Dream and Reality

In "Imagined Scenes," it can sometimes be difficult to discern when the narrator is awake or dreaming. The story opens with a description of a dream. The warm Greek beach clearly contrasts with the cold snow falling outside in the "real" world. Likewise, her initial description of her life with her husband has a dreamlike quality to it: They awaken together, he learns to like Roquefort dressing for her, they arrive home from shopping at the same time. The reality of her marriage is much different, however, from this initial glimpse. When the narrator goes to work caring for the old man, David begins absenting himself from their home, and, it begins to seem, from their marriage.

Yet even David's absence is not unproblematic. When the narrator returns home and finds dishes on the table and evidence that someone has been there, it is almost as...