Decameron Project Short Stories

         Short stories have always had a special place in my heart. As a young kid growing up in Silicon Valley, reading books wasn't my favorite hobby, but if a story was engrossing enough, I gladly used to read for hours on end. As I slowly grew older, my capacity for longer reading books began to increase. However when I reached high school, the free time on my hands reduced drastically, causing me to lean toward reading shorter texts. It was at this point when short stories began to draw my attention, as they gave me the satisfaction of reading a good story in a short amount of time.

        I feel that the main distinguishing parts between a short story and a traditional novel are the speed of the story, the density of key words and phrases, as well as (obviously) the length of the text. The speed of the plot in short stories is much more sped up than that of a novel, as the short story is significantly shorter in length. Even though the short story is much shorter than a novel, it usually incorporates the same (if not more) attention to detail and word choice. In a novel, the author has more time to introduce backstories, stories within stories, and stretch out what's happening to help us understand what's going on. In short stories, on the other hand, the writer must compress the detail and proximity of key words and phrases to develop the story and introduce a similar level of depth into the story.

        Overall, compared to novels, I feel that short stories are a very convenient way to get the satisfaction of reading a comprehensive story with a similar level of depth and a riveting plot line.