Language

The language of the short story “Tobias” is simple and minimalist. The choice of words is related to the field of work as the main character is unemployed. The author combines to-the-point narrative passages with dialogue, making the story more dynamic.

Imagery is used very little in the story, mostly in connection to the way the characters act. The author uses descriptive words to show us how they behave: “Bending down, she snatched a twenty-dollar bill out of her purse. She carefully folded it into a paper airplane and flew it toward him. It nosedived in front of his guitar, and Tobias had to pick it up.” (ll. 32-34)

Only one simile is used in the text, when Miriam claims that Tobias does not “act like a success” (p. 1, l. 19). This simile is meant to emphasize her disappointment with Tobias’ attitude towards his unemployment.

Repetitions and symbols add to the meanings of the story and help us better understand the c…

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Repetition

During the conversation between Tobias and Miriam, several repetitions are used. First, we notice the recurrent use of the word "depressed", which is meant to convey how the characters feel as a result of Tobias being unemployed:

“ ‘Are you depressed?’ she asked. ‘You seem depressed.’
‘I’m unemployed. That makes a difference.’
She blew out a …