“The Drunkard” by Frank O’Conner

“The Drunkard,” a short story by Frank O’Connor, a young boy becomes drunk after drinking his father’s alcohol at a bar. After this occurs, the boy’s drunkenness is seen from four different perspectives, each with a different view of the situation. First of all, the boy tells of his own experience, how mother. First of all, the people to originally see the boy’s drunkenness are the men at the bar where the father and his son are. They show much disapproval in regard to the situation, and some men even went as far as to say, “Isn’t it the likes of them would be fathers?” (O’Connor, 348). They are appalled that a father could let that happen to his child, and they question his responsibility. Secondly, the boy’s father has a certain perspective of the events of the story. He is personally incredibly embarrassed that he was so careless that he did not notice his child taking his drink, and he fears a negative view of his person from his neighbors and wife, like those at the bar showed. While taking the boy home, the father even constantly tries to quiet him in order to avoid the stares and attention of the neighbors. These neighbors are actually the third perspective. However, unlike the bar customers and contrary to the father’s fears, they seem to find the boy’s state rather entertaining. He is attempting to act like an adult, and the women think it is hilarious and are laughing at him. However, probably the strangest perspective is that of the boy’s mother. She pretends to be very upset with the father for being so irresponsible, yet, once he has left, she thanks the boy for drinking the alcohol because it prevented the family from a long struggle with the father’s drunkenness. In the past, the father would be fine if he did not drink, but after he did, he could not stop. The boy’s consumption of the alcohol prevented the father from reverting back to his drunken ways.