Job History
Encyclopedia
Job History
is part of a short story series, Close Range: Wyoming Stories
written by Annie Proulx. It takes place in the author's home town of Cora, Wyoming
. The story follows the life of the main character Leeland Lee and his unsuccessful attempts to find a successful career. The occasional mention of the radio's new report throughout the story relates to Leelands struggles and disappointment. His lack of education and unavailability of jobs in his home town makes life very difficult for him so he moves various times to seek occupation. His determination is commendable but in the end his efforts are futile as he lives his life in discontent.
for six years where he was then discharged from service, he was once again discontent and jobless. He returns to his home town, Wyoming, where he joined a seasonal job as a worker for a work fencing crew; this did not last long as he decided to move his family to Casper
. He finds another job as a truck driver; meanwhile his new home is at a cramped up trailer park. Lorri gets pregnant again and Leeland quits his job and returns to Unique where his parents are. He decides to open a new business with his savings but failed miserable as the business went into bankruptcy
after a couple months. He finds another job as a construction worker but quits shortly after due to disagreements with his employer; meanwhile more tragic news is heard on the news.
Leeland decides to try something different and takes a job at a meat processing factory working for Old Man Brose. It turned out that he loved working with meat and a talent for cutting precise pieces. Lori and Leeland ended up signing a ten-year lease on the company while Mr. Brose takes a vacation. Things seemed to be looking up on the bright as his eldest son graduated and signed up for the army no coincidence that there was also good news on the radio. Their success however was very short lived as the economy went into a recession and they force to sell the company. This did not bode well with Mr. Brose on his return from his trip.
Jobless and disappointed once again, Leeland and family move again where he does a series of odd jobs which included raising hogs with his father, truck driving and a stay-at-home dad. None were successful but he continued to try to make things work. His son returns home after being discharged from the service and proposed a plan for them to start a company raising hogs. Leeland was extremely excited the son however changed his mind and moved to Phoenix. Bad luck continues to follow Leeland as his mother dies and is wife is diagnosed with cancer and is also pregnant. Shortly after Lorri dies and the family blames him, his youngest son is taken away and goes to live with his eldest sister. In the end he found a job working a cook which surprisingly he was very good at it. His son returns from Phoenix
decides they should open up a motorcycle repair shop.
. After this bad news the family receives bad news of their own when the baby nearly dies of fever and the long distance it takes to get to the hospital. One point of view could be that human error cause a lot of natural process to go wrong. The constant pollution of the Earth results in the depletion of the Earth's ozone layer similar to LeeLands decision to feed the baby alcohol so that it would crying.
There is another news report stating the unfortunate incident of a cult killing their members by influencing them to drink poisonous Kool-Aid
. This could be a reflection on how much human influences have on one's life. LeeLand's insistence on having unprotected sex results in the pregnancy of another baby. This is more financial stress on the family, especially on his wife Lori. In the last sentence "nobody has time to listen to the news" reflects a dead end in Leeland's life. There is no significant change in his future which could be a disappointing or a sign of relief. Disappointing in the sense that he would never become a successful, high income earning man or a sign that his life couldn't any more worse.
Leeland seemed to be destined for hard life. From his birth to his upbringing in a dysfunction family, this fore-shadows the bad decisions he would make and his unpreparedness for life. He gets his high-school girlfriend pregnant and quits school at age seventeen. From there it was down hill for Lee Land. Without the proper education, he couldn't get a high income job. He also had many children which made living matters even harder, having to support his wife and children with a meager income. He was determined, though, to find a job he was happy with, but when the opportunity came, the country went through a recession and he had to give up that dream. This story portrays what reality is like; that working hard does guarantee you can make your self successful. "For a tiny minority the leap from poverty to prosperity is a reality, but for the majority, as is the case with those in Close Range, life is a long, hard slog".
is part of a short story series, Close Range: Wyoming Stories
Close Range: Wyoming Stories
Close Range: Wyoming Stories is a 1999 collection of short stories written by E. Annie Proulx. The stories are set in the desolate landscape of rural Wyoming and detail the often grim lives of the protagonists....
written by Annie Proulx. It takes place in the author's home town of Cora, Wyoming
Cora, Wyoming
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 76 people, 38 households, and 25 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 14.1 people per square mile . There were 60 housing units at an average density of 11.1/sq mi...
. The story follows the life of the main character Leeland Lee and his unsuccessful attempts to find a successful career. The occasional mention of the radio's new report throughout the story relates to Leelands struggles and disappointment. His lack of education and unavailability of jobs in his home town makes life very difficult for him so he moves various times to seek occupation. His determination is commendable but in the end his efforts are futile as he lives his life in discontent.
Plot summary
Leeland Lee was an awkward-looking young boy raised in a small town along with his five other siblings. He quits high school at seventeen and marries his school mate Lori, who is also impregnated by him. He gets a job at the local gas station, Egge's Service Station, pumping gas. The business however goes in into bankruptcy and Leeland decides to join the army. He was stationed in GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
for six years where he was then discharged from service, he was once again discontent and jobless. He returns to his home town, Wyoming, where he joined a seasonal job as a worker for a work fencing crew; this did not last long as he decided to move his family to Casper
Casper, Wyoming
Casper is the county seat of Natrona County, Wyoming, United States.. Casper is the second-largest city in Wyoming , according to the 2010 census, with a population of 55,316...
. He finds another job as a truck driver; meanwhile his new home is at a cramped up trailer park. Lorri gets pregnant again and Leeland quits his job and returns to Unique where his parents are. He decides to open a new business with his savings but failed miserable as the business went into bankruptcy
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
after a couple months. He finds another job as a construction worker but quits shortly after due to disagreements with his employer; meanwhile more tragic news is heard on the news.
Leeland decides to try something different and takes a job at a meat processing factory working for Old Man Brose. It turned out that he loved working with meat and a talent for cutting precise pieces. Lori and Leeland ended up signing a ten-year lease on the company while Mr. Brose takes a vacation. Things seemed to be looking up on the bright as his eldest son graduated and signed up for the army no coincidence that there was also good news on the radio. Their success however was very short lived as the economy went into a recession and they force to sell the company. This did not bode well with Mr. Brose on his return from his trip.
Jobless and disappointed once again, Leeland and family move again where he does a series of odd jobs which included raising hogs with his father, truck driving and a stay-at-home dad. None were successful but he continued to try to make things work. His son returns home after being discharged from the service and proposed a plan for them to start a company raising hogs. Leeland was extremely excited the son however changed his mind and moved to Phoenix. Bad luck continues to follow Leeland as his mother dies and is wife is diagnosed with cancer and is also pregnant. Shortly after Lorri dies and the family blames him, his youngest son is taken away and goes to live with his eldest sister. In the end he found a job working a cook which surprisingly he was very good at it. His son returns from Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
decides they should open up a motorcycle repair shop.
Symbolism
The news reports in this story seem to have some significance to this story as the author mentions it at every transition in Lee Lands life. The various reports at first seem very random and irrelevant but a closer look could tell the reader something more the characters. One report read "a strange hole has appeared in the ozone layer". After this bad news the family receives bad news of their own when the baby nearly dies of fever and the long distance it takes to get to the hospital. One point of view could be that human error cause a lot of natural process to go wrong. The constant pollution of the Earth results in the depletion of the Earth's ozone layer similar to LeeLands decision to feed the baby alcohol so that it would crying.
There is another news report stating the unfortunate incident of a cult killing their members by influencing them to drink poisonous Kool-Aid
Peoples Temple
Peoples Temple was a religious organization founded in 1955 by Jim Jones that, by the mid-1970s, included over a dozen locations in California including its headquarters in San Francisco...
. This could be a reflection on how much human influences have on one's life. LeeLand's insistence on having unprotected sex results in the pregnancy of another baby. This is more financial stress on the family, especially on his wife Lori. In the last sentence "nobody has time to listen to the news" reflects a dead end in Leeland's life. There is no significant change in his future which could be a disappointing or a sign of relief. Disappointing in the sense that he would never become a successful, high income earning man or a sign that his life couldn't any more worse.
Analysis
Annie Proulx is known for her melancholy stories about the life's of ordinary middle class people. She portrays this style in the "Job history" as we go through the life of Leeland Lee, a high school drop out without a career. "In each of her stories, Proulx manages to illustrate just how miserable the lives of her characters are without becoming maudlin". Even though they life of Leeland is depressing she doesn't add any emotion to her writing "when his wife dies, or when he loses yet another job, Proulx does not soften up anything about those events". In this story she merely states the facts in brief sentences, the reader is left to form their entire opinion on the story without subjective views of the writer.Leeland seemed to be destined for hard life. From his birth to his upbringing in a dysfunction family, this fore-shadows the bad decisions he would make and his unpreparedness for life. He gets his high-school girlfriend pregnant and quits school at age seventeen. From there it was down hill for Lee Land. Without the proper education, he couldn't get a high income job. He also had many children which made living matters even harder, having to support his wife and children with a meager income. He was determined, though, to find a job he was happy with, but when the opportunity came, the country went through a recession and he had to give up that dream. This story portrays what reality is like; that working hard does guarantee you can make your self successful. "For a tiny minority the leap from poverty to prosperity is a reality, but for the majority, as is the case with those in Close Range, life is a long, hard slog".