The Fly in the Ointment free essay sample

Journey – Father: leaving the factory, money, the business man. The Irony at the end: that he cannot get rid of this, of the â€Å"dark side†. â€Å"Tow faces†: father cannot let go of his vice / â€Å"dark side†. The cynical end of the story shows this dark revelation to the son. Theme: Man’s struggle for survival. It is a unique and personal journey, not all struggles are the same and have the same endings. Father / Son Description of characters. Detailed and showing their personalities, weaknesses, hopes, fears. Good story to work on characterisation. Relationship between them = CONFLICT Father: the bearer of â€Å"two faces†. His son KNOWS they both co-exist. â€Å"fly† – a metaphor which depicts the theme of the father? s lack of control of the dark side and we see how it overflows his character. Father’s projection of his frustration on his son but calling him â€Å"professor† ironically and by constantly referring to his son? s receding hair (and teeth? ) = physical weaknesses that the son has but, up against his father, is more stable in personality. We will write a custom essay sample on The fly in the ointment or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Money Father’s dependence on it and the son’s awareness of this Cynical end: â€Å"Old habits die hard. † Symbols 1) set in the month of November, at the â€Å"dead hour†, in the Fall 2) the fly 3) the â€Å"silver-topped pencil† 4) the factory (the contrast between the outside and inside) 5) the â€Å"bars† on the â€Å"frosted windows† 6) the â€Å"harvest moon came down from it rosy voyage† = the fact that his father was trying to convince himself that he could change suddenly ended when his son mentioned the fact that he might be able to raise some â€Å"cash† FLY IN THE OINTMENT = meaning of the title 1) One cannot control one’s life like the father cannot kill the fly 2) The father cannot control â€Å"the little face† (the â€Å"dark side†) 3) The fly represents and shows the existence of an aspect of the self that is in denial and cannot change 4) Trying to kill the fly = trying to control his lust for money. By failing, the father is â€Å"ruining the ointment† and ruining his own life, his business.