Nina Isis 2.

The Idea by Raymond Carver The Idea : of voyeurism Introduction The Story The Idea is about the narrator, a woman whos name we never hear , and her husband Vern who are living in the suburbs, every 3 nights or so, they spy on their neighbors who are doing some weird act at night, where the man walks outside his house and looks at his own wife undressing. Both the narrator and her husband Vern find this act highly intriguing. Vern and the narrator seem to be living in a sense of dullness; they simply seem bored with their life, and each other. The only interesting thing happening is the said act happening on the other side of the road. To quickly summarize what the narrator and Vern each think of what their neighbors are doing, I would say that the narrator is both disgusted and fascinated by the act, while her husband Vern seems like he likes The Idea of it and might even be aroused by it. He also says maybe he has something there as in thats a good idea hes onto something. The text takes up themes such as voyeurism and what its like living in the suburbs. Boredom in the suburbs The narrator knows exactly what day they first started watching their neighbors, September the 3rd, she also says I hadn't seen him in three nights. This means she has been waiting for it to happen again. This could be because they seriously dont have anything to do. They are bored, and nothing exciting happens. it could be because of the fact that they live in the suburbs and more often than not, that they dont have anything to do. They are living in their own little world of pettiness and maybe even sadness. And to put it simply, they are bored of it. The narrator takes notice to all of Verns small habits, and seems to know his every move. That could be an indicator of how much time they must spend together, doing absolutely nothing, but watch TV and badmouth their neighbors, and also lets not forget the spying. She says "At night I'm awake and he wakes up and smokes." This could mean that theyre sad, and that their dull life is taking a toll on their mental state. Spying on their neighbor seems to be as exciting as it gets for them. Voyeurism - Vern Now that I mentioned exciting, I think Vern is excited by the act more than he leads on. And I would actually go as far as to say that Vern is turned on by The Idea of voyeurism. Vern acts like hes disinterested in the sense that hes not the one sitting up, waiting for the show to start, but saying that, I think that hes in fact very interested. He also almost panics at the thought of missing the scene, as described in the text: Vern was in the living room reading his paper with the TV going. I heard him throw down the paper. Vern also says to the narrator "Don't let him see you" and "Don't get up too close to the window!" like hes scared that if they get caught, the act would end. The narrator doesnt seem to notice what Vern truly thinks about it. She says "Vern always says that: Don't get up too close. Vern's a little embarrassed about watching, I think. But I know he enjoys it. He's said so." As if he innocently just finds it fascinating like the narrator herself. At one point after the spying has ended, the Narrator says to Vern Anybody comes looking in my window, theyll have the cops on them where Vern replies with a shrug and a you dont know As in you wouldnt know before youve tried it. While reading the text I felt that Vern enjoys spying on his neighbors, particularly when he gets the chance to see his neighbors wife undress. It arouses him, and I dont think anything beats the spying for Vern. I suspect that Vern is aware that his neighbors are doing some sort of sexual act. An act he might be a little jealous of.

Jealousy and a lack of attention The narrator

Nina Isis 2.E

It also seems as if the narrator is jealous of the wife when she says: What does she have that other women don't have?" and I think when she says other women shes actually referring to herself. She might be jealous of the way Vern is staring at the other woman, and wishes for it to be her. After her encounter with the ants she also says: Pretty soon I imagined them all over the house. I wondered if I should wake Vern and tell him I was having a bad dream as if she wants attention from him. The ants The narrator Someday Im going to tell that trash what I think of her. The ants at the end of the story are important because they are invading her house, it could be a metaphor for how she would feel if someone was standing outside watching her undress. The trashcan being the neighbors wife as she earlier on in the text calls her trash. The narrator acts like she finds the whole act disgusting. But at the same time the ants could represent how the idea is spreading inside her head. Shes so desperate for her husbands attention that The Idea of voyeurism might even seem appealing to her. Saying that though, she probably wouldnt ever admit that, to Vern or to herself. Conclusion I think the end of the story could be interpreted in many different ways, but I think that she turns on all the lights with the intention of being watched, she wants to try it, and when she hears a branch snap, as if someone actually was spying on her she shouts That trash and The Idea! as if she again is disgusted by it, and the idea that someone would spy on her, even though she does it herself. I think after reading this story most people will probably think, that what the neighbors are doing and also the spying is really weird and far out. But think about it, we might think that, but still most of us have watched Big Brother, Paradise Hotel etc. even though that might not be classified as a sexual act, we still watch it and are entertained by it. And isnt that merely what the narrator and Vern want? Entertainment?