Amy's Response

Moral Disorder provides an interesting variation on a traditional novel. With each story (from the stories I have read) the reader learned details about one family and their interactions with each other as well as others. From a close reading of  “The Labrador Fiasco” It is clear that age and timespan plays an interesting roll in this short story. From “The Labrador Fiasco” we have Nell as the narrator, who has come to visit her aging parents.. The father figure stuck out to me in particular. This was a relatable character because of the prevalence of degenerative memory in older adults, weather it is from dementia of some kind having to do with health problems and aging. You can see how his roll has changed as his heath issues has turned him into an incredibly inactive man. This struck a chord and made me think about aging and independence, as independence seems to be a theme through some of the other stories.

 I particularly enjoyed the parallel between the story being told within the story and the declining state of Nell’s dad’s health. The two stories seem to twine together perfectly. With each of the stories pointing out aspects of the other one. A particularly interesting line to me was at the very beginning where Nell’s mother was reading to his father. “This pleases him: he himself would not have taken the wrong supplies. In fact he would never have gone on this ill-advised journey in the first place, or – although he was once more reckless, more impetuous, more sure of his ability to confront fate and transcend danger-. (pg. 190).  This is a man who has lost a majority of what was once his life, however he still finds joy in his own semblance of intelligence, even in the belief that he would make better decisions than the men in a story. This joy is almost sad, because as he can recognize he would have made a different decision, his years of adventure are over as it is clear that he is near death and getting weaker.

In relation to the other stories this story seems a little darker, the story points out the negative side of aging. Age plays a big roll in many of these stories however in this one the stark difference in attitude between the elderly parents and the person telling the story pointed out just how important age is in relation to happiness and general outlook. Later in the story the idea of “home is brought up, which seems fitting as the story is about a woman coming home to visit her parents in her childhood home This is a predicament I think particularly applied to college students as we have not yet completely made our own homes, and yet we often no longer live in our childhood homes. Creating a disconnect, and perhaps a mission to find a place that seems like home. This mission is one that many of the characters are attempting to complete. This collection of stories discusses many important details of family life and growing up, making it universally relatable in one-way or another.