Reading Response Posting #1

'Unless' by Carol Shields is the story of a writer, but more immediately, of a woman who is a mother. She is dealing with what feels like the loss of a daughter; a young woman who has chosen to withdraw from her life at university, ties with her family and boyfriend, so that she may sit on the corner of Bloor and Bathurst in Toronto wearing a sign around her neck that says GOODNESS.

The character is the narrator and she introduces her own pain and the location of her daughter from the very beginning, but not how she came to be there. The last time Rita Winters, the main character and narrator for the story, sees her daughter Nora in a relatively normal state is introduced to us as a memory. Nora is home, eating breakfast and slipping. She confesses to the crime of not being capable of 'loving anyone enough' (Unless 128) because she 'love(s) the world more' (Unless 129). She loves everything, the little bush paths in Indian she's never seen, the way the waves come in, the strength with which the sun shines; like a young child who is all at once infused and overwhelmed by everything she sees. The emotions are so intense that they can only be extremes and both happiness and sadness are heartbreaking.

This is the start of Nora's breakdown, a step on her path to find and become this unattainable GOODNESS that she feels is out there but beyond her grasp. It is also the beginning of Rita's wondering and the start of the theme for the novel. Why is it that this girl, unassuming and undemanding in all ways, feels like she can't be this GOODNESS she aches for.