Wife-Wooing, by John Updike

Abstract

In his short story, 'Wife-Wooing', John Updike portrays the life of what seems to be an ordinary family through which he discusses matters related to matrimony. This story centers around two people who seem to have forgotten the meaning of their marriage. Through this essay, I will discuss the narrator's use of language and the description of his environment to show that this married couple does not, unfortunately, share the same views on marriage.

Throughout the story, the narrator uses vocabulary that distances him from his environment. He is with his family physically, but is mentally far away. His stream of thought is only known to the reader and the language he uses shows that he is distant from his family. In the first page, the narrator says: "Three children, five persons, and seven years." This statement immediately depicts the picture of an abstract family. The narrator also never mentions the names of the members of his family; he calls his children "the girl" or "the boy" (p.2),he makes comments about them as though they were children he is acquainted with but does not hold a particular affection for.