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Saturday, November 9, 2013

The Storm

Weather & the News
Amanda Hubbs 

Weather is a common motif used throughout gothic literature, in addition to many other genres of literature. I thoroughly enjoy the use of weather within literature because I feel that I can directly relate to weather affecting my mood, attitude, and emotions.

The use of weather within literature is generally used to convey a dark theme, a hint at death, or a sudden turn of events. Just as in “The Reach” by Stephen King, one of my favorite short stories from this semester, the weather played a large part in directing the story to its conclusion: death. Throughout the story, the weather continuously became worse as the story progressed, eventually leading to the death of Stella Flanders in the heat of the storm.

In some of the most recent news, there has been a super typhoon named Haiyan, which has been an extremely powerful storm. I have always found large storms or natural disasters extremely interesting to the point where I will watch the news coverage for hours on end. Just as with the massive storm Sandy, the dark weather, the cold temperatures, and sheer destruction brought about a great sense of fear, especially fear of the unknown. This new super typhoon has brought about this same fear; at one point in the storm, over 1,200 people were assumed dead.

"I feel fear. I don't know what the situation is there," Elinsuv said.

Although death and destruction are very negative aspects of life, they are inevitable and a mysterious aspect of life.

When a dreadful, dark storm affects part of our world, it is always amazing for me to see how the stormy clouds, the deathly hurricanes or tornadoes, and overall tragedy bring about a sense of harmony and unity among those affected and unaffected. Just as in “The Reach,” the family was brought together at the peak of the storm, when the clouds were the darkest, and when the conditions were the worst, just as it happens within our world when one is struck by tragedy.

He told them that during the great storms of winter the wind seems to sing with almost human voices, and that sometimes it seemed to him he could almost make out the words: "Praise God from whom all blessings flow/Praise Him, ye creatures here below..."



King, Stephen. “The Reach.” American Gothic Tales. Ed. Joyce Carol Oates. New York: The Penguin Group. 378-389. Print.

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