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Goodbye, My Brother: 09/12/24
"Goodbye, My Brother" by John Cheever (1951) was initially published in the August 25th issue of the New Yorker. The Pommeroys have come to Massachusetts for vacation in their summer home every year. But this year's trip is marred by the arrival of Lawrence, the sibling that has been absent for years. Our only interaction with Lawrence, nicknamed Tifty, is through the narrator's version of things. He tells of a child who was mocked by his siblings and father. While the analysis I've read of the story describes this story as a reverse Cain and Abel, I get more of a Prodigal Son vibe. The family feels obligated to celebrate Tifty's return but it's all very forced. Tifty himself has come with his family only to finally divorce himself of them. He plans to sell his equity in the house to the third brother. It is over the discussion of money that leads to fratricide. The narrator dispassionately relates how twice in his life he was driven to beat Tifty with a rock. Only this time, it's implied that he won't be recovering from it. The story sits on the Road Narrative Spectrum. The narrator is a privileged traveler (00). His destination is home (66), the crumbling structure on the ocean cliff. The route there is the cornfield (or tkaronto) as represented by the garden crumbling into sea (FF). Four stars Comments (0) |