Themes and message
The short story “Me and Mr. Harry” by Batya Swift Yasgur explores several themes, including lack of communication, child neglect/parent failure, and loneliness. Through these themes, the author’s message is that communication between children and parents is essential and that, in the absence of it, children can be easily led ast…
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Lack of communication
The theme of lack of communication is a key feature of the short story “Me and Mr. Harry”. First of all, we advise you to focus on the lack of communication between parents and children. As you have seen, the narrator is never invited to communicate with her parents; on the contrary, the only instance when her parents talk to her is when they scold her for not doing house chores:
Mommy comes home early every night now. She never used to. Used to work all the time, and I’d let myself in with the key. Made myself cereal and milk and the TV kept me company till she came home. Then it was why didn’t I do my homework, and why didn…
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Child neglect/parental failure
Child neglect or parental failure is a form of child abuse. Among other things, child neglect involves the parents’ failure to provide for their children’s psychological or physical needs. In the story, the…
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Loneliness
The theme of loneliness is strongly connected to the theme of child neglect/parental failure. Because her parents ignore her, the …
