Issues of Helplessness and Trust Essay

Total Length: 535 words ( 2 double-spaced pages)

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Fever

Raymond Carver has a tradition of creating stories centered on isolation, helplessness, and trust. The short story "Fever" is no different in this regard. Both isolation and trust are common themes throughout this short story. More importantly, Carver reiterates the importance of resolving the problem of isolation before it becomes a contentious issue in regards to an individual's behavior.

"Fever," is a very interesting short story as it depicts real world situations within the context of a fictional story. The story centers around an individual named Carlyle who has recently been abandoned by his former love, Eileen. Both Eileen and Carlyle had two children together during their relationship. What is interesting is that Eileen abandoned many of her responsibilities and duties as a parent, while leaving Carlyle to do most of the parenting on his own. Furthermore, Eileen left Carlyle with a former colleague of his to pursue an art career.
This was devastating to Carlyle as he truly loved and cared for Eileen. Due to this abrupt abandonment, Carlyle is left feeling helpless and isolated which is common theme throughout the short story.

After the break-up, Carlyle is left to find a babysitter which further contributes to his isolationism. After two unsuccessful attempts, he finally finds a suitable caregiver in a woman named Ms. Webster. Through her care and fostering of honest behavior, Carlyle eventual comes clean with the emotions he has buried deep inside himself. He divulges his feelings of hopelessness in regards to his relationship with Eileen. He discusses his frustration with finding a babysitter that was suitable for his children. He even….....

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"Issues Of Helplessness And Trust" (2012, April 24) Retrieved June 8, 2025, from
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