Kristen Arnett, “Gator Butchering for Beginners”
https://electricliterature.com/gator-butchering-for-beginners/
1. Fill in the blanks:
In her story “Gator Butchering for Beginners,” Kristen Arnett suggests that _____________. We see her point of view clearly when she writes, “____________________.” [Insert relevant quotation]
2. What is the main concept explored in the story?
3. What other metaphors about this concept (that is, the main concept in the story) can you imagine building a story around?
1. Fill in the blanks:
ReplyDeleteIn her story “Gator Butchering for Beginners,” Kristen Arnett suggests that overcoming the end of a relationship can as complex as butchering alligators. We see her point of view clearly when she writes, “Cut open a belly and history spills out: past food lodge in coiled intestines, innards stuffed with a romantic dinner…”
2. What is the main concept explored in the story?
The story explores the end of relationships. Using the slaughtering of alligator as a metaphor, the narrator provides several instructions to deal with breakups. It begins with the head, continues to the belly, and ends with the tail. Each step represents a crucial moment in the aftermath of a relationship. They emphasizes the importance of processing and remembering the good parts of old memories, and digesting everything to learn from previous mistakes.
3. What other metaphors about this concept (that is, the main concept in the story) can you imagine building a story around?
One could use the aftermath of a hurricane as another metaphor for this concept. In the beginning, everything may seem destroyed. All the trees rest in the ground, and there is no electricity in the street. After a breakup, some may feel powerless, like a country after a hurricane. However, with time, one finds happiness in other things, and flowers start to bloom. Live gives one a second chance to find love and nature a new ground to flourish.
-Amanda Conde
1. In her story “Gator Butchering for Beginners,” Kristen Arnett suggests that butchering an alligator is the equivalent of breaking up with someone you truly loved. We see her point of view clearly when she writes, “The initial incision should be sharp, precise. Don’t hesitate. This will be the toughest part. Do you know how hard it is to end a thing? They’ll say: Wait. They’ll say: I still love you. Remember making out in your car after work?...”
ReplyDelete2. The main concept explored in the story is the difficulty of breaking up with someone. The butchering of an alligator is a metaphor that compares cutting through the thick skin, skull, and tail to get to the meat, to putting an end to a relationship. Throughout the story Arnett shares memories of what once was a happy relationship while carefully instructing us how to “…feel for an artery.”
3. Other metaphors about this concept that I can imagine building a story around are:
• When someone eats my lefts overs I’ve been thinking about all day.
• Working hard and getting nothing at the end.
• Listening to your favorite song repeatedly until you can’t stand listening to it ever again.
-Amanda D. Méndez Rodríguez 03/16/2022
1. In her story “Gator Butchering for Beginners,” Kristen Arnett suggests that butchering an alligator is like dealing with a breakup for the first time. We see her point of view clearly when she writes, “Do you know how hard it is to end a thing? They’ll say: Wait. They’ll say: I still love you. Remember making out in your car after work?” (parra. 2).
ReplyDelete2. The main concept explored in the story is supporting those people who are going through their first breakup, by the author expressing her anger as a manifestation of grief.
3. I imagine dealing with a breakup like playing a soccer game. At the beginning of a game, you are not getting tired yet and you only think about scoring goals. Likewise, at the beginning of a breakup, you feel there is still a chance to fix things and show the best version of yourself. Halfway through the game you are feeling fatigue and it becomes more difficult to keep playing. Similarly, you start seeing the end of your relationship more and more seriously, preparing your mind and heart. Ultimately, the game can end one of two ways: your team either lost or won. At the end of the breakup, you may feel one of those two ways too. You either feel like you lost an important person in your life, or you feel like you won because being on your own is healthier.
-Angelys M. Rivera-Hernández
21/03/2022
1. In her story “Gator Butchering for Beginners,” Kristen Arnett suggests that doing surgery or butchering an alligator is as hard as going through a breakup with someone. We see her point of view clearly when she writes, “Dig into the bowels of the fridge and uncover the last pizza you bought together. Final jar of pickles, solitary spear floating lonely. Deodorant left behind in the medicine cabinet, fuzzy lick of memory on the tip of your tongue...".
ReplyDelete2. The main concept on this story is so people who have gone through a break up or rough patch with someone can relate to it.
3. My imagination of dealing with a breakup is like taking a bullet or a fatal blow and not dying from it. You survived the fall, but the damages will always stay with you. That residual bullet material stays in your wound but you just learn how to deal with it and eventually forget about it. People are going to ask what happened and will remind you of the situation that led up to it. You just focus on getting better and not doing the same mistakes you made.
1.In her story “Gator Butchering for Beginners,” Kristen Arnett suggests that anger is a manifestation of grief. We see her point of view clearly when she writes, “It’ll help if you drink enough beforehand to razor-sharpen your words. Slip someone else’s name into bed between the two of you. Thrust the dagger called apathy and slice without hesitation.”
ReplyDelete2. What is the main concept explored in the story?
The main concept that the story explores is the anger that comes with the betrayal of love. The anger is born out of the trust that was once put on the other person in the relationship. Once that trust is ruined, anger will take its place; and love will no longer be enough to hold the relationship together.
3. What other metaphors about this concept (that is, the main concept in the story) can you imagine building a story around?
I could build a metaphor around the act of getting a haircut.
-Cut off the damaged ends that are stopping your hair from looking beautiful. In the same way, cut off the person that is no longer making you have a beautiful life.
-Cut your bangs shorter. That way your hair won’t get in the way of your sight. Just like getting out of a relationship that was not letting you see things clearly.
-Cut layers to give more volume. Hair that has become all the same length often looks flat and boring. After a ruined relationship, life can feel the same way. But adding layers to life, like new hobbies or strengthening current relationships with loved ones, will make you feel alive again.
-Alondra Acevedo Ortiz
1. In her story “Gator Butchering for Beginners,” Kristen Arnett suggests that nostalgia of a past relationship is meant for one of the sides to not move on with life. We see her point of view clearly when she writes, “I still love you. Remember making out in your car after work? How we named the dog three times before anything stuck?” Later, she describes this as “a gator mating call; a bellow, rippling vibrations meant to stun prey.”
ReplyDelete2. The main concept explored in the story is the aftermath of a relationship ending. The speaker explains how breaking up compares to butchering an alligator. The narrator portrays the anger that a person might feel after a breakup. She makes a connection about how to relieve that anger with butchering an alligator.
3. The situation described above could be portrayed by a person who’s about to drown in the sea and tries to get his head out of the water to survive but ends up catching only their last breath.
-Simon Hidalgo
Delete1. In her story “Gator Butchering for Beginners,” Kristen Arnett suggests that by relieving aspects of the relationship and transposing them on to a brutalized metaphor of butchering a gator, the speaker illustrates and channels her anger, pain, and nostalgia as a process of self-healing. We see her point of view clearly when she writes, “The initial incision should be sharp, precise. Don’t hesitate. This will be the toughest part. Do you know how hard it is to end a thing? They’ll say: Wait. They’ll say: I still love you. Remember making out in your car after work? How we named the dog three times before anything stuck? That weekend at the beach we fed birds and one landed on your bare shoulder, then sang for us? That’s a gator mating call; a bellow, rippling vibrations meant to stun prey.” (paragraph 2)
ReplyDelete2. The main concept explored in this story is the aftermath of a break-up. This concept is depicted through the graphic and grotesque metaphor of butchering a gator which represents the speaker’s anger, pain, and, to some extent, nostalgia towards the relationship.
3. Another metaphor that can depict the aftermath of a break-up could be the feeling of when someone has recently finished watching a series they enjoyed. While watching and binging the series, they enjoy it. Towards the ending, it starts to become miserable. They are constantly reminded it’s almost reaching the end and try to take each episode as if it’s the last one. Once they finish it, sadness, and anger towards not being able to watch more from it takes over. Furthermore, a sort of longing to watch again remains. The possibility of binging it again is slight, but they are constantly reminded what it would feel like watching it for the first time again. They could also be reminded of the “good times” when starting to watch another series.
- Pennélope Alers (03/21/2022)
1. In her story “Gator Butchering for Beginners,” Kristen Arnett suggests that our subconscious (the alligator) is expressing itself while we are in the process of healing a wound in our relationship, so we decide to push it away and “kill” it once and for all. We see her point of view clearly when she writes, “Do you know how hard it is to end a thing? They’ll say: Wait. They’ll say: I still love you. Remember making out in your car after work? How we named the dog three times before anything stuck? That weekend at the beach we fed birds and one landed on your bare shoulder, then sang for us?”
ReplyDelete2. The main concept explored in the story is the struggle between the conscious and the subconscious when ending a love relationship.
3. A metaphor on which I could base my story demonstrating and exposing this main concept would be imagining a person throughout a relationship and how depending on his mental state, the dreams, and the control he has over them will be affected. When he feels safe, confident, and comfortable with his relationship, he manages to perfectly control what happens as if it were a God, where everything is happiness and light. On the other hand, when he feels overwhelmed, insecure, jealous, or even after a breakup, he is unable to control his dreams at all, going from being a God and maintaining control, to being a slave to himself, where dominates the darkness, fear, weakness, and there is no escape but to get up and that the conscious in the real world manage to dominate the subconscious in dreams.
-Emmanuel Santiago
1. In her story “Gator Butchering for Beginners,” Kristen Arnett suggests that butchering a gator is like a never ending metaphor for a break up. Ending a relationship and doing it so well that there is nothing left to rekindle or resuscitate. We see her point of view clearly when she writes, “The initial incision should be sharp, precise. Don’t hesitate. This will be the toughest part. Do you know how hard it is to end a thing? They’ll say: Wait...”.
ReplyDelete2. The main concept explored in the story is to know that whatever you consume, stays lodged inside your flesh as muscle memory.
3. Another metaphor for a breakup could be a car crash. Give a detailed and precise description of the damage where you can actually visualize the dismembered bodies involved. Compare the gross and maybe visceral metaphors of the physical crash to the actual emotional breakup.
- Miranda Martínez
1.
ReplyDeleteIn the story “Gator Butchering for Beginners,” Kristen Arnett suggests that the act of butchering an alligator is an appropriate metaphor for the loss, anger, grief, and transformation / overcoming aspect that comes with the process of ending a relationship. We see her point of view clearly when she writes, “Now for your trophy. Drape the skin wetly across your shoulders. Zipper the cape snug beneath your chin; pull over the rubbery hood. Feel for the sudden ridge of snout, glance claws off the sharp jut of new teeth. Acknowledge that everything you eat was once part of something bigger. Know that whatever you consume stays lodged inside your flesh as muscle memory”.
2.
The main concept addressed in the story is the effects caused by the end of a relationship and how to manage it. As mentioned in the title, this process of loss is compared to the death of an alligator. This process is categorized into stages. Through these steps, there is a sense of nostalgia and a feeling of transformation.
3.
A metaphor around which I can imagine building a story is: eating something sweet like honey.
- Beginning of a relationship: At first it is sweet, pleasant, and enjoyable.
- During the relationship: As you keep eating it, suspicions begin to arise that you won’t like the result of this sweetness, but you keep eating it anyway.
- End of relationship: When you overeat it becomes unpleasant, exhausting, and annoying.
- Amanda Quiñones
1. In her story “Gator Butchering for Beginners,” Kristen Arnett suggests that the process of butchering an alligator is similar to coping with a relationship breakup. We see her point of view clearly when she writes, “Do you know how hard it is to end a thing? They’ll say: Wait. They’ll say: I still love you. Remember making out in your car after work? How we named the dog three times before anything stuck? That weekend at the beach we fed birds and one landed on your bare shoulder, then sang for us?” (paragraph 2).
ReplyDelete2. The main concept that the story explores is the difficulty of ending a relationship for the first time. The butchering is an alligator is used as a metaphor. The author begins explaining several instructions to show the readers a glimpse of how it is. Each step represents a crucial moment during a relationship.
3. I can imagine dealing with a breakup like if it was a car crash. Once the crashed happened, in the instant maybe you didn’t feel any pain. On the other, during the healing process it can feel like the worst thing. You feel like your heart is racing so fast you can’t control it, that everything around you isn’t the same anymore, and so on.
- Marisabel Cordero Méndez
1. In her story “Gator Butchering for Beginners,” Kristen Arnett suggests that butchering a gator is like ending a relationship. We see her point of view clearly when she writes, “Flay everything open. Pry free the heart. It takes some nerve. What I mean is, it’ll hurt, but you can get at what you crave if you want it badly enough.”
ReplyDelete2. The main concept of the story is the effect of ending a relationship. It is explained that a breakup is like butchering an alligator and that you will feel sadness and anger.
3. I imagine a breakup to feel like the loss of someone you knew, like a family member, who left you forever and you will not get the chance to speak or see them again.
-Jekxelmaniel Martínez Lugo
In her story Gator Butchering For Beginners, author Kristen Arnett explores the process of ending a relationship through the metaphor of killing a gator. This can be seen in the following line:
ReplyDelete“The initial incision should be sharp, precise. Don’t hesitate. This will be the toughest part. Do you know how hard it is to end a thing? They’ll say: Wait. They’ll say: I still love you. Remember making out in your car after work” – Kristen Arnett.
The main concept of the story is the difficulty and pain that comes with ending a relationship. It can be painful as well as ugly and hard to swallow. It can be compared to butchering an alligator with how hard it is.
Personally, I find the idea of having to destroy something you don’t want to destroy very fitting to the subject matter at hand. I would use other similar metaphors like destroying a home you’ve lived in for a long time or some sentimental object you need to let go of.
In her story “Gator Butchering for Beginners,” Kristen Arnett suggests that operating on gator is like overcoming a relationship. We see her point of view clearly when she writes, “Do you know how hard it is to end a thing? They’ll say: Wait. They’ll say: I still love you. Remember making out in your car after work? How we named the dog three times before anything stuck? That weekend at the beach we fed birds and one landed on your bare shoulder, then sang for us? That’s a gator mating call; a bellow, rippling vibrations meant to stun prey.”
ReplyDelete2. What is the main concept explored in the story?
The main concept explored in the story is how to overcome a breakup. The initial operation of the allegator is the beginning of the detachment of that love, which brings depression. The end leads you to reflect that everything happens for a reason.
3. What other metaphors about this concept (that is, the main concept in the story) can you imagine building a story around?
The death of a loved one is like letting go a ex boyfriend who will not be by your side, but will be alive.
- Luis Merced Cotto
1. List two main ideas or concepts that you find in this story
ReplyDelete- obssesion
- aging
- secret
- sexuality
2. Choose one of these and use it to formulate a question about the story.
(How does Jamel Brinkley explore the theme of obsession and aging in his story “A Lucky Man”?)
3. Now write a paragraph in which you begin to answer this question, including a quote from the story. Remember to use a signal phrase and provide a page number.
The author suggest the theme of obsession and aging with the main character Lincoln, who shows a strange fixation to young women. His obsession with observing the faces of these women was so deep that he portrayed them and kept them on his phone. The consequence of his actions ended his marriage. “Alexis had been upset when she discoverd the pictures, but why? They were all pictures of faces, not that other kind” (pg. 146)
Luis Merced Cotto