Reference no: EM13374280 , Length: 1293 words

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Distrust

Distrust is the feeling of doubt towards the one's intentions, beliefs and behaviors. When trust is on the decline, distrust arises and gradually intensifies. Distrust often occurs directly as the result of personal experiences among individuals such as a breach of promise or dishonest with the ones or immorality. These aspects bring one's lack of cooperation, dissatisfaction, and even retribution and hostile behaviors. Once in place, this feeling forms a powerful frame on subsequent event and does not easily let us dispel the skepticism and suspicion. In interdependent relationships, this often entails the negative emotions such as fear or anger and anticipation of discomfort or danger.  Thus this is a preferred response that naturally protects the ones from mental and physical harm. Accordingly, our distrust toward other individuals can stimulate and exacerbate conflict and get our interpersonal relations worse. Under this condition, we are most likely to end up isolated and desperate. Distrust wastes social interpersonal abilities and nurtures excessive negative emotions and behaviors, causing individuals' pessimistic approach toward lives.

Raymond Carver's short story "So Much Water So Close To Home" helps to clarify the meaning of distrust. Claire outstandingly shows her hatred of man after knowing her husband and his friends' immoralities that they did not report discovery of naked dead body of a young woman as soon as they found her floating on the river but continued their fishing trip. He not only gets annoyed with sheriff's telephone calls but also does not feel guilty about delayed report, saying "tell me what I did wrong" (). Moreover, the incident reminds her of past case of murder that a girl was killed by brothers in where she grew up when she was still a little girl, bringing her fear of men. What he has done and the way he reacts to the death of a woman allows her to distrust men drastically, and her intense distrust toward men negatively changes her attitude accordingly. For example, when she is on the bed, she "lays on the far side of the bed away from his hairy legs" (). This shows that she tries to avoid physical connection with her husband. She seems to think that keeping distance between them helps her avoid dealing with unwanted feelings such as stress, anger and fear toward him. Furthermore, she identifies herself as a potential target for physical danger and sexual violence when a man in green pickup comes to her car to make sure whether her physical condition is fine. Not opening car door and window is like her voice of the resistance to men. In the end of the story she finds that her husband is innocent; however, her worrying about her son at home and urging her husband to have intercourse with her shows her continued distrust toward him and desperation for reestablishment of her relationship with him.

"A Rose For Emily" by William Faulkner is another story that includes the theme of distrust. Emily Grierson's life changes completely - "After her father's death she went out very little; after her sweetheart went away, people hardly saw her at all" (). The reason that she stays away from social life seems to be her painful experience with her father and boyfriend, Homer Barron. Emily is traumatized by her father's control over her. Due to his strict and overprotective mentality, she cannot freely get involved with men. After her father's death she may realize difficulty in living normal life that involves social interaction, without him. When the neighbors took her father away to bury him, her distrust toward society arises and brings anti-social attitude.  Her father eventually isolates her from social life. After his death Emily encounters the possibly trusted outsider, Homer Barron, and he becomes an object of her affection. Because of her isolation from her society, she becomes attached to anyone who shows her attention. In turn, she is extremely protective and insecure of herself in ability to keep the ones who she cares about in her life. This is why she ultimately controls Homer like what her father has done to her. Also her affair with Homer may be seen as retribution against her local community because of unappropriate relationship due to the differences in social class and religious background. Even though she obsessively continues her burgeoning affair Homer, being interfered with their relationship by local people and her cousins, Homer's uninterested in marriage and departure from town make her feel betrayed. This brings her strong distrust and permanently isolates her from everybody. Her distrust toward trusted one seems to trigger her murderous urge of Homer. We can recognize that Emily's unfortunate life derives from her loss of trust toward all human-beings that lets her stays away from entire world.

The story, "We Have Always Lived In The Castle" contains full of people's distrust toward others. The protagonist Mary Katherine, called Merricatt, fells isolated from local society. Her feeling of isolation is caused by distrust toward neighboring villagers because of their hatred and suspicion against her sister Constance about a murder case of her family members' death. Especially it is noticeable that her violent and hateful thought arises during her once-a-week grocery shopping and library trip.  (I still work on this paragraph. My idea is that Mary's distrust toward villagers brings hateful and violent thoughts and even fear. Likewise Villager people's distrust toward Blackhood family brings hatred and fear, caused by this family's arrogance and suspicion against Constance.)

***Instruction for Conclusion...Synthesize your definition with the facts from the stories.  In the end, you will articulate the relevancy of your ideas, building a relationship between your own unique views and how those views are supported by the stories.