Nicholas Alfaro
Mr. T
September 10, 2014
Floating
Floating; a story creatively riddled with twists, turns, and “the middle”. The story floating consisting of no more than 1,000 words teaches the narrator and us more about life after death than any “catholic school” ever has. A story so beautifully driven by death and decision that it could trick the common man into embracing the paradox of life after life.
Upon beginning the story, strange signs immediately grasp the reader. An example as early as the first line…“ In the morning I levitated for the first time” Karen Brennan (author of Floating), pulls us into the realities of a middle aged deceased women. We know she is deceased because of a surplus amount of otherworldly buzz words. She references “archangel” within the second paragraph and gives many more clues throughout. Our narrator appears to be as confused as the readers at first. She doesn’t understand how she has obtained this “power” of flying, if you will. That, precisely is what the author wanted the reader to do, help our character escape…show more content… She is tempted by the “sexual attractiveness” of the devil. She is somewhat stuck in the past “thinking back on my life as I float through these rooms…," but most importantly she is being guided by her “husband” out of the middle and into the promised land, so to speak. Our narrator has the fascination of a 4 year old in a new environment, in a starstruck sense. She wonders about this foreign territory completely intrigued by every little detail. Her husband acts as her care taker, however he never reaches out to grasp her attention. He simply waits patiently for her to seek his knowledge. For example, the women is floating about the house when her husband tries to refocus her priorities “Come down now, it’s six o'clock” You see he is real subtle in his actions, but that type of discipline is exactly what she needs in order to be set