What is the PURPOSE of this story by Katharine Brush (';Birthday Party';)?

http://mb.sparknotes.com/mb.epl?b=2572%26amp;m鈥?/a>





That is the link. Or here:





www.sccollege.edu/projects/433/Birthda鈥?br>




I need the purpose and then I need to figure out literary devices to support the purpose. I can do that on my own, but I just cannot figure out the purpose.What is the PURPOSE of this story by Katharine Brush (';Birthday Party';)?
The Birthday Party shows unreliable narrator, you have to analyze the story.


It makes it sound like the man is hostile and rude but if you really go through it, it shows that it kind of plays two sides of the fence with an unreliable narrator.


The women walks in with a huge hat [looking for attention] and grabs a seat. The man is an ordinary man, meh. The waiters come out with a huge PINK cake. It sounds like the women is doing much for her husband, and is excited. He says something short yet hurtful and she bursts out in tears. Attention whore once again. It was a pink cake and the man wasn't looking for to much attention, and she seems to direct the attention to them.


Therefore when reading it, you may think at first, how rude of the man, what a dick. But analysis shows that hey, it wasn't really all his fault, the women was trying to make a scene. But we can't see this because unreliable narrator, the narrator is watching from afar and doesn't show the thoughts and emotions.What is the PURPOSE of this story by Katharine Brush (';Birthday Party';)?
I don't agree with aaron entirely. This woman isn't an attention whore when it comes to the crying. The passage specifically states that she is crying ';quietly and heartbrokenly and hopelessly'; implying that she doesn't want the attention for crying and she did not ';burst into tears'; as aaron states Report Abuse

WHAT! Aaron can't be more wrong!!!! Where did you get ';huge'; from I quote the story ';a little pink glossy cake'; it states little so many times for this is a little surprise but really its not little, this women is trying to save her marriage, thats why she is wearing her ';best gay brimmed hat'; moron Report Abuse

WHAT! Aaron can't be more wrong!!!! Where did you get ';huge'; from I quote the story ';a little pink glossy cake'; it states little so many times for this is a little surprise but really its not little, this women is trying to save her marriage, thats why she is wearing her ';best gay brimmed hat'; moron Report Abuse

No kidding. I hope Aaron didn't get such a poor reading validated in a class. In the over 20 years I've taught the story, that is the most obvious misreading ever. Report Abuse