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    The Man of The House by Frank O'connor Analysis

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    aj jaikaran
    This short story follows Sullivan, a young boy who must take on responsibilities of the "man of the house" when his mother falls ill. On the first day, Sullivan enjoys staying home from school to care for simple chores and check on his mother. However, his mother's illness worsens at night, frightening Sullivan. The next day, he must run errands to fetch the doctor and get his mother's medicine from the dispensary. While there, another child tricks Sullivan into drinking and using up the medicine, leaving him extremely guilty when returning home empty-handed. His kind mother forgives his mistake, showing their loving relationship.

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    The Man of The House by Frank O'connor Analysis

    Uploaded by

    aj jaikaran
    5K views3 pages
    This short story follows Sullivan, a young boy who must take on responsibilities of the "man of the house" when his mother falls ill. On the first day, Sullivan enjoys staying home from school to care for simple chores and check on his mother. However, his mother's illness worsens at night, frightening Sullivan. The next day, he must run errands to fetch the doctor and get his mother's medicine from the dispensary. While there, another child tricks Sullivan into drinking and using up the medicine, leaving him extremely guilty when returning home empty-handed. His kind mother forgives his mistake, showing their loving relationship.

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    Analysis of the man of the house

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    The Man of the House by Frank O'connor analysis

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    This short story follows Sullivan, a young boy who must take on responsibilities of the "man of the house" when his mother falls ill. On the first day, Sullivan enjoys staying home from school to care for simple chores and check on his mother. However, his mother's illness worsens at night, frightening Sullivan. The next day, he must run errands to fetch the doctor and get his mother's medicine from the dispensary. While there, another child tricks Sullivan into drinking and using up the medicine, leaving him extremely guilty when returning home empty-handed. His kind mother forgives his mistake, showing their loving relationship.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    5K views3 pages

    The Man of The House by Frank O'connor Analysis

    Uploaded by

    aj jaikaran
    This short story follows Sullivan, a young boy who must take on responsibilities of the "man of the house" when his mother falls ill. On the first day, Sullivan enjoys staying home from school to care for simple chores and check on his mother. However, his mother's illness worsens at night, frightening Sullivan. The next day, he must run errands to fetch the doctor and get his mother's medicine from the dispensary. While there, another child tricks Sullivan into drinking and using up the medicine, leaving him extremely guilty when returning home empty-handed. His kind mother forgives his mistake, showing their loving relationship.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
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    The Man of the House by

    Frank O'Connor
    SUMMARY
    This short story is about a little boy called Sullivan who has a sick mother. Sullivan is
    initially unconcerned about his mother’s illness, and mildly pleased, because he got to
    stay home and play at being the ‘man of the house’. However, his initial delight
    changes to concern on the second day due to his fear that his mother has pneumonia.
    The second night and the third day are even more frightening because he had to fetch
    the doctor and travel to the North Dispensary to get her medication. At the dispensary
    he meets a young girl who tricks him into drinking, and sharing the medicine, with the
    result being an empty bottle to take home to his mother. Sullivan suffers extreme guilt
    as a result of this and goes home crying. His mother consoles him and forgives his
    childish misdemeanor.

    SETTING
    A town called Cork, in England.

    CHARACTERS
    Sullivan
    A very responsible little boy.
    Enjoys playing at being a man by taking care of his mother and the household chores.

    Mother
    A sickly lady.
    She feels guilty that her son has to display such maturity by taking care of her.
    Displays what a loving mother she is by understanding that Sullivan is an innocent
    boy that succumbed to peer pressure.
    She also takes excellent care of her son when she is able to do so.
    Minni Ryan
    She is a family friend who advises Dooly during the course of his mother’s illness.
    A middle aged woman who is very knowledgeable.
    Very pious and gossipy; according to Dooly.

    Doctor
    He was a fat, loud voiced man.
    He was the cleverest doctor in Cork.

    THEMES
    Love & family relationship
    This is shown in the relationship between the mother and her son. Sullivan is
    frightened that his mother will die of pneumonia, so, despite his fear, he enters a
    public house (pub) in order to ensure that she gets her home-made remedy, and travels
    to an unsavory neighbourhood in order to get her medicine. The mother is equally
    devoted to her son, as seen in her guilt over the fact that he has to take care of her. She
    is also very understanding when he succumbs to the peer pressure of drinking her
    medicine. She understands that one cannot expect a child to be a man, no matter how
    well he does at playing at being a man. Her love for her child is also manifested in the
    pride she feels when he displays the level of maturity akin to an adult.

    Innocence
    The fact that Sullivan does not recognize that his new friend is using him for a taste of
    his cough syrup proves that he is still an innocent young man, at least in relation to the
    ways of the world. Despite playing at being a man, he is still an innocent child. His
    reaction, after realizing that he was used, also points to his innocence. He reacts in the
    manner that any child would, he ran home crying.

    Questions: THE MAN OF THE HOUSE

    1. What was mother trying to do when she started coughing?


    2. List the tasks that the protagonist did for his mother?
    3. What reason did Sullivan give his friend for NOT going to school?
    4. What was on Sullivan’s ‘to do’ list?
    5. Why did Sullivan NOT go far to play? What activity did he do every half an hour?
    6. What concern did Miss Ryan have about mother’s health?
    7. Recount Sullivan’s experience of shopping for whiskey?
    8. How did mother’s illness progress in the night? What quality about it particularly
    frightened Sullivan?
    9. What was different about the new day?
    10. List the chores that Sullivan had to do on this new day?
    11. What important task did Sullivan have to do?
    12. Who kept the little boy company?
    13. What was the little boy pressured to do?
    14. How did the little boy feel after he gave in to the peer pressure?
    15. What did he do before he went home?
    16. How did his mother react?
    17. What is the point of view that is used in this short story?
    18. What plot structure is used in this short story?

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