Structure
The short story “Departure Time” by Tessa Green follows a female character, Samantha, an English woman who is running away from her failed marriage in Greece, leaving behind her son Alexander.
The story is structured around a flashback plot, as most of the narrative presents the character’s thoughts and memories about her life in Greece with the family of her husband, Nikos. The flashbacks are not chronological, but fragmented. The character’s memories jump from one point in time to another.…
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Title
The title of the short story, “Departure Time”, suggests the narrative is about a voyage (journey). Upon reading…
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Middle
The middle of the short story combines present events with memories from Samantha’s past and her worries about the future.
The first tension point, which introduces the rising action, takes place when Samantha chooses a different seat on the train because hers is broken: “...when she sits in it the seat slides and swivels so she moves. The guard comes in and fixes 14A with a kick of a lever, looking at her snottily.” (ll. 6-7)
We find out that Samantha is “anxious” (l. 10) but we do not know why. Gradually, the author reveals that t…
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Ending
The falling action and the resolution overlap in the short story. After the old woman helps Samantha, the train continues its journey, leaving Yiannis behind: “There is a slow silence before she feels the engine through the floor on her bare stomac…
