A CRITICAL STUDY OF YIYUN LI’S GOLD BOY, EMERALD GIRL FROM A LITERARY STYLISTICS PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

The present study evaluates Yiyun Li’s short story Gold Boy, Emerald Girl focusing on its narrative style and idiosyncratic themes.  It includes her third-person limited perspective, brevity and psychological acuity to capture emotionally restrained characters. The present study employed Gerrard Gennet’s theory of Narratology that he mentions in his book, Narrative Discourse. The analysis specifies important themes including loneliness, family influence, pragmatic marriage,  and burden of the past that provides an understanding of how Li dismantles conventional ideas of love and companionship. The findings indicate that Li’s storytelling challenges romantic ideals, depicting relationships as pragmatic arrangements rather than passionate unions. Thus, the current study contributes to the literary discussions on the questions of emotional isolation and cultural expectations in the selected short story.