Killings Poem Analysis

Words: 938
Pages: 4

The stories of atonement and revenge are as old as story telling. They are the framework or center of most characters and themes, which come together to give a captivating story. This can be seen in the Jess Walter’s “Cons” and Andres Dubus’s “Killings”. In both stories the protagonists are dealing with the deaths that surround them. Kyle in “Cons” is looking for a way to cope with his vehicular manslaughter of a couple, and Matt from “Killings” is trying to get revenge for his son who was brutally murdered. Kyle and Matt are similar in that they both killed someone, have different ways of coping, and their story’s have similar themes. Taking a life can be very quick, and of course irreversible. That is why the circumstances in both stories matter. For Kyle, his manslaughter was a surprise to him even after drinking irresponsibly. His reaction is heartfelt remorse for cutting Shae-Lynn’s and her friend lives short. Matt’s situation is completely different from Kyle’s. That is because Matt planned a revenge killing for his …show more content…
You get to see how the characters are affected through out the story. With Kyle’s guilt of manslaughter, and Matt’s anger and grief with his son’s murder. It is also interesting the way you see this theme over time. That is because “Killings” is out of chronological order to illustrate more emotion when you know the characters more. In “Cons” it’s set up in order to show you any progression Kyle has made. That progress being him feeling less guilty. Both authors have spun the stories into wonderful works using archetypes and a similar theme to come together. The way they portrayed the theme with the characters killing, and the way they cope thereafter are the best parts of the stories. Both stories show what it means to be human after taking another’s life. For Kyle his humility and guilt shown, and for Matt his bloodlust for