Understanding the Theme Fiction

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July 5, 2021
Fiction
Understanding the thematic differences between literary pieces is essential for any reader. It allows him to better appreciate and analyze the author's ideas and intent in the usage of various literary elements, stylistic choices, and even characters, among others. This paper will focus on Margaret Atwood's Happy endings and Ursula Le Guin's The Ones Who Walk away from Omelas. On the one hand, Atwood's story focuses on the tale of two lovers portrayed in different ways, some of which suggest the possibility of having a "Happy ending." On the other hand, Ursula's story focuses more on how a utopian society (Omelas) could be built at the expense of others.
Despite the stark differences in the major themes presented in both stories, one notable comparison is the importance and emphasis on the human condition. Particularly, the human condition refers to how individuals treat others based on fundamental fairness and how natural human conditions could influence these tendencies.
On the one hand, the human condition is shown in Atwood's story by emphasizing the influence of 'romance' and 'marriage' between two individuals and the different hardships that emerge from it. As stated earlier, Atwood's story focus on illustrating the different ways that the story between two individuals could end. For instance, it was said in the story that;
Inside John, she thinks, is another John, who is much nicer. This other John will emerge like a butterfly from a cocoon, a Jack from a box, a pit from a prune if the first John is only squeezed enough.
This quote was taken from the instance in the story where Mary cried because of John's actions. Because of her love for John, she was able to endure the hardships of their relationship at the expense of her own happiness (and security). In turn, this shows an almost inescapable human condition that is highly dependent and hopeful on the power of love. We, humans, tend to believe that others could and would change because they love us. Although this is not impossible to happen, this also creates the risk of hoping for something that might not happen, similar t...