Discussion

One of the tasks of your assignment asks you to discuss how to deal with disappointment, taking your starting point in “Could It Be Forever” by Nina Stibbe. You are also asked to use at least two of the following phrases: initially, whereas, consequently, on the contrary, yet, however, finally.

First of all, we must understand what disappointment means. It is a feeling which implies someone’s trust being betrayed, someone failing to do a certain thing or the sadness or frustration of not being able to conquer a goal. In the short story, the narrator encompasses all these layers of the word.

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Dealing with disappointment

When dealing with the theme of disappointment, you should reflect on general ways in which one can deal with such a dramatic feeling. A first step would be to let your feelings pour to escape from them; this is exactly what the narrator in the story does: she begins to cry.

Then, you could try and focus on the outcome of the disappointment. This is what the narrator in the story does: she begins to reflect on the fact that she wasn’t the one to blame for the failure of the relationship (ll. 129-130). 

Think of whether the people or the events that failed you are important or relevant to your life right now or to the future.

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