A Small, Good Thing
E1006410
A Small, Good Thing is a short story by Raymond Carver that poignantly explores grief, human connection, and the small acts of kindness that emerge in the wake of tragedy.
All labels observed (1)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| A Small, Good Thing canonical | 1 |
Statements (46)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
literary work
ⓘ
short story ⓘ |
| adaptationDirector | Robert Altman NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| adaptationType | feature film ⓘ |
| author | Raymond Carver NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| centralMotif |
birthday cake
ⓘ
food ⓘ small acts of kindness ⓘ |
| collectedIn | Cathedral NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| countryOfOrigin |
United States of America
ⓘ
surface form:
United States
|
| criticalReception |
frequently anthologized
ⓘ
widely praised for emotional depth ⓘ |
| explores |
the gap between strangers
ⓘ
the search for meaning after loss ⓘ |
| firstPublicationDecade | 1980s ⓘ |
| form | prose ⓘ |
| genre |
contemporary literature
ⓘ
realist fiction ⓘ short fiction ⓘ |
| hasAdaptation | Short Cuts NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| importantCharacter | the baker ⓘ |
| language | English ⓘ |
| literaryMovement | minimalism ⓘ |
| literaryPeriod | late 20th century literature ⓘ |
| literarySignificance | one of Raymond Carver's most acclaimed stories ⓘ |
| narrativePerspective | third-person narration ⓘ |
| plotElement |
a child is hit by a car
ⓘ
mysterious phone calls from a baker ⓘ parents keep vigil at a hospital ⓘ sharing food as an act of comfort ⓘ |
| protagonist |
Ann Weiss
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Howard Weiss NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| publisherOfCollection | Alfred A. Knopf NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| setting | American suburb ⓘ |
| studiedIn | contemporary American literature courses ⓘ |
| theme |
communication
ⓘ
compassion ⓘ everyday life ⓘ grief ⓘ human connection ⓘ isolation ⓘ kindness ⓘ loss ⓘ parental grief ⓘ tragedy ⓘ |
| titleSignificance | refers to modest comforts that help people endure grief ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.