Analytical Essay on Just like That

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The son ends up killing 5 kangaroos, each kill making him feel more frustrated than fulfilled. After killing the first kangaroo, the son points the gun towards the father with no intention of killing him, presumably just to scare him for a laugh.

The father takes this very seriously and repeatedly feels the need to tell him to walk in front of him: Don’t walk behind me. The father said the exact same thing a couple of times in the beginning of the story, although this might be with the intention of making him feel like he leads the way. After the prank, he feels unsafe having an inexperienced boy walking behind him with a loaded gun.

The main theme in this short story definitely is growing up or transitioning from boy to man. Despite the fact that the story has an open ending, we can assume that he ends up killing the man. The boy thought that killing an animal would make a man out of him, but instead he feels nothing. He gets very disappointed of himself, and becomes fed up with the expectations from his father. He feels like he was being pushed into something very difficult, and when he did not get the positive outcome he expected to get out of it, he kills the father in anger and frustration. Growing up can be really difficult, and in some cultures, teenagers are expected to act as grown-ups even if they are only 12 years old.

“Just like that” is very similar to another short story called “The Shining Mountain” by Alison Fell. This story is about a girl, Pangma-La, and her father. Pangma-La is named after a mountain called the Shining Moutain, and together they go on a mission to climb it. The climb is very tough, especially for Pangma-La who is only a young girl. She slowly begins to feel weaker and weaker, but does not bother to complain in order to make her father proud. At last, she gives up her heart to an imaginary Sherpa woman. When the father finds her dead body, he cries out for the first time. Luckily, this makes the girl come back to life and he gets a second chance to show his daughter love and support even if she does not live up to his expectations.

Word count: 933

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