The Use of Force 2

William Carlos Williams is known for his imagery, so unsurprisingly “The Use of Force” is a very vivid and, sometimes, graphic short story. “The child was fairly eating me up with her cold, steady eyes, and no expression to her face whatever … She had magnificent blonde hair, in profusion. One of those picture children often reproduced in advertising leaflets and the photogravure sections of the Sunday papers.” Williams uses detail and familiar concepts (advertising leaflets and the Sunday papers) to better create an image in the reader’s head. He also employs his vivid imagery when he touches on the doctor’s violence: “Then she shrieked terrifyingly, hysterically. Stop it! Stop it! You’re killing me! … but before I could see anything she came down again and gripping the wooden blade between her molars she reduced it to splinters … In a final unreasoning assault I overpowered the child’s neck and jaws. I forced the heavy silver spoon back of her teeth and down her throat till she gagged.” These disturbing scenes are recreated clearly in our heads. I believe Williams does this to clearly show us the madness and the absurdity of the doctor’s behavior. William Carlos Williams also uses an unusual approach in his writing. He flows from the doctor’s narration to dialogue without warning. Even more confusing, he does not even use quotation marks during the dialogue. This makes the text feel a little scattered and unorganized which may serve the purpose of showing us that they doctor might be a little out of it. His mind might be a little scattered and unorganized. He might be going a little crazy. This could explain his erratic and over the top behavior.