twm - Settings

In general, settings is a physical locale that shapes a story’s mood, it’s emotional aura or quality. Usually refer to the time and places in which story occurs. Two types of settings that related to this short story is geographical settings and physical settings. Geographical settings refers to the location on the globe; continent, country, region, or city where the story unfolds. Physical settings refers to immediate environments like buildings, rooms, weather, and objects within the geographical location.

West Newton, a Boston suburb in Massachusetts, USA, serves as the story's geographical setting. The majority of the story is set in Morrie Schwartz's house. The gentle, private atmosphere of Morrie's last session is reflected in the serene suburban setting. The primary location for Morrie and Mitch Albom's weekly visits is Morrie's home. In contrast to Mitch's busy, fast-paced life as a writer in Detroit, West Newton offers a peaceful, suburban setting. It's the kind of place where life moves slowly. The scene is perfect for their in-depth discussions because it represents intimacy, peace, and reflection.

Tuesdays with Morrie is related to existentialism which critiques inauthentic living. For instances, lives spent chasing money, fame, or external validation instead of personal meaning. Mitch’s life in Detroit, a symbol of modern, materialistic America, represents the "inauthentic existence". He’s busy, successful, but emotionally and spiritually disconnected. West Newton, by contrast, is slower, quieter, and allows Mitch to detach from the noise. It becomes a physical symbol of the existential shift—from distraction to awareness. Mitch stated that work had become his priority over anything else includes his love.

The physical setting in this story is Morrie’s house especially his study room. Morrie’s study is a small, cozy room, filled with books, papers and pictures. It has a sense of comfort and warmth, with a feeling of being lively than formal. It’s Morrie's cozy, personal space where he will sit in his chair, looking out the window which symbolizes comfort, routine, and the passing time as seasons change. The room has a quiet, reflective atmosphere as it’s a miles away from the hustle and bustle of the outside world.

This story is related to existentialism which Morrie’s study is free from noise, distraction, or pretense. In that room real conversations happen which are not about status or success, but about death, love, forgiveness, and meaning. The room is free from distractions and external pressures. Hence, it creates a space where they can face the truth of their existence about what really matters in life, what it means to love, and what it means to die.

Substantiations

1)As I turned the rental car onto Morrie's street in West Newton, a quiet suburb of Boston, I had a cup of coffee in one hand and a cellular phone between my ear and shoulder.

The geographical setting of this story stated in this substantiation which is in West Newton, a suburb of Boston. Hence, it tells the people that the events takes place in a peaceful residential area, not a city. There is no hustle and bustle life of the city.

2)He was spending less and less time in the kitchen or living room and more in his study, where he had a large reclining chair set up with pillows, blankets, and specially cut pieces of foam rubber that held his feet and gave support to his withered legs.

Mitch stated that Morrie spend most of his time in the study room which is enough to support that the study room is the physical setting. The room serves as a primary space for Morrie as his health declines and it is also where Morrie can remain calm and reflected. Deep conversations between Morrie and Mitch happen in that room where both of them confront about important issue like death, love and life.

References

Bohari, A., Ismail, A. I., & Zulkifli, N. I. (2024). Reading and analysing poetry. PERKASA UMMAH Sdn. Bhd.