Dylan Thomas

Dylan Thomas combines his vibrant imagery with his adolescent experiences in South Whales and London to produce the realistic tale "The Followers". His interest in writing short stories like "The Followers" stems from the beginning part of his life.

Thomas spent his days growing up in Swansea, South Whales with his father, a grammar school English teacher. His father encouraged his early interest in reading and writing. Some of his early poetry was published in local literary writing journals. Thomas grew up in the late 1920's and the 1930's. "In the 1930's, when the trend toward social and political commentary dominated the arts, Thomas began pursuing more personal themes that originated in his own experiences" (Gunton and Harris 358). Thomas would then incorporate these experiences into his poetry. For example, the poem "The Ballad of the Long-Legged Bait" is about a fisherman he probably saw around growing up in Swansea. In 1934 Thomas began moving between London and several villages where he started drinking a lot and "epitomized the raucous image of an artist" After WW II, Thomas began writing more short stories rather than poetry (Gunton and Harris 358).

Much earlier stories focus on a theme of either birth or death. Because of this, Thomas's early period has been called his "womb-tomb" era (Gunton and Harris 358). As Thomas's writing style evolved, he would begin to experiment with new techniques. He started using vibrant images and using sound as "verbal music", creating his own poetic style (Gunton and Harris 358). However, many times Thomas will try to convey emotions that are too complex for any lyrical treatment. Other times the opposite can be true and he gives too intricate an elaboration to simple feelings (Olsen 366). These elements of Thomas' style are evident in his poems and stories, such as "The Followers".

The roster of characters in "The Followers" are the unnamed narrator, his good pal Leslie, and a girl whom they call "Hermoitte Weatherby". The narrator and Leslie meet in a pub on a rainy, London night. They leave after a while, due to lack of funds and decide to have a spot of fun by following a girl they don't know (Hermoitte) to her home. They spend the evening watching "Hermoitte" and her mom doing a lot of nothing they are discovered by them and a third unknown voice inside. They flee their window perch in a hurry and call it a night.

There is a lot here than meets the eye. There is a lot more than Thomas' vibrant imagery in the story, but a story between the lines as well as a bit of Thomas himself. The part of Thomas I refer to is actually the story itself. The entire story of a couple of guys following people in hopes of some adventure on Saturday night is a common thing. A thing that Thomas very well may have done when he hung out in London. There are also elements of Thomas' vibrant imagery in this story. For example, "Young women..., who smelt of scent and powder and wet pixie hoods and hair, scuttled, giggling, arm-in-arm after the hissing trams, and screeched as they splashed in the puddles rainbowed with oil between the slippery lines." This is describing the setting of the story and the detail within the description throws you right onto the wintry, rainy, London street. And this story is not only about two boys following someone for a good time. "The Followers" incorporates a little of Thomas' "womb-tomb" factor.