Pain manifested through symbolismHow to show your pain? Jonathan's agony following the death of his father is shown throughout "The Writer in the Family" using symbolism. For Jonathan, it's as if his father hadn't died "completely" and it haunts him. This pain is shown in a unique way throughout the story. Jonathan, when he tells this story in the first person, does not express himself directly and does not put into words his feelings towards his father. At the beginning of the story, Jonathan clearly states that his father died in 1955 and he explains the situation in which Jonathan's aunts on his father's side chose not to tell Jonathan's grandmother about his father's death, but it does not reveal the grief resulting from Jonathan's death. his father. Instead of clearly expressing Jonathan's feelings, Doctorow uses symbolism throughout the story to re-address Jonathan's pain. The issues surrounding Jonathan's father's grave, Jonathan's discomfort trying on his father's clothes, and Jonathan's bad dreams are all symbols used sporadically to reflect on the pain Jonathan feels over the death of his father. father. In "The Writer in the Family", EL Doctorow uses the symbolism of the father's missing headstone, Jonathan's dreams of his deceased father, and Jonathan's reactions as he tries on his father's suit to reveal his inner conflict over the death of his father. Jonathan's inner conflict is mirrored by his father's missing tombstone. Jonathan, his brother Harold and his mother Ruth go to the cemetery one day to visit the place where his father, Jack, is buried. Jonathan notes: “…the father's grave was planted with tiny evergreen shoots, but it lacked a head…a middle of paper…and the use of symbols. Works CitedDoctorow, EL “The Writer in the Family.” The language of literature. Ed. Arthur N. Applebee, et al. Evanston, Ill.; McDougal Littel, 2000. 1157-1164. Print.Neil Heims, Critical essay on “The Writer in the Family,” in Student News. Ed. Sara Constantakis. Flight. 27. Detroit: Gale, 2009. 273-276. Matterson, Stephen. “Why not say what happened?” The Lives of the Poets by EL Doctorow. "Critical. Flight. 34. No. 2. January 1993. 113-125. Saved and reprinted in Short Stories forStudents. Flight. 27. Ed. Sara Constantakis. Detroit: Gale, 2009. 281-283. Michelle Tokarczyk, Critical essay on “The Writer in the Family,” in Student News.Ed. Sara Constantakis. Flight. 27. Detroit: Gale, 2009. 273-276. “The writer in the family”. Short stories for students. Ed. Sara Constantakis. Flight. 14. Detroit: Gale, 2009. 263-283.