In class, we discussed how good feature stories between with a topic,(what the story is about) but branch out to contain a theme (what the story is really about). In "When Animals Attack," Bruce Grierson tells the tale of a family's fight against a beaver population that causes them turmoil while threatening to flood their home. That's the story's topic, but it seems to me that the theme of this story is much broader. What do you see as its theme? What examples can you find of points in the story where Grierson uses the technique we called grounding to reinforce the story's topic and theme?
I may be putting more into this than what is actually there, but perhaps the main theme in Grierson's story is the idea that people feel they have rights to everything. Dennis moved into an area that was already inhabited by beavers. Perhaps Grierson is subtly reminding us that "man" is not lord over everything. I think his grounding comes in the form of sarcasm and humor. Dennis continues to struggle with the beavers. I think this is Grierson's technique to show readers that perhaps animals aren't as dumb as they look. Dennis seems to be contstantly outsmarted by the beavers.
ReplyDeleteOr maybe there really is no underlying theme. Maybe the author just wanted to share the story of his brother-in-law because it was funny. (???)
Love the beaver pic by the way.
I don't care for the first person tone of Grierson's story but it was funny. I'm surprised he wrote about a member of his family in this tense because it had that " crazy aunt in the attic" feel to it. Bill Murray could play the part of Dennis if it is ever made into a movie, like Caddyshack.
ReplyDeleteI think the "real" theme of the story is the environmental impacts of building in Mother Nature's back yard; man invades beaver territory, beaver fights back.
The theme of this story seems like it’s based on the classic “man vs. nature” conflict. Grierson mentions how Dennis’ wife and daughter did not want him to harm the beavers. The beaver patrol from the county had a similar attitude. Even the woman whose property they later migrated to liked beavers. Dennis seems to be the only one – the only “man” – who is truly frustrated with them. This frustration is revealed early in the story when Grierson discusses how Dennis had a rage building up inside of him over 19 years and then later on when he finally resorts to using a gun.
ReplyDeleteIt is also ironic that Dennis, a professional psychologist, is able to solve the personal problems of others but can’t solve his own problem with the beavers. It mirrors how the doctor went home and cried in “The Fight for their Lives.” Doctors – and in this case, psychologists – are human just like the rest of us.
I think a couple of themes are interwoven here. First, the man versus nature theme. Grierson uses essential background information on his brother-in-law and on the beavers themselves to set up the battlefield dynamic between the two of them. He reinforces this war of attrition through chronologically following the battle royale and his niece's reaction.
ReplyDeleteI think the other theme is family relations, especially when it comes to in-laws. It seems like Grierson is amused by the whole situation. Even though he gives proper background information for the reader to understand the irritating impact of the beavers if you were to live in that area, he writes a tad satirically.
I have to agree with Sybil. That beaver photo, after reading the story, is perfectly posed.
ReplyDeleteThe theme for this story might be that at any point in our lives, there's always going to be something challenging us. The challenge may vary in its severity, but there's always something working against what we think is our progress.
Whether it's not having any creamer in the morning when you didn't get enough sleep the night before, or having a family of beavers threatening to flood your house, it's up to us to figure out how to tackle these challenges and to come out better on the other side.
Gierson grounded the topic of the story by explaining each run-in with the beaver as the conflict escalated. He grounded the theme by including the family's reaction and Dennis's different attempts to solving the family's problem. Gierson brought the theme full circle by explaining how the conflict was resolved and then introducing the family's new carpenter ant challenge.
The main theme that stands out to me is the one being the man vs. nature. He comes back to this point the most, discussing the "battles" that Dennis and the beavers get into.
ReplyDeleteAnother theme seems to have something to do with Nationalism. I get the feeling that beavers are to Cananda what the bald eagle is to the US (except not an endagered species.) Grierson comes back to this multiple times...
-"He was wrong. It did get more Canadian. The lake was home to beavers."
-"He felt a little bit of awe. NO thoughtful Canadian can contemplate a beaver without thinking about its place in the chain of our colonial history: theis country was built on the beaver's back."
-The beaver patrol who won't kill more than a few beavers
-The new neighbor who loves the beavers
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ReplyDeleteI agree that's a battle of a man vs. nature like most comments say. But I'd add that it is also a man vs. his own nature battle.
ReplyDeleteHe explores the relationship Dennis had with his profession and ironically (as an in-laws relationship) shows how he (Bruce, the author) is helping Dennis psychologically by talking about his relationship with the beavers.
I see the theme in this story as man vs. nature as well. But in a sense the man had brought this upon himself. It's just another case where man invades the home of animals, but in this particular instance, the animals decided to fight back.
ReplyDeleteI liked the style of writing, I found the story to be somewhat humorous and witty.