A. Claire questions why the fishing trip had to be so far away. It is mentioned that it is a tradition, an annual escape for the four men. It's the one time every year that they can pretend nothing else exists. Of course, finding the body sets off a huge wave of emotion for Claire and she starts wondering if he isn't drifting away from her emotionally. She picks everything apart, wanting to know if this marriage is still what it was founded on.
2. Why does Claire find her husband's behaviour during the fishing weekend so shocking? Why does it have such an impact on their marriage? What does she discover about her husband that she may not have known before?
A. Claire is shocked that Stuart could be so cold. Sure, he was drunk, but even then his disrespect for the dead was inexcusable. Many would agree with his pragmatism, because the girl really wasn't going anywhere, and to go back home at that point would have been impractical, though, admittedly, respectful. His disrespect, in that he left her in the stream, tied to a tree, is highly disagreeable because it would have taken just as much effort to take her out of the water.
A. As Claires' thoughts about him get progressively more twisted up, she pushes herself away, sending very specific messages. She's realising that there's a good reason Stuart is pushing her away, and does the same, even though in his manly way, he is keeping her close. She wants his attention, and gets it by breaking dishes, yelling at him, etc. She will then get away further, doing things like sleeping on the couch to get her message across.
1. If there's so much water, so close to home, why have they driven 100 miles "just to fish in a stream"? What do you think is his wife's opinion of this?
A. They will have chosen a place far away for their annual ritual, a place far away from anything where it really could seem as though nothing else exists. To the wife, they are shirking responsibilities and for what? She doesn't seem to want to translate her stress into their lives. When men "ruled the world", which they still technically do, what they didn't realise was that by not giving women a chance, they took so much work on themselves that they didn't necessarily have to do. There would be the stress that comes from work, then the suspicion that comes from escape.
2. How does the title of the song related to the story? What do you think the title means or represents?
A. In the song, the wife is very passive in her pulling away. She can't bare him touching her because she is so torn up, but she never pushes him away. As she realises the fragility of their relationship, she becomes fragile, as well, unlike in the story, where she is a different type of fragile, more confident. Her confusion manifests in a white state, frozen, icy... It's too bright to see.
3. What themes/messages from Raymond Carver's short story does Paul Kelly focus on in his song? What elements of the short story does he leave out? What elements of the short story does he change?
A. In "Everything's Turning to White", Paul Kelly focuses on the questions and confusion the wife feels, and keeps such elements as her going to the funeral. It leaves out her thoughts of the past, very focused on the present, and her current issues. It leaves out several characters as well, the mother-in-law, the son, and specific events. Changes made are those to the finding of the girl, making it much more innocent, giving the men less of an effort so it does not seem so awful. Another change is the nature of her fragility and questioning, how she is much more brittle and prone to breaking in the story.
