Paul's Ignored Case

A detailed Summary of Paul's Ignored Case

The adults in Willa Cather's story "Paul's Case" generally view Paul as a bad case. Webster's Ninth Collegiate Dictionary defines a case as "a situation requiring investigation or action" (p. 211). However, none of the adults ever actually investigate why Paul acts the way he does. Although they frequently reprimand him for his behavior, no one ever tries to determine the cause of it. Paul is, in fact, a very depressed young man. He is unhappy at school, he is unhappy at home, and, in a way, he is even unhappy at the theater for he must constantly look at a life he knows he can never have for himself. Paul needs help but he never gets it. The lack of investigation into Paul's case ultimately leads to his demise.

Even though Paul shows clear signs of depression at school, his teachers never take any time to try to help him. To the reader, Paul's case seems fairly typical. He is an unhappy teenager and so he acts out at school. In fact, the very first thing we learn about Paul is that he has been suspended from school. His instructors describe his behavior as "impertinent" (5) and "wrong" (10). Furthermore, they also note that Paul has an odd physical aversion to them. His English teacher des

Paul's father also seems to ignore that fact that Paul is completely miserable at home. His home life leaves much to be desired. Firstly, Paul is very frustrated with his economic status. This is most clearly expressed at the end of the story when Paul realizes that "money [is] everything, the wall that [stands] between all he [loathes] and all he [wants]" (62). He craves a romantic lifestyle that his economic status just won't allow. This causes him to feel contempt for the life he has and the street he lives on. He doesn't feel comforted when he comes home, instead he has a "hopeless feeling of sinking back forever into ugliness and commonness" (19). His mother is absent from the story and we can safely assume she has died. His father doesn't seem particularly loving. In fact, Paul fears his father greatly. When he is imagining what might happen if he sneaks back into his house, he imagines his father coming to investigate the noise with a gun and just missing him because of Paul's scream. However, Paul wonders, "...suppose a day should come when his father would remember that night, and wish there had been no warning cry to stay his hand?" (23). He actually thinks his father might want

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Approximate Word count = 816
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

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Paul's Ignored Case

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