'The Day the World Almost Came to an End'
Beryl Clarke, Contributor

It has been three weeks now that we have not looked at the short story on which we were working earlier. This week we will return to it. Let us deal with those questions that I had given you and which you have had ample time to answer.

1. Is the speaker describing something that has happened or something that is happening? How do we know this?

You will agree with me that the speaker in 'The Day the World Almost Came to an End' is telling us about something that had already taken place. We know this because she uses the past tense and informs us that she guesses that she 'got some good out of it too'. While she does not seem sure of this, there is the suggestion that she has had time since the incident to reflect on the impact it had on her. Notice she says that the event, to which she refers as a calamity, 'befell' her 'back in 1936'. If she had been describing something that was happening at the time, she would not have used the word 'back' in addition to the past tense.

2. What is the relationship between the church and its members?

The church, in this short narrative, is influential. The pastor is described as a hell-fire preacher, one who scared people with his description of the devil and hell. He would have kept his congregation, that is, those members who took the Bible literally, in a state of fear. I want you to notice that although the speaker's father is a deacon and church council member, he is not as easily frightened as other members. The church was more than that. It meant a great deal to those who lived on that Louisiana plantation. Everything on that plantation revolved around the church. People worked in partnership with it.

"...the Mother to whom the folks took their problems, the Teacher who taught them how the Lord wanted them to live, the Chastiser who threatened them with hell."

It is clear that the church was powerful, whether that power was in the hands of the pastor or the church council is not important here. What is, however, is the control that the church would have been able to exercise over these people as it found solutions to their troubles, interpreted the Bible and the mind of God, and doled out punishment.

3. What does Rena mean when she tells her cousin to 'get some religion'?

Do you think Rena understood what she was telling her cousin to do? I have my doubts. This was a phrase, it appears, that she had heard her elders using. It is likely, though, that she believed that it had something to do with saving one from going to hell but the specifics do not seem to be clear to either girl. If they are, they do not come out in the story. Miss Daya throws some light on the situation when she says:

'Lord bless you down there on your knees, baby! Pray to the Lord 'cause it's praying time!'

She continues with the question of whether both girls 'had got religion', thereby establishing a link between prayer and getting religion.

4. What convinces the speaker that the world was coming to an end?

She had probably heard the pastor deliver several hell-fire sermons, the information in the Book of Revelation terrified her, and the warnings from Rena and Miss Daya made her jittery, but it was the rolling, terrible rolling sound (of the plane) that convinced her that the world was coming to an end.

5. What do we learn about those persons who interpreted the occurrence of an eclipse as the end of the world?

Those persons who interpreted the occurrence of an eclipse as the end of the world obviously lacked knowledge of this phenomenon. It showed their limited education. Mark you, the garbled explanation that Rena gave may not have been the one that the ladies shared.

6. What is Daddy's role in this story?

Daddy was the anchor in his daughter's life. She trusted him. He was an active Christian, husband and father, seemingly hard-working and sensible. He is presented as a level- headed character in our story; and although a member of the church, he does not accept or seem to be bothered by the pastor's scare tactics. He has explained to his daughter that:

'Nobody knows anything about Revelation...'

'Ain't never been nobody born smart enough to

figure out Revelation since that Mr John wrote it.

He's just going to have to come back and explain it himself.

It is Daddy who gave a rational explanation about the end of the world. He informed her that only God knows when the world will end and, therefore, she was not to be alarmed by prophecies. He comforted her and informed her of the source of the noise that had frightened her so very badly. His laughter at her reaction to the passing airplane must have calmed and reassured her. Instead of being worried or judgemental about her behaviour when he caught her, he made a joke of the situation. Daddy was the only adult in the story with a sound and balanced view.

There is a bit more that we have to cover but it will have to be next time that we meet. Until then, don't worry about what others have; appreciate what you have instead. God bless!

Beryl Clarke is an independent contributor. Send questions and comments to kerry-ann.hepburn@gleanerjm.com