Carver’s “Little Things” is told with minimal description, anonymous characters, and
with brevity of length. The narrative could take place in any North American area, and this helps
to underscore that the issue of familial instability and child abuse could take place anywhere or
any time. The couple could be black or white, poor or rich, educated or high school dropouts.
When the woman says “she will have it, this baby,” we can see that Carver even shies away from
assigning gender to keep from limiting his story. It also shows how the couple now considers the
baby an intangible thing rather than a small being with rights in and of itself.
It is told in a third person limited narrative, meaning that the narrator does not give us any
insight into how the characters are thinking or feeling. It is much like watching a movie. The
third person narrative helps the story because obviously telling it from either party’s viewpoint
would produce a lot of bias. It is clear that both the man and the woman are only focused on
themselves, their immediate needs or perceived needs, and are not making any attempt to take
into consideration the thoughts, feelings, or needs of other people in the room. The neutral
viewpoint of the narrator also helps to highlight the absurdity of their actions: that they are
willing to commit child endangerment in order to emerge victorious in a break up.
The story also makes an allusion to the story of Solomon, who offers to cut a baby in two
in order to discover who cares more about the child. Of the two parties, the one who cries out to
let the other person have the baby rather than have it suffer harm is ultimately rewarded with its
care, because Solomon realizes who cares more for the child’s welfare. For this reference, the
narrator serves as a reference to Solomon, that is, an impartial external force that reveals the
underlying moral issue. Amir also notes this parallel in his book of criticism.
The story also shows how pettiness can rapidly escalate. Initially, the husband or
boyfriend merely wants to take a photograph of the child. He has no interest in breaking the
with brevity of length. The narrative could take place in any North American area, and this helps
to underscore that the issue of familial instability and child abuse could take place anywhere or
any time. The couple could be black or white, poor or rich, educated or high school dropouts.
When the woman says “she will have it, this baby,” we can see that Carver even shies away from
assigning gender to keep from limiting his story. It also shows how the couple now considers the
baby an intangible thing rather than a small being with rights in and of itself.
It is told in a third person limited narrative, meaning that the narrator does not give us any
insight into how the characters are thinking or feeling. It is much like watching a movie. The
third person narrative helps the story because obviously telling it from either party’s viewpoint
would produce a lot of bias. It is clear that both the man and the woman are only focused on
themselves, their immediate needs or perceived needs, and are not making any attempt to take
into consideration the thoughts, feelings, or needs of other people in the room. The neutral
viewpoint of the narrator also helps to highlight the absurdity of their actions: that they are
willing to commit child endangerment in order to emerge victorious in a break up.
The story also makes an allusion to the story of Solomon, who offers to cut a baby in two
in order to discover who cares more about the child. Of the two parties, the one who cries out to
let the other person have the baby rather than have it suffer harm is ultimately rewarded with its
care, because Solomon realizes who cares more for the child’s welfare. For this reference, the
narrator serves as a reference to Solomon, that is, an impartial external force that reveals the
underlying moral issue. Amir also notes this parallel in his book of criticism.
The story also shows how pettiness can rapidly escalate. Initially, the husband or
boyfriend merely wants to take a photograph of the child. He has no interest in breaking the
