The short story "If I Quench Thee" by William E. Chambers is an appropriate story as it effectively deals with the issue of racism by showing it through the eyes of a racist white father who assumes his daughter is marrying a black man.

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Tomas Farrell critical evaluation

If I Quench Thee

Choose a short story that you know well that deals with an important issue. State what the issue is and show, by referring to the plot, character, and technique and how the author has successfully explored the issue in an interesting and unusual way.

The short story “If I Quench Thee” by William E. Chambers is an appropriate story as it effectively deals with the issue of racism by showing it through the eyes of a racist white father who assumes his daughter is marrying a black man.

“If I Quench Thee” is about Arthur Stern, a successful business man who visits his daughter who works as a social worker in the ghetto. Whilst Arthur is visiting her she is visited by a black man who is rejected by her father because he is racist so he leaves. He waits outside and thinks about it and realises he can bare his daughter dating a black man so he goes back to apologise. When he returns he overhears the black man saying to Arthur’s daughter Monica that marrying her would be the best the he would do.  Hearing this Arthur fills will anger and leaves. He waits for Tod to come out then murders him saying that it was a mugging and it was self defence. In the police station his daughter turns up and tells her father that the black man was the vicar for her wedding. This has been the only time Arthur was ever scared.

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Arthur Stern is a successful business man who owns a mink farm.  He was in the Korean war which I think lead to his hatred of other races. Arthur and his daughter don’t get on well as he is a very materialistic person shown in line 31 when Monica refuses the cheque and says “Well I don’t really need anything-“

Seems to me you could use everything” replies Arthur. This shows that he things you have nothing unless you have money. Arthur is an extreme racist he thinks that everyone who isn’t white are a bunch of savages as ...

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