Blog Post #7: The Girl with the Blackened Eye

This story takes readers on the journey of a girl who has been abducted. She is weak and fragile but intelligent in her own way. She plays off on her innocence and intrigue and for some vague reason is sparred by the man who has kidnapped her. This story really drew me in from the start. I was expecting some stereotypical story about self-hate or depression when reading the first few sentences, but was surprised by the abrupt turn that it took into something much darker. 

Not being able to fully relate is what kept me reading. I wanted to know more about this scenario. It is something that all women dread to think of and hope that will never happen to them or someone that they care for, but it keeps happening. These girls are still being found, and the men are still abducting. I've always wondered what the journey of something like this would be like because of my fear for it. I believe Oates knew this piece of information about her readers: curiosity, fear, empathetic, and sympathetic would be those reading this so she made sure to tell her thought process. Not solely on the fear of being raped and kidnapped, but on each and every little detail of the entire experience. Why me? Why hasn't he killed me? What does he look like just in case I am able to survive? My last words to my family? Oates made sure to incorporate these fine details into her story which is what set is apart from anything I've ever read. The psychological journey that us readers go on throughout this short story makes it something less sympathetic and more powerful. 

I also love the title and how it plays into the story as well. Its so simplistic for a story that holds so much drama within it. With all of the dramatic turns that the story takes it kind of throws me off how the girl doesn't really seem afraid as she is telling it. I know that the protagonist is telling it from the past, but I still enjoyed how she somehow didn't make it all about herself and more about the experience itself. 

This story was amazing and made me think of things like this in a new light. Oates did an amazing job with grabbing readers in, captivating them with her dialogue and diction, and helping them see things through the eyes of this girl.