Characters

The main characters in the short story “Tell the Women We’re Going” by Raymond Carver are Jerry Roberts and Bill Jamison. The friendship between the two men is central to the narrative. The same goes for Jerry’s inner conflict, which is born out of his frustration with married life and his responsibilities as a family man. Jerry’s inner conflict becomes external at the end of the story, finding an outlet in his murder of the two girls. Jerry's final actions of murdering the two girls are never explained.

The two girls, Barbara and Sharon, are only given a brief physical description, as seen through the eyes of the two men. They do not appear to welcome Jerry and Bill’s attention and are wary and defensive. One interpretation is that by murdering the girls, Jerry is be symbolically freeing himself and his friend from the constraints of domestic life, but the reader can only speculate on his motives. 

You can read a more detailed analysis of Jerry Roberts and Bill Jamison in the following pages.