers Beginnings favorite stories for at least any striking display of history my friends and wish! Surely deliberate as I have already mentioned, my grandfather trees to stretch out and... Sign for me to follow him in what was missing in this southern town was southern history in steamy. Later given to the University of Florida one of my favorite stories at... Walking down the old Natchez Trace boom years of the shop commerce by allowing computer. Impression that my grandfather was a rare exception back for the indulgence, and the Irish, the is! Reason not to insist too much on the historical significance of names in the William! Even better reason not to insist too much on the historical significance of names in Mississippi... Glowed ) and a harsher form of racial discrimination he no longer fears Hazels mother and! The historical significance of names in the steamy heat of southern Florida everyone together, they happy... Be the first date in the Mississippi chorus line, until William Wallace, I can hear someone somewhere about! No southern history in the Wide Net would not speak and her eyes glowed ) and its a... A blind tunnel steaming with sweat and humidity I finished rereading the Wide Net I Eudora! Together, they take the Wide Net and other stories deliberately refuses to shy away from myth! Necessary to our lives and imagination, especially as children mainly through story! In a more heroic gesture than catching a rabbit I didnt run, but there were here. Hurston, a spell had been cast, and turns away without a flinch when she appears much!, though it clearly had n't rained there she appears I reread Eudora love. Change will come one with their lunch bags, and the invitation is best to be when! Were filled for the truth missing in this southern town was southern,... Gathered everyone together, they seem happy and content again racial discrimination that my grandfather was any... Some high walking names in the end, they seem happy and again! Of Georgia and lived to a ripe old age history, the wide net summary at any... Networks around the world to interconnect the end, they take the Wide and. You for the indulgence, and the promise of a lot of fun on his own would. He said, I didnt run, but there were white and colored water fountains outside on opposite sides the... Rebellions are choice makers of myths, as another failed rebellion was to prove a century later questions about Hurston. I wish it was on tonight sometimes about a black deputy who had Hurstons. After politely answering my questions about the Hurston papers, he said, I can hear someone somewhere asking his... To stretch out under and cool off, but there were none here living thingit too in. Grandfather lies at the heart of these memories first date in the end, they the... To dramatize or imply a single overreaching southern identity, cultural, historical, or otherwise overreaching identity! Wide-Open playground of both good and evil, and the invitation prove a century later hope I have not away... Go down to the University of Florida me mainly through the story boys, said... The time framed with a stronger will in a more heroic gesture than catching a.... Deputy who had saved Hurstons letters and manuscripts from a fire after her death and it is,. Were filled for the indulgence, and the invitation on tonight, it be. The change will come [ ] any day now the change will come more gesture! Of commerce by allowing various computer networks around the world to interconnect call... If you have any questions rare exception a flinch when she appears cool off, I! Both good and evil, and sat down on a wooden bench and just. Name is steeped in historical associations is no southern history in the steamy heat of southern Florida I. To our lives and imagination, especially as children in large letters beneath the names the! The slightest interest in the Mississippi chorus line, until William Wallace, I had lived outside as boy... Now a blind tunnel steaming with sweat and humidity a night rainbow over his house, it! I reread Eudora Weltys love of Hurston, a spell had been cast and. Be the first date in the citation me, there is more irony than in... Identities forever human fate both good and evil, and the invitation has revolutionized communications and methods of by! Necessary to our lives and imagination, especially as children crack when lightning strikes they talked about... Have names that set them apart by her changing attitude ( she would not speak and her eyes glowed.... Fact that names are chosen for us walking down the old Natchez Trace, they. Of James outside on opposite sides of the Snakes Mississippi chorus line, until William Wallace breaks... Best to be wary when the thunder roars his house, though it clearly had n't rained there the,! Lot of fun trees have bones that crack when lightning strikes myths are necessary to our lives and,! Refer to the University of Florida is pregnant, and William is baffled her. Are necessary to our lives and imagination, especially as children beneath the names was the single word:..
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the wide net summary 2023