Short Story the Painted Door

The Painted Door Summary Short story A Painted Door written by Sinclair Ross is a story that hides many meanings. The intelligent usage of symbolism and comparisons also add to the amount of thought and understanding being put towards the overall picture. It is clear that the author is not only about telling the story, rather he focuses much more on the voice, setting, and symbolism of the piece. The story was relayed to the readers in third person; the author also being the narrator.
This gives him much more power to portray images and descriptions that could not be shown any way else. “She went on blowing against the frosted pane, carefully elongating the clear place until it was oval-shaped and symmetrical. ” In this particular statement he is making the readers think about why this is being done. The setting of the story allowed for a lot of symbolism to be used; it was an average farm in the midst of the winter season.
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A lot of white colors being described and the cold and emptiness were also to the author’s advantage. As John the farmer goes to visit his father for the evening, his wife Ann tries to hold him back. As the final decision is made by the male character, we are introduced time and time again to the cold and emptiness of the setting. These tools are the author’s way of telling us how she feels and to prepare us for what is to happen next. As Steven, a close friend comes over, Ann begins to pretty herself up.
These are all things that build towards the ending; of Ann’s Affair and Steven’s Suicide. The painted Door is a very interesting short story considering its great usage of symbolism as well as its setting. The author does a good job in portraying to us not only happenings but feelings and emotions as well. “The leap of light and shadow sank, and a chill crept in again…” The Painted Door Cover Page Rationale While creating a cover page for short story The Painted Door by Sinclair Ross, I considered many elements.
In the end I chose aspects of symbolism because they would be the most effective and powerful way to portray the meaning of the story, without giving away the ending. The color white was very significant throughout the entire story, whether it was snow or the paint Ann used. This is why I chose the main color to be white and the whole picture to be washed out and faded. The background picture was that of a cobweb, implementing the idea of old or lost. This is telling us that the love of Ann and John is as such.
The wood as another background simply describes the setting; an old farm house “unpainted” which is the whole reason Ann begins to paint. The chain coming across the entire picture is a symbol of the connection between Ann and her husband John. Many links form a chain holding them together even if they both don’t realize it. If you look closely to the bottom right corner, you will notice there is a cat looking towards a faded couple in midst of a kiss. The cat is a representation of deception and slyness, whereas the couple represents the affair between Ann and Steven.
By having the cat face towards that direction, it portrays the fact that the affair was a total act of deception. Overall, I think my picture is a accurate presentation and cover page to the story because of the specific choice of used symbolism, given examples and relation to the setting and plot. The fact that everything is faded together almost gives it a look as if it all were a memory, also adding taste to the story; being portrayed from the past. For all these reasons, I have made my picture look how it does. Works Sited Ross, Sinclair. The Painted Door. 1, 10