In Ernest Hemingway's "Get a Seeing Eyed Dog," a blind man is trying to get his wife or girlfriend to take a break from caring from him and to go explore the world. He feels guilty about holding her back from life experiences. By the end of the story the woman has still refused to leave him alone but the man promises himself to keep trying to push her away.
This story was told from the blind man who was feeling sorry for his lover. I felt this was unusual because normally when stories are written about those with disabilities the reader begins to feel more sorry for the handicapped person than those around them. Throughout the story, the reader began to see that although the woman did want to take care of the blind man and loved him very much, she was going to be missing many chances at exploring the world and doing things she wanted to do. Realizing this, the old man began to feel like a hindrance and felt like a ball and chain around his girlfriend or wife's ankle.
I think "Get a Seeing Eyed Dog" shows a very sad reality of those who live with disabled people. Even though if you ask parents, friends, or others who are responsible for the handicapped about their situation they would respond in a positive way and feel that taking care of their loved one who needs a little more help than others is something they do not at all mind doing, the fact of life is that they are going to miss a lot of opportunities. By reading this short story, I was able to see that when someone has a disability, they are not the only ones who have to struggle. Those around them have to overcome extra obstacles in their lives as well.
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