A Shocking Accident

After reading this short story "A Shocking Accident" by Graham Greene, I think it is so interesting because of an unbelievable shocking accident. It is worth my time writing this for the sake of my own memory. 

A nine year old Jerome was called by his headmaster one day for a shocking accident. The headmaster found this very hard to tell Jerome about his father’s death. Jerome had believed that rather than a traveling writer, his father was involved in some sorts of dangerous adventures or a member of the British Secret Service. The headmaster described the accident to Jerome awkwardly as he himself found the accident unbelievable and inexplicable. While Jerome’s father was traveling in Naples, Italy in the poor quarters, a pig falling from the fifth floor from a balcony because it had grown too fat hit him and broke his neck (Greene described this part humorously; I cannot help laughing as well) . What Jerome expected was far different from the actual accident and he seemed confused and unable to think properly except one question “What happened to the pig?”

Whenever people asked about his father’s death, they reacted laughing unconventionally instead of showing sympathy for Jerome. This made Jerome feel very embarrassing, and he tried to narrate the event to become “boringly enough” to his listeners. There were two methods that he could think of (Greene used the word “boring” many times, while I still find the narration funny).  Unlike Jerome, his aunt living with him did not laugh but told the story to strangers interestingly. She described the event in great detail that made the story become more interesting.   

When an author passed away, the other person, possibly a writer, may send the letter to the Time Literary Supplement to announce his preparation for the biography of the dead author. However, nearly all of Jerome’s father’s biographies were never released (this part seems to be a sarcastic remark – worth laughing).

Years passed, he became a chartered accountant and was engaged to be married to a 25 years old doctor’s daughter Sally. Sally adored babies ever since she was five years old when she was given a doll which could move its eyes and made water. One trouble thing worried Jerome, his father’s death. He tried to tell her by himself but failed to make it happen. One week before he got married, Sally met his aunt. The two women conversed and his aunt told her about the shocking accident. What a miracle, Sally did not laugh and said, “How horrible. It makes you think, doesn’t it?”

Sally gave birth and Jerome came near and squeezed her hand and asked what she was thinking. The same old question: “what happened to the poor pig?”

And I am also wondering, “what happened to the pig???”