Raymond Carver's short story, A Small Good Thing, and Ray Lawrence's film, Jindabyne, disparately explore the idea that individuals can experience isolation. Carver outlines the story of two parents dealing with their son's brain injury after a car accident and the incessant phone calls from the baker who baked the boy's birthday cake. Lawrence's film, however, focuses on the story of an ethical decision made during a fishing trip that escalates into marital and cultural conflict in an Australian country town. To force readers and viewers to understand the characteristics of isolation, both Lawrence and Carver seamlessly blend racial divisions and parochialism, domestic chaos that breaks connections between people, and the persistent nature of being internally confused creatures. Symbolism is used to illustrate how isolation can be experienced by the characters. Both authors use narrative events to develop stories and show how people can change their preconceived notions. Finally, the authors used the setting to allow the audience to fully understand the issues of isolation. Since Lawrence's text was produced as a film, he incorporated techniques such as framing, lighting, and song to further reinforce his idea, unlike Carver who limited himself to literary techniques. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get Original Essay1: Isolation: Both Raymond Carver, in A Small Good Thing, and Ray Lawrence, in Jindabyne, posit that isolation, involuntary or intentional, is an authoritative force, requiring individuals to weaken and question their place in the world. The most pervasive and obvious isolating mechanisms used by Carver and Lawrence are established through the setting. In Jindabyne, Lawrence sets his morality tale in a semi-remote Australian town called Jindabyne which "was originally flooded as part of the Snowy Mountain project". Characters are often placed in Lake Jindabyne; during the men's fishing trip, a dramatic shot with soft lighting shows the men kneeling near the river. While the scene's dark lighting foreshadows the moral darkness that will soon devour them from within and without, the setting essentially reveals much more than that. The aquatic element and the existence of a submerged life become a disturbing metaphor for the secrets hidden beneath the illusory surface of everyday life and a past, which cause disturbance and subsequent isolation. Water is also a built-in clue to the psychological and physical condition of the characters; letting viewers understand how characters like Clare oscillate between the desire to admit to themselves the problems that beset them and the inactivity that has become habitual. Similarly, Carver uses an aquatic element in his setting to represent isolation. Howard "lets the water flow into the tub, and lies back, closing his eyes." Later, readers understand that the bathtub is a form of self-renewal, allowing Howard to cleanse himself, emotionally and psychologically, of his apprehensions. Therefore, by isolating himself, Howard is able to address repressed issues; which is contrary to Claire in Jindabyne. However, unlike Jindabyne, A Small Good Thing does not use the aquatic setting as the most significant to represent isolation. Carver instead focuses on the hospital environment; “It was night and cars were coming in and out of the parking lot with their lights on.” The vehicles that drive around the hospital signal the commonality of life that is.