A Conversation with My Father

What are the motifs in A Conversation with My Father by Grace Paley?

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Closely related to the theme of art and experience is the recurring idea of opportunity. The daughter abhors the kind of story her father wants because it is limiting. For this reason, she hates "plot, the absolute line between two points." Her hatred of plot stems not from" literary reasons, but because it takes all hope away. Everyone, real or invented, deserves the open destiny of life." While her father believes that the woman has no "character" and is destined to a tragic end, the daughter believes that a happy ending might very well ensue.