Trick Ending Essay (Subverted Ending)
Authors Alice Walker, Maya Angelou, and Stephen Crane are among the most noticeable book writers of the last century. Alice Walker’s book “Everyday use” is a 20th-century story that shows the relationship between the rural and urban society. On the other hand, Maya Angelou uses her book ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” to show the onset of her freedom from herself. Stephen Crane also uses his story, “The Open Boat,” as a reference to American culture. These authors have an innate ability to break their plot by creating a twist to their narrative, a possible reason why their books are so outstanding. The trick ending is essential to the authors because it helps them break the monotony of the narrative by employing a surprise element, expanding imagination, inspiring curiosity, and improve both writer’s and readers’ coordination. This paper will, therefore, discuss the above narratives and how their authors have put in to effect subverted ending in the stories.
The first story, by Alice Walker, takes me to a different set of worlds where the protagonist has flaws and insecurities. The book gave me the feels because it reflected somethings that are frequently occurring in our societies. The story was alluring and immersive. At times I wanted to protect Maggie from her fears and insecurities and assure her that everything would be okay and that she should look at her past experiences as part of something even better. I wanted to guard her against her selfish sister’s antics, and at times even jeer at her sister. At first, I thought that her mother did not value her enough, depending on the description she wrote of her (Walker 316). Her description of Maggie made me believe that she only had an eye for Dee because of her eloquence. However, the author towards the created a subverted ending, which made readers aware that she viewed whatever Dee did as satire. Her bond with Maggie at the end was unbreakable.
Maya Angelou, in her story, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” takes me to another world and lets me experience her past life. She creates a connection between the store and me, and for a moment, I could feel its impulse through her description of it. At times, I could picture myself in Maya’s shoes when she was ten. I could feel her pain and the cause of her withdrawal from society. I could go through her traumatic experience first-hand. Through her chronology, the author created a deep sense of involvement that had me immersed in the story. The author makes us believe that Mrs. Flowers voluntarily chose to counsel Maya on her own will (Angelou). She even quotes Mrs. Flowers, saying that she intended to talk to Maya for a long time, but towards the end, she carefully twists her story and informs the readers that Maya’s grandmother could have asked Mrs. Flowers to give Maya a pep talk (Angelou). The ending inevitably leaves us with a question of “what next?”
The Open Boat by Stephen Crane was the perfect book to take me into the sea. I longed for the long waves, and maybe even becoming a captain myself. I always thought I would love the thrill of crashing waves and the danger of the unwelcome sea. Reading the book, I became its character. I lived the voyagers’ life, felt their fear and anger, and even perceived everything the book revealed. Towards the end, I could feel the captain’s life coming to an end under the crashing waves. The wind whispering about death caused a massive emotional reaction. However, in the end, the book takes a spinning end, and finally, the isolation I felt from the real world soon ended. The crew was closer to the shore than before and did not anticipate the death of Billie, the oiler, who was the strongest in the boat. (Crane 15). His natural strength and hard work had made him the most reserved man to survive.
The focus on culture, political and social-economic aspects of the American people has been a subject of concern in American literal texts. It is though that generational gaps have led to the erosion of these cultures, so American authors use narratives to communicate on these issues. This concern does not lie with the current generations, but it is also subject to many foregone and incoming generations. The authors Maya Angelou, Alice Walker, and Stephen Crane are some of the authors that use devices to expose the culture in America. Trick ending used in their stories is crucial in showing culture change in every story setup. First, the trick ending used shows the value of culture. For example, Alice Walker valued the cultural aspects portrayed by quilts. She even referred them as generational quilts that she had been keeping for her daughter, Maggie (Walker 320). Furthermore, she satirically stared at Dee when she said that she would hang the Quilts as a display. Also, teaching Maggie to make her quilts portrays the importance of maintaining culture in the generations to come. Also, Maya Angelou, in her story, shows the importance of passing information between different generations. Angelou even describes this as the “collective wisdom of generations.” The plot twist at the end shows that even Maya’s momma understood the importance of passing knowledge in generations when she secretly asked Mrs. Flowers to counsel Maya. Finally, people in the Open Boat story have been portrayed as voyagers. Also, the unexpected death of Billie, the oiler, showed that the people buried their people after death. The narrator says that the “… land’s welcome for it could be the different and silent of the grave” (Crane 15). The burial showed that it is the way people conduct a proper burial for the dead. Through burial, people showed respect for the dead. Also, it was a cultural way of allowing the dead to rest in peace.
Works Cited
Angelou, Maya. I know why the caged bird sings. Bantam, 1997.
Crane, Stephen. The Open Boat: And Other Tales of Adventure. Doubleday & McClure Company, 1954.
Walker, Alice. Everyday use. Rutgers University Press, 2004.