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The Hair by Raymond Carver

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”The Hair” by Raymond Carver

Having healthy and stable relationships to both people and surroundings is of vital importance towards reaching a balanced and happy life. The foundation of any healthy relationship is based on cooperation, comprehension and communication. If these factors are missing, it can result in misunderstandings and difficulty handling obstacles and problems that might occur in the relationship. In his short story “The Hair”, Raymond Carver shows the consequences of the lack of connection in a normal marriage. He especially focuses on the emotional causes of malfunctioning relationships and how it has a psychological influence on everyday life.
Using minimalistic tools such as symbolism, Raymond Carver tells the story of a man, struggling with his marriage, developing an internal conflict.
Carver uses a minimalistic style of writing in his short story “The Hair”. Minimalistic writing effectively expresses feelings and conflicts, yet allows the reader to be part of the interpretation of the story. Methods such as symbolism, setting, superficial descriptions, and the reticence towards giving the reader information about emotions are often used in minimalistic short stories. Carver’s use of symbolism, setting and the lack of emotional description helps the reader understand the protagonist and his struggles. Reading “The hair”, we are introduced to a man who discovers that a hair is stuck between his teeth. At first, the short story appears anticlimactic, because of its open ending and everyday-life circumstances. However the actual plot in the story, which is not given to us directly, tells the story of the man’s internal conflict, and the effect it has on his life. The mood of the story is very tense, guiding the reader to an understanding of the situation. The use of minimalism opens up to a more meaningful interpretation, expressing

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