Structure

The short story “Blackberries” by Leslie Norris follows a chronological plot structure. It begins in media res when the boy and his mother walk into the barbershop where the boy gets his first haircut. 

The story is split into two parts, following the boy on two different days. The first part follows the boy from early morning, when he gets his haircut, to the evening, when the father promises the boy they will go on a walk the following Sunday. The second part follows the boy and his father on their walk on Sunday, as well as the moments after they get home. 

A brief flashback presents the father’s visit to Fletcher’s Woods when he fell into a blackberry bush. The moment when the boy and his father eat blackberries and stain their mouths from the fruit foreshadows the moment the hat will become stained from ...