Little Things
Little Things [1977]
Raymond Carver (1938-1988)
Early that day the weather turned and the snow was melting into dirty water. Streaks of it ran down from the little shoulder-high window that faced the backyard. Cars slushed by on the street outside, where it was getting dark. But it was getting dark on the inside too.
He was in the bedroom pushing clothes into a suitcase when she came to the door.
I'm glad you're leaving! I'm glad you're leaving! she said. Do you hear?
He kept on putting his things into the suitcase.
Son of a bitch! I'm so glad you're leaving! She began to cry. You can't even look me in the face, can you?
Then she noticed the baby's picture on the bed and picked it up.
He looked at her and she wiped her eyes and stared at him before turning and going back to the living room.
Bring that back, he said.
Just get your things and get out, she said.
He did not answer. He fastened the suitcase, put on his coat, looked around the bedroom before turning off the light. Then he went out to the living room.
She stood in the doorway of the little kitchen, holding the baby.
I want the baby, he said.
Are you crazy?
No, but I want the baby. I'll get someone to come by for his things.
You're not touching this baby, she said.
The baby had begun to cry and she uncovered the blanket from around his head.
Oh, oh, she said, looking at the baby.
He moved toward her.
For God's sake! she said. She took a step back into the kitchen.
I want the baby.
Get out of here!
She turned and tried to hold the baby over in a corner behind the stove.
But he came up. He reached across the stove and tightened his hands on the baby.
Let go of him, he said.
Get away, get away! she cried.
The baby was red-faced and screaming. In the scuffle they knocked down a flowerpot that hung behind the stove.
He crowded her into the wall then, trying to break her grip. He held on to the baby and pushed with all his weight.
Let go of him, he said.
Don't, she said. You're hurting the baby, she said.
I'm not hurting the baby, he said.
The kitchen window gave no light. In the near-dark he worked on her fisted fingers with one hand and with the other hand he gripped the screaming baby up under an arm near the shoulder.
She felt her fingers being forced open. She felt the baby going from her.
No! she screamed just as her hands came loose.
She would have it, this baby. She grabbed for the baby's other arm. She caught the baby around the wrist and leaned back.
But he would not let go. He felt the baby slipping out of his hands and he pulled back very hard.
In this manner, the issue was decided.
Questions for Discussion
1. The best explanation of why the author includes the sentence, "But it was getting dark inside too" is that it
A) shows that night is approaching.
B) shows the setting is dimly lit.
C) anticipates that something evil will enter the room.
D) indicates the characters are entering a troubled situation.
E) lets the reader know the baby is asleep.
2. When the wife picks up the picture of the baby in paragraph 6, this anticipates that
A) the husband will leave.
B) they will argue about the baby.
C) later, someone will come for the baby's things.
D) the husband will retrieve the picture of the baby.
E) the wife will shout at the husband.
3. The situation most similar to the one in this passage would be
A) a divorcing couple arguing about which spouse will keep the family pet.
B) a brother and sister fighting about who will play with a favorite toy.
C) two cousins discussing which one will inherit their uncle's estate.
D) a husband and wife trying to decide with whose family they will spend Christmas.
E) an engaged couple deciding in what month they will get married.
4. From the wife's words and actions, a reader can conclude that she
A) hates her husband.
B) continues to love her husband in spite of their quarrels.
C) is unhappy about the failure of the marriage.
D) wishes he had decided to leave sooner.
E) hopes that they will reconcile.
5. The story most likely takes place in
A) a rural area.
B) a high-rise apartment building.
C) a house in a suburb.
D) a house with an ocean view.
E) a very large city.
6. From the passage, a reader may infer the true cause of the argument is
A) which parent loves the baby more.
B) each person wanting to hurt the other emotionally.
C) the couple's loss of love for one another.
D) that they enjoy fighting.
E) to see which person will dominate.
7. The point of view from which this story is told is that of
A) the husband.
B) the wife.
C) the baby.
D) an unnamed narrator.
E) a sympathetic observer.
8. In another story by Raymond Carver, "What We Talk About When We Talk About Love," one of the characters says, "There was a time when I thought I loved my first wife more than life itself. But now I hate her guts, I do. How do you explain that? What happened to that love? What happened to it, is what I'd like to know." How does this quotation relate to the passage from "Little Things"?
A) It shows that Carver liked to write about unhappy people.
B) It explains why the couple is quarreling.
C) This character's first wife is like the wife in "Little Things."
D) The question is one the husband or wife might ask.
E) the husband is always the one who leaves the relationship.