All the Years of Her LifeBy Morley Callaghan

Setting:

The setting of this story is not important: it could be anywhere and has no impact whatsoever on the story itself.

However, certain clues tells us this: New York City (6th Ave. Elevated) working class area (father is a printer) 1930s-1960s

Sixth Avenue Elevated

S

Third person (limited, intimate) narration Point of view of Alfred – we are told what he is

thinking (intimate) and feeling but not the others (limited)

Characters: Alfred, Mr. Carr, Mrs. Higgins

Complication (initiating incident): Alfred is caught stealing again

External conflict (minor conflict in story) Man vs. Man:

Alfred vs. Mr. Carr and his mother

Internal Conflict:

The central conflict in the story is within – not the fact that he is confronted by his boss

Man vs. Self Mrs. Higgins struggling as a mother, trying to

do her best despite the problems of her children

Alfred struggling to grow into adulthood and feeling guiltly over the pain his mother suffers

Topic and theme Topic:

Parenting teenagers Teenagers’ poor decisions

Theme: Unconditional love for our children Growing self-awareness as an adult, new

respect for parents Reliance on parental love and sacrifice

Climax – the big shift in tone‘Be quiet. Don’t speak to me. You’ve disgraced me again and again,’ she said bitterly.‘That’s the last time. That’s all I’m saying.’‘Have the decency to be quiet,’ she snapped. They kept on their way, looking straight ahead.….’You’re a bad lot. God forgive you…’

The trembling hand:

…at that moment his youth seemed to be over. … It seemed to him that this was the first time he had ever looked upon his mother.

Character development Writers ‘paint a picture’ of characters

directly, by telling the reader what they are like, and indirectly, by describing their actions and letting the reader reach his or her own conclusions.

Well developed or ‘round’ characters are portrayed in detail while ‘flat’ characters are like background actors in a film.

Dynamic characters change over the course of the story; static ones stay the same.

Characters How does each character change? Why?

Discuss how Morley Callaghan paints these different pictures of each character – use a flow chart to record how the characters change.

Sample: Mr. CarrBefore meeting Alfred’s mother

soft, confident smiled and

stroked his face delicately

Looked hard-faced and stern

After meeting her

Nodded his head encouragingly

Began to feel warm and genial himself

Make a chart and record evidenceWrite down ONLY the words the author uses to describe the character.

Once you have finished, you will draw your own conclusions about each character.

Character flow chartScene Alfred Mrs. Higgins Mr. Carr

Drugstore x x

Drugstore x x x

Street x x

Kitchen x x

Home x x

Character analysisMake a list of words would you use to describe Alfred’s character: Immature? Naïve? Irresponsible? Survivor? Troubled? Compassionate? Caring? Egotistical? Ignorant? Thoughtful?

What evidence do you have to back up your words?

Writing a character analysis

Title: name of character Introduction: Include the title of the story (in

quotation marks) and the full name of the author -- as well as the name of the character you will discuss. Make a general statement about the character.

Body: Include specific evidence (actual words and quotations) to illustrate each of your points.

Conclusion: Summarize what you have said and comment on the author’s success in portraying the character.