A Visit To Grandma Essay Research Paper

In the short story A Visit to Grandmother by William Melvin Kelley a hero s

Journey unfinished by the author, bring us into the world of a man who felt self pitying and blame his mother for the lack of love in his adolescence to a self confident and secure person at the end.

In this world more care about money than people and more worry about small things than the family unit, brings people into family discussions and frustrations everyday. In the story A Visit to Grandmother Doctor Charles Dunford a gentle and warm man who overcomes the frustration of his painful past, start his hero s journey when he decided to separate from his family at the age of fifteen.

I wanted to go to school. They didn t have a Negro school at home, so I went up to Knoxville and lived with a cousin and went to school , this was the answer of Doctor Charles Dunford when he is asked why he left home, but the truth hide something more painful and difficult to overcome. 30 years later Charles decided to go attend his college class reunion in Nashville, a class reunion that only last a week, than after the reunion Charles have a Call to Adventure the reunion had lasted a week. As they packed for home, his father, in a far too offhand way, had suggested they visit Chig s Grandmother. this unexpected decision sound to Chig, Charles son, really weird and make him think that the college reunion was only an excuse to go to visit his grandmother. Charles always tried to avoid the subject of his family, so nobody knew much about them, probably not even Charles. And this is how Charles starts his Hero s journey, a Hero s journey that brings him into the past and painful feelings.

Relationships between brothers not always are like mothers would like to be; there would be usually fights and competition for attention or love from their parents. In this story Charles have a brother call GL, a brother who always get the attention of his mother the attention that Charles never had. I paid mind to GL, I had to .GL could-a ended up swinging if I hadn t this words of Charles mother show how she always was more care about GL than any of her other children s. Of course this lack of attention did not make happy to Charles and make him more frustrated and sad. In the table Charles mother start to tell the story of GL and a horse that he trade it for an old chair, GL decided to take his mother for a ride into the town, then the horse start to gallop, and the mother said to GL now you ain t joking with your mama, is you? Because if you is, I ll strap your purple if I live through this. But it wasn t GL, the horse was out of control, until his mother stops the horse in a brave maneuver, his mother said to Charles then you don t remember how we all laughed and Charles answer, No, I don t Mama. And I probably wouldn t have laughed. I don t think it was funny , these words of his mother and the story she told in the table, starts to open the hiding feelings that Charles had been hiding for a long time. Charles did not find this funny at all, because he knew if he did the same thing, his mother probably would punish him. After this it was just a matter of time that would make Charles tell all his feelings and resentment that he had against his family.

Not tell to the people we love the things that we have inside can in the long time be painful and frustrating, and wait for tell this feelings only would make it worst, In this Story Charles have his ultimate boom when he decided to release all this feelings that he have inside, being this very painful, but at the same time this give to him relief and security. Charles that was always in a defensive way in the table after hear his mother story about GL and the horse, he decided to tell all his hiding feelings Chig s father sat up straight as if preparing to debate. I said that if I had done it, if I had done just exactly what GL did, you would have beaten me good for it, Mama this is how Charles start to tell everything to his mother, all what he field, how he felt less love and with less attention that GL s had If GL and I did something wrong, you d beat me first and then be too tired to beat him. At dinner, he d always get seconds and I wouldn t. You d do things with him, like ride in that buggy, but if I wanted you to do something with me, you were always too busy , with this words Charles had his ultimate boom, now Charles was free of that painful feeling that he had inside, he now was relief and secure, now that after 30 years he decided to tell everything to his mother. In this story the hero s journey is not finished, because Charles refuse to return, he refuse to make everything like it was before he left home, even if his mother try to make him understand, you re about thirty years too late, Mama after this words Charles go to his bedroom, but this time Charles was different, now he was self confident and secure about himself, he was relief of all his hiding feelings, now Charles was a different person.

In conclusion in this unfinished hero s journey Charles who separate from home at the age of fifteen, doesn t want to return 30 years later when he had the opportunity to for give his mother and forget everything and all his pain, finishing his hero s journey, but he doesn t want to do that, instead he just felt better telling to his mother everything, all his hiding feelings, that make him from now on, a different person, more confident and secure about himself.