The Moustache by Robert Cormier is a short story. It is about a 17 year old boy named Mike, who is going to visit his grandmother, who lives in a nursing home . Before he leaves, he has an argument with his mother about his mustache. He claims that it is just an experiment, but actually he likes it because it makes him feel like an adult. When he arrives, he is pleased to see that his grandmother seems to be in one of her better days. She remembers his name, Mike.. She begins to say about how she is so glad he had come to visit her, that she had thought he was gone forever. She talks about how she is sorry, and asks if he can forgive her. With a start, Mike realizes that she believes that he is his grandfather, whom he is named after. He ponders why, because he and his grandfather didn’t look very alike, until he remembers his grandfather had a mustache. His grandmother talks about how she and his grandfather had a fight when she assumed he was cheating on her when he wasn’t. Feeling extremely uncomfortable,Mike says that he forgives her, then leaves. When he arrives back at home, he shaves off his mustache.
This story is quite compelling, and it makes you think about people’s lives not on the surface. I did not exactly enjoy it, but it was very enlightening. At the end, the reason why Mike shaves off his mustache is because he does not want to relive the experience and because he realized he is not ready to be and adult yet.
There are several themes that could apply to this story. The one that seems most apparent to me is : don’t judge a book by its cover. When you see other people, you only see the outside. In the story, Mike thought that his grandparents had a happy relationship, but he realized that there were many things that he didn’t know. This made him see the world in a new way and understand that people are multi-faceted, not one-dimensional. He wanted to ask his mother about her relationship with his father after, because he knew that things may have not always bee how they seem.
I would recommend this story for other people to read, because of its deep meaning. Also, the way it is written is very descriptive and often times humorous. Realistic fiction is my favorite genre besides fantasy, so this story is good for people like me.
As the last story in this Sunny Youth camp, I believe it is great because it gives you something to think about far beyond the near future. I will keep this story in mind whenever I meet someone new, and will be thinking about its lesson for a while.