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Figure Eight : A Collection Of Short Stories, Martha Kilgore Rice

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Most of the eight stories in this collection are about individuals who are alienated. They are unable or unwilling to break through the barriers that separate them from others. The stories are contemporary; the settings are urban/suburban. The past plays an important part in defining and limiting the present, and fantasy sometimes replaces reality as an option for dealing with the loneliness of isolation. Direct confrontation is another option. Desire for power and the need for assertiveness are important elements in the action of the stories. By contrast, retreat into submission may become the sad alternative.

The voices change with …