Denial in The Jilting of Granny Weatherall and The Lesson Essay

You Cant Fight The Truth, But You Can Try

The short stories The Jilting of Granny Weatherall and The Lesson, written by Katherine Porter and Toni Bambara respectively, have very different overall messages but there are very important similarities that can be drawn from the character pools of each. Granny Weatherall and Sylvia are both pessimistic, and very resistant characters. The difference lies in the fact that Granny Weatherall is resistant and regretful for things in her past life towards a majority and Sylvia is part of a resistant majority against their neighborhood mentor, Mrs. Moore. Although they resist these forces, each character knows that it is ignorant to fight the inevitability of the truths that will persist.

In The Jilting of Granny Weatherall the main character, Granny Weatherall, is looking back on her life in denial. In her perceived final days her children try to help her through the struggles of being in such a state. She is very resistant to these efforts because of her extreme pride and independence. There are references to a past relationship where she got left at the alter by her husband to be, a topic she is very spiteful and dismissive towards. Granny Weatherall claims she could not have done better with her life. Her husband was wonderful to her and her children were just as wonderful, all of which she controlled and provided for. Although this may be true, the bitterness she has toward the man who left her is so strong that it implies that she is still reeling from the loss of the relationship. A grudge so strong and littered with such resent can only be the effect of the jilting by a true love. Unlike her husband, George filled her with such passion and love that she still is regretful to this very day. The fact that she cant accept it after all these years is the proof of her resistance to the fact that she still loves him.

In The Lesson the main character, Sylvia, is describing a day in the life of her childhood in the present tense. In this story, the main character is part of a resistant majority in opposition to Mrs. Moore, a soft skinned scholar who plans to teach the children important life lessons at an early age. Throughout the narration, Sylvia speaks discouraging words about Mrs. Moore and takes little merit in what she has to offer. Sylvias friend, Sugar, is also quite resistant to Mrs. Moores teachings: this appeases Sylvia because she feels more confident in numbers. Mrs. Moore takes the children to a more prosperous neighborhood in New York City. She is trying to get the children to see the imbalance of different sects of society and what they can afford to spend their money on in the appropriate example of a toy boat. Sugar comes to the realization that it is not fair that some familys have the option to spend a thousand dollars on a toy boat where the same amount of money could be used to feed a family for a year. Sugar mentions equality and how everyone deserves an equal crack at the dough. This impresses Mrs. Moore but upsets Sylvia because she showed an obvious sign of compliance by giving Mrs. Moore the satisfaction when she actually took something away from the lesson. Although Sylvia is a smart enough girl to learn the same lesson, she is too hard headed and stuborn to accept it.

In The Jilting of Granny Weatherall, Mrs. Weatherall is very stubborn and not accepting of the fact that the one who left her was her true love. In The Lesson. Sylvia is stubborn and not accepting in the same way toward Mrs. Moore. Though both characters know if they searched deep within themselves they cant admit or give in to the truths that are evident.