Unusual businesses are a necessity to the public. Without them a community could not function as intended. Whether the business is a funeral home, pickled meat producer, or incarcerating criminals, society needs these services to thrive. In “The Last Stop,” by Brian Cable the author visits a mortuary to overcome his fear of dead bodies. Similarly, in “I’m Not Leaving Until I Eat This Thing,” written by John T. Edge, the main character is dreading having to eat pig lips to overcome his fear of their taste.
Then, in “The Long Good-Bye: Mother’s Day in Federal Prison” by Amanda Coyne, a mother recounts a visit from her child on Mother’s Day while she is in prison and how she feels about her situation. These three stories follow characters that overcome a fear that is presented to them during their lives. First, during the stories the characters gain insight to certain businesses that helps them overcome their fears. These businesses are unusual to the general public.
Moreover, their fears are hinted at in the beginning and gradually expanded upon throughout the story this is done through exposition about their situation and what has caused the fear. Finally, the characters come to some sort of resolution after their attempt at trying to conquer their fear. This can result in either a satisfying or somber ending.
Some unemployed workers may stray away from certain jobs because of their dealing; however, these businesses provide an essential service to their customers. In Cable’s story, the mortician, Howard Deaver, explains exactly what a funeral home is supposed to do when he says, “We provide services for the dead, not counseling for the living.” This shows the problem that comes with being a mortician, since he has had to assure people he is only a mortician and not a therapist..
Deaver is very direct in his answer to erase any confusion, the customers may have about his occupation. Then, in Edge’s story he speaks with Lionel Dufour. During this conversation, Dufour demonstrates how hard he works for his customers by stating, “If my customers wanted me to dye the lips green, I’d ask, “What shade??” This shows the length that he will go to make sure that his customers are satisfied and that they will return for more business. Also, Coyne’s story presents the corruption within the prison system by showing how it even profits on Mother’s day. On Mother’s day, children will often go to visit their imprisoned mothers with “pockets full of coins,” to purchase snacks at the vending machines in the visiting center. As a result of these businesses being unusual, fears are created by the customers who partake in the services or product.
The three stories all share the fact that an average person can understand these fears and may share one or some of them. In Cable’s story, he shares with us his fear of the dead and having to interact with dead bodies by sharing a statement that resonates with the reader. The statement starts with, “The death of a loved one can be very painful, partly because of the sense of loss, but also becuase someone else’s mortality reminds us all too vividly of our own.” People try not to think of death since they either feel immortal or would rather not since it makes them uncomfortable. Also, Edge fears the taste of the pig lip and right as he is about to eat it he shares his thoughts on it, “I stifle a gag that rolls from the back of my throat, swallow hard, and pray the urge to vomit passes.” Edge feels that the pig lips will be disgusting so his body instinctively tries to vomit, which he has to hold back. In addition, after the visit to the prison during Mother’s day in Coyne’s story one of the mother’s worries for their sons sense of right and wrong when the child asks, “Is my mommy a bad guy?” This presents the problem with children who have prisoners for parents since parents are usually role models for their children and this child thinks of her mother as a good person but is confused since she is in prison. The child’s sense of right and wrong is muddled. To move on in their lives these people have to resolve these fears in some way to continue peacefully. The actual message that these stories try to convey are the resolutions that the characters come to at the ends of these stories. Eventually, Cable interacts with a dead body near the end of the story and explains his experience by stating, “I felt glad to have satisfied my curiosity about dead bodies.” The character finally touches the dead body and feels satisfied since his curiosity about the subject is finally gone. Also in Edge’s story, he finally eats the pig lips with some chips mixed in a bag and then ends the story with, “I offer the bag to Jimmy … and turn to eye the pig feet floating in a murky jar by the cash register.” This ending signifies the character thinking about his next challenge since he feels courageous after eating the pig lips. Then in Coyne’s story, the mother seems to be disappointed because of the lack of resolution. While the mother is saying goodbye to the child, he “balls up his fist, and punches her in the face.” The mother is in shock as she watches her son leave and wonders if she will ever be able to connect with her son and be at peace with the fact that she will not be able to raise her son properly. The resolutions of the stories or the lack thereof can be interpreted in different ways by other readers.
The three stories excellently give insight on certain businesses and this insight shows you how necessary the business is, or highlights the problems associated with it. These stories can also inspire someone to overcome a fear from the story since the first two show a good resolution coming from both of the endings. Cable and Edge end up with a good resolution to their fear; however, Coyne’s story ends with an uncertain resolution. One thing that these stories want to convey to their readers is that overcoming your fear is more satisfying than living with the curiosity.
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