American Gothic

American Gothic by John Stone developed a quirky yet realistic narrative for Grant Wood’s painting. There is much more going on outside the painting that the two figures portrayed are thinking about. I love the section about the two “ought to be in mortal time about their businesses.” The last part, “whether she remembered to turn off the stove,” made me chuckle. The painting and the poem relate nicely together and makes the experience so much more. Compared to the previously analyzed poem, The Hunter in the Snow by William Carlos Williams, both poets describe their respective paintings literally, but John Stone takes creative liberties and takes it to the next step. I really do enjoy the alternative life injected into this painting by John Stone.