The Woman Lit by Fireflies

Jim Harrison
A short story critique

Carmela Isabelle P. Disilio

ABM II Auriga

Ms. Vernie R. Mercado

I. Impression
First off, it is undeniable that the title of the story itself had already captivated my
attention while scanning the table of contents. It already triggered a lot of questions in
my mind like, Who is that woman, Why is she lit by fireflies, Is she literally lit by
fireflies or is it just a metaphor, why is it entitled this way in the first place?
Unfortunately, I was surprised to be dismayed when I first tried to read the story. I had
a hard time trying to absorb the story and see through the eyes of the protagonist thats
why in the first part, I wasnt really looking forward to anything. But as I read further
into it, I was carried away by Jim Harrisons harshness and honesty in presenting the
reality of life and the universe in his story. My initial bad impression was completely
overthrown with my great admiration by the way he presented how his main character
surpassed what-seemed-like an insurmountable battle against herself, her husband and
the idle life shes trying to escape from. Harrisons words reflected his deep
understanding of the rawness of the human heart how it can be volatile and quickly
vulnerable to the misfortunes that a person may encounter.

II. Theme
The story mainly revolved around the life of a housewife being abused by her
husband, enduring the struggle of being away from her children, suffering from the loss
of a friend and a dog, and the extreme desire to escape from a life of futility. It was a
matter of self-composure after traumatic events and crucial decisions on how you really
wanted your life to be. The risk of using this theme is the capability of the writer to
successfully present such existentialistic thoughts in the story, and the possible
reactions it can draw out from its readers. Harrison did not do anything special. He did
not insert miracles or supernatural powers. He just became truthfully unforgiving,
making the story heart-wringing from the middle up to the end. His flow of words and
his honesty gave this story a peculiar beauty and the directness of his sentences were
able to sustain the theme throughout the story while leaving heavy pangs to the readers
heart.
III. Setting
Harrison chose three settings that accurately depicted the scenes that he tries to
convey. The settings added drama and more vivid imagery. It also helped significantly
in the character-building of the story. Firstly, Harrison chose Detroit as the home
address of the main character. Through this, he successfully portrayed the common,
bitter way of living in the city how wealthy people get intoxicated over the thought
of making themselves richer even if they already have too much, and the struggle of
being trapped in a big, monotonous city when your heart is screaming to leave and do
something more life-changing rather than collecting paychecks. The notion of living in
an urban showed the main characters uniqueness as a person who enjoys simple
pleasures like reading and cats, rather than the hunger for power, fame and money.
This kind of setting also helped out the author for his descriptions to other minor
characters, such as the main characters husband typical business-minded man living
in a big city.
Next setting was in Interstate 80, Iowa in the midst of August. There was a part in
the story where the main character asked herself why she had fled when millions of
women merely leaved their husbands. The concept of getting yourself lost in the middle
of dark forests made the main characters contemplation of her life and her backstories
became more dramatic and feels-captivating. The sceneries in Interstate 80 strongly
represent some of her childhood memories which really gave more substance to the
main character.
The last setting was in Paris. In the end, it was revealed that the main character had
achieved the life shes been yearning for the past 30 years. The commonly known
ambiance in Paris solidified the main characters desire for a normal and simple life,
doing the things that she really loves and working to her hearts extent. The atmosphere
in Paris allowed the reader to compare and notice the big differences between the main
characters life in Detroit and the life that she wanted in the city of love.
IV. Characters
Harrison drew characters who are admirable though sometimes confusing.
Still, some figures were greatly developed as the story progresses. The author used
good and realistic characterization to show the theme of the story, the grim life of
the wealthy, a wifes desires and the concept of reuniting yourself through self-
discovery by being lost, a commonly used element in fictions.
Clare, the protagonist, had a very notable progression in the story. From a
girl who prayed to a three-legged cat, she turned into a rebellious teenager who got
impregnated by a beatnik in college and into a woman suffering from severe attacks
of migraine, a wife with disoriented thoughts, broken heart and broken soul, illicit
flings and sexual affair and a lost purpose in life. The author has laid series of
dynamic events in Clares life to give her enough reason to crave for escape and
run away. Judging from the things she brought with her when she left her husband,
it was evident that Clare was very sentimental and still emotional over the death of
Zilpha, her best friend and Sammy, her dog who both died from cancer. The flow
of her monologues reflected her loneliness in living a very complicated life for 50
years and spending three decades with a husband who cares more about making
money than actually loving his wife and family.
Clare was a loving mother, revealing in the latter part of the story that the
only reason she stayed with Donald was the fear of poverty while still having
children to take care of. But it is confusing if she is also a loving wife or if she
really fell in love with even one of the men she became associated with. There were
insufficient scenarios in the story to justify Clares character as a lover. There is
also a possibility that Clare is delusional, in the sense that she was making phantom
conversations and acts as if they were real. That was a minor flaw in the story
though Clare evolved greatly as a protagonist, there were still lacking aspects in
Clares character-building which didnt reassure the reader on who she really is or
what kind of person she is.
Donald, being the possible antagonist of the story, was merely portrayed as
the typical business dude whos always stressing over phone calls and financial
lectures. He was one of the key characters in the story, however albeit he shared
many scenarios with Clare, the author failed to make him look abusive. Clare claims
that she was abused but there were no supporting scenes of such. Donald, being
strict whenever she goes out isnt convincing as a form of abuse. Thus Harrison
failed to at least add more to the characterization of Donald. He was not a character
to be hated nor loved. He was just merely an addition to the names mentioned in
the story.
As for the minor characters, Zilpha was always mentioned but the author
never fully described her. It would have been better if the author included some
anecdotes of Zilphas life rather than making her merely look like Clares friend
whos always smoking. Zilphas absence triggered a major emotional turmoil for
Clare and even though her daughter Laurel kept on insisting her to leave Donald,
her husband, it was still Zilphas death that made Clare realize it was unbearable to
continue being with Donald. So there should be also enough spotlight for the
readers to understand what Zilpha and Clare shared so strongly that they became a
formidable duo.
April, the woman Clare and Zilpha helped in fixing her car, was a very
remarkable minor character in the story. Harrison portrayed her as a tough woman,
just going with the flow of life, carelessly moving through its courses. Though her
presence was short, she made an impact on both Clare and Zilpha. She made them
rethink the kind of life they are living in that though they have everything, April
didnt deny that their life was indeed boring and that shed still rather choose hers.
Clare hated that feeling of being useless. When her children fled to college, there
was no more excuse for her to remain as a housewife and the short conversation
with April fueled her desire to work and escape from her idle neighborhood.
Though the story mainly centered on the past memories of Clare, Harrison
has his own very special way of creating minor characters that one cannot simply
shrug off after reading the story. Despite the minor flaws in giving more details
about some minor characters, it was easily compromised by the way Harrison
connected the characters to Clares life and how they influenced her.
V. Plot
The application of a retrogressive plot in the story was okay to the point that
it was understandable however it would be better if the author included dates in the
story so that Clares flashbacks wouldnt be that messy and there would be a clearer
timeline of events before the present time in the story. Casting that aside, Harrisons
plotline was remarkable and he presented the events in a smooth manner. He put
certain revelations right where they should be and that made the plot twists even
more surprising and Clares life story more intriguing to the reader.
The story was commenced with Clare driving Donalds Audi to visit their
son, Donald Jr. on Chicago after their visit with Laurel was cut short by a quarrel
between her and Donald. The first part of the story almost revealed just a fraction
of what was really going on which made the story more interesting and enigmatic.
It just introduced the basics of the story: Clare was suffering from migraines and
Laurel hated Donald. These ideas will at least orient the readers of the current
situation in the story, and Harrison did a great job in ensuring that the readers wont
lose track of the jumbled happenings in the story.
Harrison posted three conflicts in the story: man vs. himself, man vs. man,
man vs. society and man vs. fate. Clare spent incessant battles against herself
brooding whether to leave Donald for good or stay for the sake of living a
comfortable and secure life in terms of material things. Along with her battle
against her abusive husband and hesitant decision-making, she also fights battle
against migraines.
Clare also has bitter thoughts and pessimistic outlook on life, along with her
acerbic wit that got her close and infatuated to her doctor, Dr. Roth. They both
shared their thoughts on how glitz media cannot conceal the fact that life was
Dickensian and news were filled with pathos.
Given multiple types of conflicts, Clare has emerged some consider as a
deep person, or someone who views life differently someone who do not think
in a linear fashion but thinks of life as something that transcends black and white.
These conflicts helped Clare progress from a gullible kid, a rebellious teenager, a
weak woman and into the tough adult she had turned out to be, learning to follow
what her heart desires and brave enough to face the future filled with uncertainty.
The rising action was suspenseful enough especially when the migraine
attacks increased by a degree while Clare was still near the rest stop, still making
her escape. She was helpless enough to lay down flat on the ground when she heard
sirens of policemen coming, forcing herself to move far enough to hide despite the
magnitude of pain inside her head. The struggle of hiding while enduring mind-
boggling pain and the fear of getting caught again were the aspects that made the
rising action exciting.
The beginning of the story centered on Clares disappearance so perhaps the
climax of it all would be when Laurel found Clare once again and the broken couple
have to talk once again. Harrison then inserts a very dynamic personality of Donald
in this part he was crying in front of Clare asking her if the things hes given her
werent enough. Though, it was not really clear whether hes crying over her
disappearance or over the possibility of being in jail. The latter part is more
possible.
Harrison had a very subtle way in extracting the readers emotions in this
part. There is something scary in being found when all you wanted to be was lost
and hidden from the world and from the people you knew. Though Clare seemed
to be chill, of course she still fears that she might return to her normal, mundane
life.
The ending, although it isnt that special, was very realistic. Clare had
settled in Paris and started a new life. As a reader, I could have asked for more
things to happen in the end. Like how did the other minor characters react after
knowing what happened to Clare. But Harrison already wrote a very plain, yet very
honest and peaceful ending to conclude the story of Clare.