Running Shoes Flashcards
Who wrote “Running Shoes”?
Rick Barrett
Who are the characters in the Story?
Rick Barrett (Persona)
Todd
Helen
Nick
Where is the setting?
Main: Rick’s trailer
Flashback: Rick’s old home
What are the themes of the story?
Forgiveness
Family
Love
Death
Why did Todd run away?
He wanted to study in an art school but his father won’t support him.
It may also have been out of fear since his father was holding an ax.
How many years have passed until Todd reunited with Rick?
10
Todd ran away at the age of 18 and came back at the age of 28
What was Todd’s sickness?
AIDS
What is the Father’s relationship with Helen?
His nurse and second wife
What was Todd to Rick until they reunited?
“He had been only a product of my own ambition, my own imagination, my distance” (Barrett 78).
What does that say about the Father-Son relationship in the story?
The son becomes a bearer of the father’s ambitions, an image the father projects of himself.
What did Todd fear the most?
Being alone
Why didn’t Rick like going inside Todd’s room?
It goes against his imagined room of what his son should have and even uses the verb “littered” when describing his son’s artwork.
Why did rick vomit at the sight of Todd’s and nick’s nameplates?
He realized that his son and Nick may be gay.
What was the cause of rick’s reaction when Helen tried to nurse todd?
It is in the subconscious of some people that being gay is a disease.
It may also be because he thinks Helen may get infected by Todd’s disease (AIDS).
Why did the reporters say “He’s not crying, is he”?
Crying is considered taboo for men because it conveys weakness, so much so that the reporters say that the athlete’s tears must be sweat and compares it to a womanly action: childbirth
What was the significance of “running” in the story?
Running from an unpleasant father-son relationship to a better one
Running from illness
Running from loneliness
