Krik? Krak!

Themes

In the short story collection Krik? Krak!, there are several different themes played out. One of the major themes in this story is the diversity of suffering. At one point and in one way or another, someone has experienced suffering in his or her own way. The characters in this collection of short stories have each come from a different background and experienced different things. However, they share the same pains and sufferings to a certain degree. The protagonists of each story struggle against the economic and political diversity along with their own personal obstacles of despair and self-doubt. In "Children of the Sea", when the main character Celianne throws herself into the sea, the despair that she felt is felt by the narrator of that same story when he embraces death. The despair is also felt by the mother in "Caroline's Wedding" when she attends a mass for refugees, who like Celianne in "Children of the Sea" died at sea. However, when these different characters are witnessing the terrible things occurring to people they love as well as the country they love, they react differently. The character Guy in "A Wall of Fire Rising," tries to defy hopelessness by stealing a brief moment of glory despite the fact that he knows it will end in death. The mother in "New York Day Women" begins a new life in the U.S., but she still can’t face the suffering she left behind. Although the people all experience the same types of hardships, they still remain individuals.


This content is from Wikipedia. GradeSaver is providing this content as a courtesy until we can offer a professionally written study guide by one of our staff editors. We do not consider this content professional or citable. Please use your discretion when relying on it.