Genre
Short story, didactic story
Setting and Context
The events in the story take place somewhere in Australia
Narrator and Point of View
Third-person narration
Tone and Mood
In story a pessimistic tone prevails, aimed to cause sympathy with the protagonist and his family.
Protagonist and Antagonist
The protagonist of the story is Nil, a man who cares about his wife and children.
Major Conflict
The major conflict involves a contradiction between Nil’s constant efforts to help his wife and her violation of these efforts.
Climax
The climax happens when Emma starts screaming to Nil and calls him a liar because he said that she was sleeping when he came in.
Foreshadowing
Emma’s mental issues foreshadow a tense atmosphere in the family.
Understatement
In the story, the role of the mother in the family is understated.
Allusions
The story alludes to the family problems, relations between husband and wife, children and parents.
Imagery
See the Imagery Section
Paradox
The paradox of the story is that although Emma couldn’t stand Nil around, she still couldn’t do anything without his help.
Parallelism
The story has parallels with bible motifs (the hell of childhood) and human moral values.
Metonymy and Synecdoche
The author uses metonymy and synecdoche to highlight the pitch of the utterance: “Haven’t you got the slightest consideration”, “a load of wood”.
Personification
The author uses personification dramatizing the effect of the utterance: “compose my nerves”, “the boy and the pillow were nearly off”.
