The Painted Door

Isolation is a major theme in “The Painted Door,” where the setting of the work intensifies the loneliness the characters experience. The story takes place in the rural Canadian prairies, where the farmsteads are physically distant from each other. At the outset of the story, John and Ann have not seen another person for two weeks. The weather heightens the intensity of this isolation, as the snow and wind make it difficult to travel any distance. When Ann tries to go out and check on the animals, the storm kicks up a drift of snow that forces her back inside. Essentially, Ann is trapped in the two-room farmhouse, and when John leaves to check on his father, her isolation is complete.

The physical isolation wears particularly on Ann because she is already so frustrated with their social isolation. She and John do not go to dances, to the theater, or out to restaurants. For several years, Ann holds on to the memory of dancing with Steven one night simply because it represents a break from the isolation she feels. That John does not see their situation the same way only exacerbates her loneliness by causing a rift in their relationship.