What We Talk About When We Talk About Love by Raymond Carver

What We Talk About When We Talk About Love by Raymond Carver The short story What We Talk About When We Talk About Love, by Raymond Carver, is about two married couples drinking gin and having a talk about the nature of love. The conversation is a little sloppy, and the characters make some comments which could either be meaningless because of excessive alcohol in the bloodstream, or could be the characters true feelings because of excessive alcohol in the bloodstream. Overall, the author uses this conversation to show that when a relationship first begins, the people involved may have misconceptions about their love, but this love will eventually die off or develop into something much more meaningful. The author sets the†¦show more content†¦Mel says, There was a time when I thought I loved my first wife more than life itself. But now I hate her guts. I do.; (p 114) Mels former relationship was once full of love, but eventually the love withered away until it was gone. Also, Mel talks about how love can continue even if you lose your first love. Mel says, And the terrible thing, the terrible thing is, but the good thing too, the saving grace, you might say, is that if something happened to one of us–excuse me for saying this–but if something happened to one of us tomorrow I think the other person would grieve for a while, you know, but then the surviving party would go out and love again, have someone else soon enough.; (p 114) In this quote, Mel reveals that if any one of them dies, his or her spouse would eventually lose the love they once had for him or her, and would then go and love another. So, the author has shown us that love can die off and be replaced by anger or hatred, or even love for another. In contrast to these fairly pessimistic views on love, the author describes an instance in which a couple found true love. Mel tells an anecdote of an old couple that was admitted to the emergency room after a very bad car accident. The two people were wrapped up in full body casts, and as a result they could not see each other. Mel noticed that the old man was very sad, evenShow MoreRelatedWhat we Talk About When We Talk about Love by Raymond Carver649 Words   |  3 PagesLove The story started with a group of four people drinking gin in a room. The first man to say the first word was Herb. Herb was a cardiologist his specialty was the heart. He started talking about the value of love. â€Å"Love is somewhat spiritual or agape in nature,† (1) He said. Herb also thought that the real love was nothing less than spiritual love. Herb’s idea of love was totally different with his wife’s idea of love. Terri was another member from the group. She told her friends that she hadRead MoreEssay about Raymond Carver (what We Talk About When We Talk About Love)892 Words   |  4 Pages Mel McGinnis of â€Å"What We Talk About When We Talk About Love† seems like that one guy that everyone seems to know. 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