Literary Analysis Life After High School - Essay Example

Zach decides to commit suicide after the rejection. Afterward, he finds true love in one of his close friends called Tobias Shank, who also turns him down. Continue reading this literary analysis “Life After High School” essay to learn more. In the story, Zachary is presented as an unrecognizable nerdy looking person. However, it was not until the ninth grade that he starts to express his feelings. Although his parents expected him to join Muhlenberg College, he wants to go wherever Sunny goes.

He was popular in the school as most students feared and thus disliked him, as the author says. Zach positions himself in the norms of the society when he falls in love with Barbara. High school is an age that marks the end of the transition in other students. With the help of Zachary, Sunny, and Tobias, Oates demonstrates the intertwined lives of these characters at that time. The author also shows how the three high schoolers free themselves of the trappings of their constrained conventional lifestyles in that era.

Oates presents “Sunny” as the perfect girl of the time. She is presented in the story as too good to be a Christian. These are characteristics that a perfect American high school girl was expected to possess in the 1950s. Barbara got the name “Sunny” from her teacher due to what the teacher referred to as her sunny behavior. “Tell you what, boys and girls – let’s call Barbara ‘Sunny’ from now on – that’s what she is” (Oates 512).

The name Sunny masks her behind a happier version of herself. Zach’s demise gives her freedom. Later, she stops using the name Sunny. After joining college, she focusses only on academics. She can realize her full potential after dropping all the “Sunny” elements in her life and becomes a celebrated teacher and author. Although Tobias Shanks is an agnostic gay, there was no place for such characters at the time. Consequently, Tobias is left with no option but to live in secrecy.

He confides his secrets and truths to Zachary. Therefore, upon Graff’s death, Shanks lives in peace, as his secret is safe from others in the school. He changes his name to T.R. Shanks and drops Tobias when he joins college. Later on, T.R. Shanks goes public about his gay life, thanks to the changes the country experienced in the 1960s and 1970s. Afterward, he becomes a popular playwright and director, getting various awards. At the beginning of the story, Oates presents Zachary as a typical awkward intellectual.

However, he falls in love with Barbara and wants to be wherever she is. He was so obsessed with her that he spent over half his college fund on the engagement ring. Unfortunately, she rejects his proposal. His request to have her put on the ring is ignored. His love with her ends tragically. Although he loved this girl, his true love was his close friend, Tobias. Unfortunately, society did not embrace same-sex relationships in the 1950s. To make matters worse, even Tobias rejects his proposal.

He takes his own life after the two rejections to find his freedom. The author provides more details about Zachary’s thoughts to the reader. Oates reveals the details of his car after his death. The decision to commit suicide might have been informed by the fact that society did not view his life as acceptable at the time. However, Zachary releases every one of any guilt for his decision to commit suicide. High school students can relate to the story of the three friends in the 1950s.

Although the society did not accept some behaviors at the time, it is important to accept that the setting was during a conservative period. In the 1950s, same-sex marriages and important roles of women in the society were not embraced. However, most of these issues are now acceptable. By reading this story, the readers can see the intertwined lives of these students in the 50s and the path they took to get their freedom.