Snowmen (short story)
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| "The Snowmen" | |
|---|---|
| Short story by Steven Millhauser | |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Publication | |
| Published in | Grand Street |
| Publication date | Winter 1984 |
"Snowmen" is a short story by Steven Millhauser originally appearing in Grand Street (Winter 1984) and first collected in In the Penny Arcade (1985) by Alfred A. Knopf.[1]
"Snowmen" is written from a first-person singular point-of-view by an unnamed pre-adolescent boy serving as a reliable narrator. He provides no information regarding his precise age, his family, or geographical setting. The events are related in the past tense.[2]
The narrator awakes to discover that an unusually heavy snow has fallen. He dresses warmly and joins other boys who are exploring a neighborhood transformed into a winter wonderland. Here and there snowmen representing men, women and children begin to appear assembled by the children. As the day proceeds, the narrator and his cohorts each fashion snowmen with unique themes: a snow girl is rendered in a summer dress, an old woman carries a basket of eggs, a magician-snowman pulls a rabbit out of a top hat. As night falls, the ingenuity and precision demonstrated by the children inspires the narrator. He rises the next morning to find some boys have worked through the night on their creations: An acrobatic snowman walks a snowy tightrope; exquisite snow creatures representing mythical animals are everywhere. Snowy vegetation representing trees in full summer bloom cover backyards and alleyways. The narrator experiences an agony of exultation in the fantastic sculptures.
When a rain storm arrives that evening, the exhausted children welcome the passing of their ecstasy as the snow melts. The old neighborhood is restored and the boys return to their simple winter pursuits.[3]
Background
Steven Millhauser, on conceiving "Snowmen," from a 2023 interview with critic Kevin Koczwara:
"I do recall the origin of one particular story...I was sitting by the window in a friend's house on a snowy day, with a book in my lap, watching the snowfall gradually stop. Some children came out and gathered nearby. They began making a snowman: three globes of snow, piled on top of each other. Sticks for arms, a carrot for a nose. They made a second snowman, much like the first, though someone added a scarf and hat. As I watched, I was deeply pleased by seeing these familiar snowmen, straight out of my own childhood, but at the same time something in my blood cried: 'Only that? Only that? Why stop there?' And that was the birth of my early story 'Snowmen.'"[4][5]
