No One's a Mystery- Elizabeth Tallent

I really liked “No One’s a Mystery” by Elizabeth Tallent because the conflict is so apparent and realistic. There are two levels of conflict in this piece. The first level is that Jack is cheating on his wife with a much younger woman. The second level of conflict is where the younger woman sees their relationship going and where Jack sees their relationship going. The first level of conflict is revealed in the first paragraph when the younger woman has to hide on the floor of the truck to avoid being seen by Jack’s wife who is driving past them. This conflict is the stage for the main, deeper conflict: the discordant views that Jack and the younger woman have on their relationship. This conflict is played out through the dialogue and uses the five year diary that Jack got her as a birthday gift as a means for them to see what their future would be like. Jack believes their relationship will just be a fling, but the younger woman believes they will get married and have kids. He has a more realistic and jaded opinion, while she is more optimistic and naive. The dialogue makes the conflict apparent through tone and the repetition of words. These devices work well to highlight the emotion behind their conflict.