Short Story

"Tiny Cat"

She walked along the footpath watching everything with interest. It was hot and the sun burnt on her skin. She had not any plans for this afternoon and decided to get a cup of coffee. There were many bars, cafes, and restaurants over the road. All of them looked really inviting. But she was looking for a special one, for one she had recently heard of. It was said to be the best in town and she wanted to see for herself if this was true. She needed not to search very long. It was right next to a restaurant she had already been some days ago. Although it was an inconspicuous little building, she liked it.
When she entered the door, an unfamiliar smell reached her nose. However, it smelled good even if she didn’t know what it was. She looked around the interior. It was just a little room with about twelve tables on the right sight and a long counter on the left. She saw one bar keeper greeting her when she came in. The other one was busily doing anything. As she greeted him back he smiled and turned away. All in all it was a very well-furnished place. She liked these small wooden chairs and tables that reminded her on her grandmother’s living-room where she spent many afternoons when she was a child. She wondered how many people would be here since every seat was occupied except two on the bar. For one second she did not know what to do either leaving or staying. She felt the looks in her back and was embarrassed for all guests would have noticed her insecurity. However, she took a seat and put her handbag next to her. The first thing that caught her eyes was a big colourful sign above the shelves on the bar. It said: “Coffee 1.50, Espresso 1.50, Cappuccino 2.65”. She liked cappuccino and ordered some. The bar keeper was smiling again as when she entered the restaurant. But his smile made her uncertain this time. She wondered how people would perceive a woman going into a restaurant all alone. She peeked around but, actually, nobody looked at her which made her feel relieved. She noticed that almost all guests were eating a dish which looked very delicious. One of the bar keeper, the busy one, was preparing some more of these dishes. Sitting in front of him she saw how he arranged everything very neatly on the plate. The smell she recognized when she came in the restaurant became stronger. She became aware of how hungry she was. Actually, she was a careful woman never ordering things she did not know. But today she wanted to get rid of her old behaviour and be stronger and more independent. However, she asked one bar keeper for the ingredients of the dish everybody’s eating and he specified everything. But she hardly understood a word, only some words that sounded like ‘chicken’ and ‘pasta’. But she was not sure at all. She shortly considered asking again, but desistanced from it for it would not have changed anything. She had already tried to do so before, just a few days ago when she was in another restaurant. She had been asking the waitress for a dish three times and the waitress had become more and more irritated. So the only thing to escape from this rather uncomfortable situation was to nod and pretend to understand everything.
To avoid a similar situation she ordered this dish without answering again. “Almost everybody’s eating this dish”, she thought, “So it must be good”. Just about five minutes later her meal was served. She poked it with her fork and, actually, discovered some chicken on her plate. She felt very proud because she had obviously gotten him right. After she had eaten some of the chicken, she suddenly felt sick. It was hard for her to breathe and she felt her pulse rapidly increase. Some seconds later she lost her conscience.
When she woke up artificial light dazzled her. Her eyes were aching and she was cold. She still had problems to breathe. She smelled a very obtrusive odor and knew immediately where she was. She directly thought of her family and what they were doing at the moment. Her parents would probably work in the yard and her little sister would play with her two cats. How glad would she be if they were just sitting right next to her bed. Suddenly a nurse came in looking seriously at her. She told her that she had suffered an allergic reaction caused from peanut oil that were in the food she ate at the restaurant and that she was lucky that the doctors diagnosed so quickly was had been wrong with her. But she stopped listening to the nurse. She didn’t need any explanation since she knew already what happened. Actually, she was a careful woman never ordering things she did not know. Never, except today. From a distance she could hear the nurse saying that she would be allowed to leave hospital the next day. But the only thing she was thinking of was that little stuffed animal, this tiny cat, she was going to send to her little sister as a birthday present.

About the Writing Process

Creating a meaningful piece of literature appears to be very challenging. Sometimes it is very difficult to find something to write about. It can be helpful to become aware of one’s inner thoughts and feelings. It is probably easier to write about things one is in involved in or which make one happy, sad, or even topics one is just interested in. If one has finally found a topic to write about the difficulty which remains is to put all those thoughts into proper words, since sometimes it is just easier to think about something than to find appropriate words for the same subject.

During the writing process a major aspect the writer has to consider is that not always the most spectacular and most surprising writing is the best for this might make a story appear exaggerating and even artificial. Another thing is that the writer should be interested in making the audience read between the lines in order to filter out what he intends to point at. Not infrequently, lines that seem to be meaningless at first glance can develop depth while re-reading them several times (as it is the case in some of Ernest Hemingway’s short stories).

Besides, poems are even more difficult to create. Poems are not just a sequence of words. They are much more than this. What makes them so challenging is that it is sometimes rather hard to interpret them. Additionally, though the poet intends to express something not all readers necessarily perceive and interpret poems the same way.

Creating pieces of literature can evoke emotions either during the writing process itself but also while reading them. So literature can help to deal with problems and concerns. Through writing one can express oneself and even make people consider particular issues.




Analysis of John Lennon’s writing style in:

Subtitle "Lucy in the Scarf with Diabetics"

This excerpt emphasizes Lennon’s socio critical attitude toward war, politics, and economy. Continuously, he is playing on words. In the first line the word issue has been turned into the phrase “atissue (bless you)” expressing the sound of sneezing which is intensified by the additional words “bless you” standing in brackets.

Furthermore, Lennon predicts another world war since he does not only say “if […] the Third World War […] breaks out” but also “when”. So he is pointing at a certain time in future. The term “RANDUM” might refer to the term ‘memorandum’. Lennon probably wants to criticize that politicians make decisions concerning war, but they will never be the ones who fight, instead the common man is supposed to fight as the question “WHO WILL RUN THEM?” suggests.

In the next paragraph he refers to “President Exxon” probably meaning President Nixon who constantly tried to expel Lennon from the United States. Lennon displays Nixon as a child drinking “his cocoa” and being watches by “His Matron”.

Lennon also criticizes the Billionaire Howard Hughes who became rich through Hughes Aircraft Company and the foundation of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Pointing at Mr. Hughes ‘empire’ and fortune Lennon names him Howard “MR. HUGE”. But he does not only misspell his name he also uses capital letters in order to emphasize Hughes’s power. By writing that “Howard HUGE Memorial Hospital […] will only admit dead people, for fear of Spreading Some Unconscionable Disease” Lennon indicates that this scientific institution was originally not solely intended to help people.

All in all, this excerpt includes many time references that were current at Lennon’s time. To understand the whole text requires specific historical knowledge. His playing on words makes his statements even more critical and challenging in terms of understanding.


“Tiny Cat”

She walked along the footpath watching everything with interest. It was hot and the sun burnt on her skin. She had not any plans for this afternoon and decided to get a cup of coffee. There were many bars, cafes, and restaurants over the road. All of them looked really inviting. But she was looking for a special one, for one she had recently heard of. It was said to be the best in town and she wanted to see for herself if this was true. She needed not to search very long. It was right next to a restaurant she had already been some days ago. Although it was an inconspicuous little building, she liked it.
When she entered the door, an unfamiliar smell reached her nose. However, it smelled good even if she didn’t know what it was. She looked around the interior. It was just a little room with about twelve tables on the right sight and a long counter on the left. She saw one bar keeper greeting her when she came in. The other one was busily doing anything. As she greeted him back he smiled and turned away. All in all it was a very well-furnished place. She liked these small wooden chairs and tables that reminded her on her grandmother’s living-room where she spent many afternoons when she was a child. She wondered how many people would be here since every seat was occupied except two on the bar. For one second she did not know what to do either leaving or staying. She felt the looks in her back and was embarrassed for all guests would have noticed her insecurity. However, she took a seat and put her handbag next to her. The first thing that caught her eyes was a big colourful sign above the shelves on the bar. It said: “Coffee 1.50, Espresso 1.50, Cappuccino 2.65”. She liked cappuccino and ordered some. The bar keeper was smiling again as when she entered the restaurant. But his smile made her uncertain this time. She wondered how people would perceive a woman going into a restaurant all alone. She peeked around but, actually, nobody looked at her which made her feel relieved. She noticed that almost all guests were eating a dish which looked very delicious. One of the bar keeper, the busy one, was preparing some more of these dishes. Sitting in front of him she saw how he arranged everything very neatly on the plate. The smell she recognized when she came in the restaurant became stronger. She became aware of how hungry she was. Actually, she was a careful woman never ordering things she did not know. But today she wanted to get rid of her old behaviour and be stronger and more independent. However, she asked one bar keeper for the ingredients of the dish everybody’s eating and he specified everything. But she hardly understood a word, only some words that sounded like ‘chicken’ and ‘pasta’. But she was not sure at all. She shortly considered asking again, but desistanced from it for it would not have changed anything. She had already tried to do so before, just a few days ago when she was in another restaurant. She had been asking the waitress for a dish three times and the waitress had become more and more irritated. So the only thing to escape from this rather uncomfortable situation was to nod and pretend to understand everything.
To avoid a similar situation she ordered this dish without answering again. “Almost everybody’s eating this dish”, she thought, “So it must be good”. Just about five minutes later her meal was served. She poked it with her fork and, actually, discovered some chicken on her plate. She felt very proud because she had obviously gotten him right. After she had eaten some of the chicken, she suddenly felt sick. It was hard for her to breathe and she felt her pulse rapidly increase. Some seconds later she lost her conscience.
When she woke up artificial light dazzled her. Her eyes were aching and she was cold. She still had problems to breathe. She smelled a very obtrusive odor and knew immediately where she was. She directly thought of her family and what they were doing at the moment. Her parents would probably work in the yard and her little sister would play with her two cats. How glad would she be if they were just sitting right next to her bed. Suddenly a nurse came in looking seriously at her. She told her that she had suffered an allergic reaction caused from peanut oil that were in the food she ate at the restaurant and that she was lucky that the doctors diagnosed so quickly was had been wrong with her. But she stopped listening to the nurse. She didn’t need any explanation since she knew already what happened. Actually, she was a careful woman never ordering things she did not know. Never, except today. From a distance she could hear the nurse saying that she would be allowed to leave hospital the next day. But the only thing she was thinking of was that little stuffed animal, this tiny cat, she was going to send to her little sister as a birthday present.

Analysis of John Lennon’s writing style in:

Subtitle "Lucy in the Scarf with Diabetics"

This excerpt emphasizes Lennon’s socio critical attitude toward war, politics, and economy. Continuously, he is playing on words. In the first line the word issue has been turned into the phrase “atissue (bless you)” expressing the sound of sneezing which is intensified by the additional words “bless you” standing in brackets.

Furthermore, Lennon predicts another world war since he does not only say “if […] the Third World War […] breaks out” but also “when”. So he is pointing at a certain time in future. The term “RANDUM” might refer to the term ‘memorandum’. Lennon probably wants to criticize that politicians make decisions concerning war, but they will never be the ones who fight, instead the common man is supposed to fight as the question “WHO WILL RUN THEM?” suggests.

In the next paragraph he refers to “President Exxon” probably meaning President Nixon who constantly tried to expel Lennon from the United States. Lennon displays Nixon as a child drinking “his cocoa” and being watches by “His Matron”.

Lennon also criticizes the Billionaire Howard Hughes who became rich through Hughes Aircraft Company and the foundation of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Pointing at Mr. Hughes ‘empire’ and fortune Lennon names him Howard “MR. HUGE”. But he does not only misspell his name he also uses capital letters in order to emphasize Hughes’s power. By writing that “Howard HUGE Memorial Hospital […] will only admit dead people, for fear of Spreading Some Unconscionable Disease” Lennon indicates that this scientific institution was originally not solely intended to help people.

All in all, this excerpt includes many time references that were current at Lennon’s time. To understand the whole text requires specific historical knowledge. His playing on words makes his statements even more critical and challenging in terms of understanding.