Mabel, W. Somerset Maugham
At a club in a village on his way to Pagan, the narrator
Is told the story of George, a local man. George had met
Mabel in England and they had agreed to marry in six
Months; but difficulties had made it seven years. On the
Day she was coming, George felt that he couldn’t marry
A woman he practically didn’t remember, so he wrote a
Letter for her and left. His escape led him across Asia,
But wherever he arrived there was news that Mabel was
Following him. When he finally felt safe, Mabel arrived
And said how relieved she was to see he had not changed,
As it would have otherwise been difficult to tell him
She would not marry him. After five minutes they were
Married. Now Mabel is on a trip and George misses her.
The Barber’s Uncle, William Saroyan
A boy of eleven decides to have his hair cut when a bird
Tries to nest in it. The barber, a wise man who shares the
Boy’s love for the contemplation of the paradoxical nature
Of the world and man, tells him the story of his uncle
Misak. Misak lived on fighting people until he
lost his
Strength and, at the age of forty, poor and lonely, travelled
The world and joined a touring show in which he put his
Head in a tiger’s mouth. Eventually, the tiger bit his head
Off. The boy leaves the barber’s shop with a bad haircut
And a deep reflection on the loneliness of man and the
Contradictory nature of reality.
The Rocking-Horse Winner, D.H. Lawrence
Paul, a little boy, hears from his mother that they are an
Unlucky family. In his house, he permanently hears the
Echo of the need for more money. He decides that he
Won’t be unlucky and asks his rocking-horse about the
Winners in horse races, which he learns about from the
Gardener – a secret he shares with his uncle. Paul gathers a
Large amount of money for his mother, but it doesn’t seem
To be enough, and getting more becomes an obsession that
Leads him to a brain fever that eventually kills him. His
Mother is left with 80,000 pounds and no son.
Springtime on the Menu, O. Henry
Sarah, a copy-typist, types the menus for a restaurant in
Exchange for daily meals. Spring has come, which she has
Been waiting because Walter, a young farmer she met the
Summer before, promised her they would marry when
It came. But the weather is still cold, and Walter has not
Written in two weeks. Sarah types the menus daydreaming
Of a day on the farm, when Walter put dandelions on
Her hair. She cries as she sees a dish of dandelions on the
Menu, and she mistypes its name: ‘Dearest Walter with
Hard-boiled egg’. This mistake, together with a problem in
Her W key, enables Walter to find her when he goes to the
Restaurant by chance. She had moved and Walter had not
Been able to find her
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