Structure
The short story, “Red Sari” by Amanthi Harris includes a few characters and follows a single event in the life of the main character – shopping for a sari for her wedding to please her mother. The story is structured using a traditional plot and includes narrative elements like flashback and in media res.…
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Beginning
The short story begins in media res (in the middle of events) with the main character looking at a wedding dress in a magazine: “I first saw the dress in a magazine for brides-to-be…” The description of the magazine picture with a woman wearing the dress helps suggest that the character-narrator is going to get married.
As the exposition continues, the character of the mother helps suggest that the characters have an Asian background: “ ‘How can you wear a dress? You must wear a sari.’ ”
The fact that the daughter’s future husband is named Andrew suggests she is marrying a…
