December is my usual date with that sweet old lady from Ontario, Canada, Ms. Alice Munro. Since am on a sequential reading of her works, I read "The Progress of Love" (1986), in December 2020, as one of the last books of the year.
The collection gets underway with the title short story, and it is a vivid illustration of the changing face of Canada, as how the average person lived it. The differences in how one views religion, relationships, even money over a period of 40-50 years has changed. The protagonist of this story, who is the narrator, is quite the modern woman of the time, employed, a divorcee, and now seeing other men as she sees fit. Yet, she hangs on to a memory of how her father protected her mother against a ridicule from her sister, over a certain decision that was quite insane, in today's terms - maybe in terms back then too. Hardships, even those that were half brought upon by one's self, were things to admire. The silent assent, or maybe a respect for her mother's decision by her father, lives on within her as a landmark of love - maybe something that she her self has never quite found. On the surface it is a very ordinary story, but when looked upon from the viewpoint our protagonist, it is a deeply meaningful, and a very personal anecdote, presented with enough nuances to keep the reader fully in the story. Vintage, Munro!
To come to the rest of the short stories.
I think, the title "Progress of love" was chosen as it could represent each of the eleven stories, with their quirks. Progress here could represent the changing face of modern Canada, across the 1930s ( I venture to suggest, for the early days are not quite clear ), till the time of the moon landing, and then to the 1970s. How does Love and Relationships change in this climate, of modernity ? Is Progress, difficult to understand, or is it different from stability of a relationship ? In these stories we find that instead of the option less stability of earlier relationships, the latter day individuals tend to open up about their emotions, and perhaps more genuine and concerned about them. Marriages last, just as long as it makes sense for them to last. Couples break up and find new partners as their children enter their teenage years. This is in contrast to the times of their parents, or grand parents, when life was living through the rote of daily toil - hard life in farms, more often than not.
In "Lichen", the relationship between David and his ex-wife stellar is so deep, that he confides in her about his subsequent advances on other women, and seeks advice too.
In "Monsieur les Deux Chapeaux", Ross, Colin's rather unpredictable brother finds some solace through his brother's wife, in a wholly platonic relationship. Colin found out rather early in life that minding his brother, is a life long unmentioned responsibility of his, and is glad in an undeclared way, that Glenna, his wife understands this.
"Miles City, Montana" is rather a disturbing story. An incident of a drowning of a small boy when our protagonist was a young girl, has etched such an image in her mind, that it haunts her throughout life - and rises just adequately in caution, when her own child faces a similar danger.
"'What I can't get over' said Andrew, 'is how you got the signal. It's got to be some kind of extra sense that mothers have."
Partly I wanted to believe that, to bask in my extra sense. Partly I wanted to warn him - to warn everybody - never count on it."
A wife discovers when running an errand that her neighbours had committed suicide overnight. But the news hits the town, after she goes to Police, before her own household hears of it - a tactful omission on her part, as her husband later discovers to spare the gory details. ("Fits")
Love is a strange thing, if am to state the well trodden upon, obvious. Two cousins, roughly of same age, had come to town attend business school, from the country - which was about ten miles away. In "The Moon in the Orange Street Skating Rink", it tells us how one of the cousin's decides to abruptly end his plans at better prospects and, settle on a girl with some peculiarities in her physique - for life, as the story proves, after a casual affair that both the boys have with her.
In "Jesse and Meribeth", we come across a pair of adolescent girls, who has nothing to hide from each other, having their first exposure in sensuality. Jesse's exposure comes under abuse of a minor, and the offender and offence ( although Jesse found him offensive for painting her solely of the guilt, instead of it being an advance from him, which she would've welcomed ) reminds me of "My Dark Vanessa", albeit separated by 50 years, possibly.
Mary Jo - who had left the rough country life to become a nurse - has an affair with his employer, doctor, who takes care of all her needs. In a crowded plane to a holiday destination, she finds that all around her people are in various types of relationships - an "Eskimo girl, who hints that she needs protection from her man, young parents learning their responsibility, Indian parents possibly recent immigrants - and our protagonist mulls her position in life.
"A Queer Streak", is possibly the most complex short story in this collection, and possibly the longest. It suggests the difficult journey that youngsters from rural Canada had to endure towards systematic independence. The battle that females fought, and as a result how subsequent generations could talk of female liberty, from a time when the concepts were non-existent is presented in a captivating way. From another angle, the sacrifice that the elder sister makes, losing an opportunity of a suitable match - a would be minister of a church - to take care of her less secure and vulnerable sisters, gives a blow to the pretensions of religion, when a real need arises.
Mother and daughter relationships won't not always be easy - especially when the daughter is an adolescent. In Circle of Prayer, an accidental death of a fellow school girl is focused upon to explore the complexity of a relationship that a daughter has, with her mother, who has her own demons to fight.
What happens when a couple knows each so well, inside out that it is void of all sparks ?
"They had found out so much about each other that everything had got cancelled out by something else. That was why the sex between them could seem shamefaced, merely and drearily lustful, like sex between siblings"
The result ? Isabel, the wife, looks for a spark, which she couldn't deny herself, after long years of marriage to a self obsessed man. ( White Dump )
I find that this is the seventh collection of short stories that I've read of Alice Munro, and not one of them was I disappointed in. I hope to follow my practice of completing each year by reading some fantastic stories by that gentle lady from Ontario, Canada, in years to come.
Originally Published - 1986
My Rating *****
Genre - Short Stories
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