Insignificant Gestures Essay

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Delprøve 2 – Insignificant Gestures ‘Insignificant Gestures’ is a short story written by Jo Cannon. It is the story about a man who used to work as a doctor in Africa, but due to a tragic event is now back home and works as a psychiatrist. The story is told from the protagonist’s point of view: “When I returned from Africa…” The story is not told in a chronological order, but is instead jumping in time. At first we are in the present, but then the story flashes back to the past and the event that led him to the present, where the story ends. The flashback is used to explain the tragic event in the protagonist’s life, which made him change his life. The protagonist is a man, who used to work as a doctor in Africa. When he moves to Africa, he is assigned a house which comes with a servant named Celia. At first the protagonist is uncomfortable with having her serve him. It is not that he is afraid of getting help, or wants to be independent and do it all on his own, but it has more to do with not wanting to bother anybody else, or make them feel inferior. “Servants were a symbol of inequality and exploitation, and I didn’t need one…” He feels bad for using her, but as he realizes why Celia needs the job, he accepts her, but do not ask much of her. He still cooks his own meals. This shows that he cares for other people and their well-being. As time passes, he starts enjoying Celia’s company, “I grew accustomed to her amiable presence…” The protagonist used to draw, and when he realizes Celia is watching him draw, he invites her to do the same. Drawing soon becomes their thing and a relationship is developed. They do not share a physical relationship, “… our elbows at the table never touched” , they do not even talk, but she is his companion. That is the reason her death affects him so much, she meant something to him. He does not have any other friends in
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