Short Story Essay - Analysis of "The Stone Boy"

Gina Berriault's "The Stone Boy", a narrative story, mainly portrays the tragedy committed by a nine-year-old boy, Arnold, who has a big family of six people accidentally kills his older brother, Eugene. This pair of brothers has a pretty good relationship because they just act like typically brothers getting along very well. One night they went duck hunting but all out of blue that Arnold accidentally shoots Eugene with a gun which his father gives him, so that leaves Eugene dead and his responsible. The most unexpected thing is: Arnold keeps picking peas, instead of going back home immediately and tell his parents what has happened. So everybody thinks that he is a cold-blooded boy. Later Arnold was brought to the sheriff when everybody thinks that he is a cold-blooded boy, a stone boy. Angered by Arnold's coldness, they shut him out, trying to ignore him and they even do so at the one time when he is about to express his sorrow to them. It is real hard for them to get through the grief they have which makes Arnold shirk as weird as his actions after the accident. To earn the forgiveness, one night Arnold is about to express himself to his parents about his grief and guilt but his mother just simply turns him down as well as showing reluctant to talk to him. Finally Arnold's father goes through it and starts talking to Arnold; so does everyone in the family but it is too late. This story is definitely a fairly heartfelt tale which everyone in the story thinks that Arnold is a ruthless boy but for me, he is not. Even though he kills his brother without going back home to tell his parents right away, I do think that he is actually the other...