Setting

The short story “Leftovers” by Nickolas Butler is set in a contemporary setting somewhere in the US, as indicated by the references to mobile phones (l. 48), the popular American brand Tupperware (l. 119), and the EMT - emergency medical technician (l. 94). The present action spans over a few hours, but it is combined with past actions conveyed through flashbacks.

Physical setting

The present action takes place in Mason’s mother house, after her death: “The house is so quiet. All the radios and televisions are gone. Most of the rooms are so barren they echo.” (ll. 3-4); “The attic had been the worst. Mouse turds and dust and pink fiberglass insulation and heat and cold. Boxes of magazines, boxes of yarn, of Christmas lights and relics of Mason’s childhood.” (ll. 78-80).

The story also mentions Mason replacing a lightbulb and fixing the toilet in his mother’s house while she was alive. In these flashbacks, the setting elements become an excuse for Mason to spend more time with his mother.

Important setting elements are the fridge filled with food and the kitchen: “I count six bottles of mustard, Renee says. And butter. Eight sticks in here, and four boxes in the freezer.” (ll. 5-6); “…it is still full of food. Apples, carrots, cabbage, cheese, milk, pickles, salad dressing, sour cream, whipped cream, yogurt...” (ll. 102-104).

Food functions as a symbolical element in the story, as it was a ...