In Wetherell’s short story ‘‘The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant,’’ the narrator yearns for two things in the summer of his fourteenth year: fishing and Sheila Mant. According to Pulitzer Prize-winning short story author Robert Olen Butler, good writing revolves around the yearning of a main character. In his book From Where You Dream,…
Tag: W. D. Wetherell
The Bass, The River and Sheila Mant – Setting
The Connecticut River An avid fisherman and nature lover, Wetherell has written many essays about his adventures and explorations on the Connecticut River. This river has played a prominent role in the history of New England, being the largest river in this area (410 miles long). The river flows along the borders of New Hampshire…
The Bass, The River and Sheila Mant – Conflict, Suspense & Crisis
Conflict and Suspense Good fiction writers know that to hold their readers’ interest they must create conflict and suspense in their stories. These two elements, which are closely linked, are often what keep readers turning the pages to find out what happens next. This is true in most stories, not just those that are overly…
The Bass, The River and Sheila Mant – Themes
Sacrifice The main dilemma in Wetherell’s ‘‘The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant’’ reflects one of the major themes of this short story, namely, the theme of sacrifice. The narrator is torn between his desire to impress Sheila Mant in order to win her affection and his love of fishing. At the beginning of the…
The Bass, The River and Sheila Mant – Characters
Eric Caswell Eric Caswell technically does not appear in the story. Readers learn about him only through comments the other two characters make about him. Sheila talks more about Eric than the narrator does and is flattered by Eric’s complimentary remarks about her. She tells the narrator that Eric owns a fancy car and has…
The Bass, The River and Sheila Mant – Summary
Wetherell’s short story ‘‘The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant’’ takes place in August (sometime in the 1960s) on the shores of a New England river that runs between New Hampshire and Vermont. The narrator of the story is an unnamed fourteen-year-old who is spending his summer vacation with his family at a cabin. Next…