"counterparts"
"Counterparts" follows the story of a man named Farrington. It describes a typical day in his life. It begins toward the end of his work day, and continues on to him drinking at the bar. Upon arriving at home he discovers that there is no dinner for him, and his wife is at church. Throughout the story Farrington seems angry. Farrington seems angry because he feels he is unable to control certain aspects in his life, such as his dead end job, the fact that he is poor, and his marriage.
To begin with, Farrington hates his job because of the relationship he has with his boss. He and his boss despise each other, so Farrington's boss mistreats him. He talks to Farrington as though he is a misbehaving child. When telling him not to take an hour and a half for lunch he said "I might as well be talking to the wall as talking to you." (Joyce 365) Also, Farrington is unhappy at his job because he feels stranded. He has to support his family, and he feels that this is the best job he can do. Farrington does not have a good relationship with his boss, and feels trapped.
Another reason Farrington is so angry is because he is poor. He earns very little. After work he wants to go drinking but realizes that he has no money. As he was walking home Farrington kept fiddling with his watch, and then remembered that there is a pawn shop close by. Farrington decides to pawn his watch to get the money he needs to go drinking. He receives six shillings and spends all of it except twopence on alcohol. Farrington being an alcoholic spends all of his extra money on alcohol. Farrington is poor because he misjudges the use of his money.
Lastly, he is unhappy in his marriage and home life. When Farrington gets home his wife is not there, there is no dinner prepared for him, and the fire is dying. Farrington is unhappy in his marriage because he is controlled by his wife, unless he is drunk. She has gone to church and left him alone with no dinner. Farrington goes home...
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