Tapka

The story of Tapka speaks to me as a story about losing innocence, a powerful topic in general when it comes to storytelling. The Author at first creates a quaint and positive atmosphere for the immigrant families, and presents it through the eyes of a child, who are often looked on as the very definition of innocence. And over the course of the story, their is a gradual shift from the naive innocence of the beginning and the harsh reality that descends in upon the families and the children in particular. The authors use of diction and tone heavily dictate this point of view to the readers, allowing it to better reach them emotionally.

The last few lines of the book illustrate this in a powerful way, that "there is reality, and then there is truth"and that innocence cannot truly hold up to such a concept. The writer of the story masterfully creates the paradigm shift between the two views during the walking of Tapka, with the lines "we grew confident," instilling in the readers a foreboding sense of dread of where this newfound confidence will lead. Later in the story, the two children become accustomed to the foul language of their new country and begin using it indiscriminately with little regard to what it truly means. Words like "Shithead" and "Gaylord" are thrown around in tandem, as a sign of corruption in the young Russians.