The short story, “Pagan
Night,” definitely evokes a lot of different emotions and feeling when it’s
being read. There are many gaps and textual clues throughout this story that
need to be filled in by the reader. Luckily, the narrator tends to make this
process a little easer. An example of a gap that I filled in is when the story
mentions that Dalton believes that is better to blend in, and wearing a
baseball cap makes him feel closer to god. I filled in this gap as a sign that
Daltons drug use has increased since the birth of the baby. He is becoming
paranoid and delusional. This too could be an example of reception theory. I
believe that most people would agree that wearing a baseball cap does not make
you closer to god, and to think so is a detachment from reality. This is also
colored with my own life experience, I have and do know many addicts, some in
recovery and some not. There are also many textual clues to produce the ideal
reader. Throughout the story examples of the bohemian lifestyle are brought up
repeatedly. An example of this is when there is worry about not having enough
food to eat, Dalton suggests that he’ll shoot a crow for the family. I can’t
help but feel sympathy for the Sunny, I feel as if she’s in over her head.
Originally she wanted this sex, drugs and rock n’ roll lifestyle but I feel
like she now wants out. Conversely, I feel like Dalton is a die hard, I feel
like he’s in it for the long haul so to speak. At least this is the impression
I got from the text using the reception theory method.
Don,
ReplyDeleteI think your response is very insightful. I honestly hadn't given much thought to the baseball cap or whether Dalton would/could ever change. Focusing on the less likely/expected character can often produce really interesting readers though. Perhaps Dalton's commitment to his lifestyle (and I think you're right about that -- he's not likely to decide to change his lifestyle, or, perhaps more importantly, the worldview it appears he holds) is meant to draw attention to Sunny's one foot in, one foot out adherence to both partyland and motherhood. This, of course, would make Dalton a foil to Sunny.