Reliving the Past

"Accomplice" was relatively confusing in some parts of the short story. Ms. Hempel is a seventh-grade English teacher who is portrayed as being frustrated with her position in the faculty. She is having difficulty writing the anecdotals about her students. It's as if she has a slight OCD problem in that she can't just write a simple gesture about a student, but rather it has to be an elaborate essay describing the child in adequate detail. She frequently analyzes each child by describing them with a simple adjective each time they reply with a remark about books or writing that comes across her attention. It's as if she needs to categorize her students as she sees fit. What made this interesting however, is that when she introduces a new book to the class she desperatley seeks the approval of her class after she has already so easily judged each one of them. It was the same with the parents as well, she sought approval from the parents with her book selection, and became esctatic with their compliments. She displayed characterics of a child in a way in that she craved the attention of others even that of children.

Ms. Hempel comes across as being quite judgemental and nervous. When she is explaining her book selection to the parents of her students, she went back and forth about what to say and what not to say in her head. She desperatley wanted to say the right response in hopes of feeling accepted amongst her peers. Then when the parents shower her with compliments, it really alters her mood creating for an easier atmosphere. I found it interesting that this helped to create her flashbacks to her father and how he could "always be counted on." She is sort of self-absorbed and likes to relive her past memories, but with the attention of her father. This is where her desperate need for attention would fall into place.
(David Roberts, Post 4)