Loneliness/Isolation

 The theme of loneliness and isolation is the main theme in the story “Some People are Meant to Live Alone”. This story is completely and wholly about loneliness and living in isolation.  Frank Collymore's "Some People are Meant to Live Alone", is an interesting short read that focuses in on the conversation and relationship of a child and his Uncle Arthur. Uncle Arthur is older and lives by himself. When his Nephew comes to him and asks him, if he feels like he ever gets lonely, his response is a puzzling one. He says that he never gets truly lonely and that, "Some people are meant to live alone."(Collymore). In this instance it seems as if Uncle Arthur almost admits to being somewhat lonely, while trying to defend his own situation. By saying some people are meant to be lonely, it shows a sort of fixed mindset. He comes off as someone who deserves pity and he seems almost content with being lonely.

Loneliness runs with the previous artifact, because they both lead to the fact that a lot of the stories that we read did not have a happy ending. Death often leads to isolation, but many people who live alone at older ages experience death around them or they experience it themselves. Loneliness can often represent the feeling of a nations society. Many people in third world countries feel like they are alone because they are struggling. In this case, these dark tones and imagery in many of the Caribbean stories are a direct representation of the dark living conditions for the majority of the cultural people all over the Caribbean. Many of these stories have many complicated levels to them that can be completely overlooked. The feeling of one person in a story is used by many items and feelings to draw attention to the feeling of an entire nation of people. Loneliness and isolation can drive people mad or keep them sane, but no social interaction is tough for many to deal with.