I am going to be taking a break from explaining The Great Gatsby and shift over to The Interlopers that I read in English 1A. Near the end of August, we began to read The Interlopers in class. This, in my opinion, is the best short story that we have read in class. This story is only three pages, front and back, and it has quite the twist. In this blog post, I will explain the theme that can be derived from the text and also specific evidence from the story that will help explain the theme. But first off, I will quickly summarize the story, which will be pretty short.
In the story, there is a conflict between two families for the possession of the land and game/deer that are in between both of their homes. They each claim them as their own and they fight over it. That is the background, but on that day, one of them, Ulrich von Gradwitz, and his people were protecting the game that he hunted. He later decides to walk into the forest and confronts his nemesis, Georg Znaeym. They both glare at each other for a while. Unfortunately, a huge tree falls upon them. They both are stranded in the trunks and branches. Soon they both start arguing about which of their people will find them first. After many insults racing back and forth, they soon get tired. Then Ulrich gets a surge of kindness and offers Georg a little bit of wine from a flask he possessed. Georg refuses and still insults Ulrich, despite his kindness. But, eventually, he feels bad for his actions and compromises with Ulrich. They both agree that they will help each other after their people come and find them. They decide to halt their fighting and become friends. In order for their people to find them, they yell. Then they spot shadows and get excited. They realize that the figures are running really fast; they find out that the figures are wolves.
First off, I really like this story for a couple of main reasons. The first reason is that the story contains a very good and influential theme that anybody can learn from. Next, the story itself is very well developed and described. The characters are well-developed and are characterized efficiently. Also they story is very concise, yet it describes everything very well. And finally, they story is quite interesting and contains a very appealing ending.
The theme that I uncovered and liked the most was people should not have an enemy; they might help you or become your friend later on. This is derived from the fact that both Ulrich and Georg were complete enemies of each other. Now, they became friends and helped each other. Ulrich helped Georg by giving him a little bit of wine, so that he won't get cold. This theme emerges from both of them being enemies and also when they compromise on the conflict and become friends. It is shaped through the actions of kindness of one another throughout the time they spent underneath the tree trunk. The quote below basically explains that Georg has thought of Ulrich as a nemesis and even thought he would be all his life; however, now, he wants to become his friend.
"I never thought to have wanted to do other than hate you all my life, but I think I have changed my mind about things too, this last half-hour. And you offered me your wineflask . . . Ulrich von Gradwitz, I will be your friend."
-The Interlopers
The theme that has been previously stated develops in many ways. The theme starts from the beginning, which stated that both Ulrich and Georg were sworn enemies. Then throughout the time that they spent under the tree, they developed a connection and became friends, which is around the end of the story or can even argued as the middle of the story. This essentially how the theme is developed throughout the course of the short story. The portion of the story, where they both become friends, is the turning point of the story. It is not really the resolution, because the main problem in the story is that they both are stuck underneath the tree trunk. However, it can be argued that the point where they become friends is the solution in the text. Going back to the theme, this theme is universal, because in the Harry Potter Series, Harry and Draco develop bitterness between each other in the book and movie; however, Draco sides with Harry at the final battle and soon helps Harry defeat Voldemort. Overall, The Interlopers is a great short story that clearly sends a message to the reader. I really liked this short story (out of all the other ones) and I hope this post helped you identify the theme in The Interlopers.
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