"Luda and Melina"

Lara Vapnyar came to the United States from Russia in 1994. She moved to New York and began publishing short stories in 2002.

"Luda and Melina" appeared in the New Yorker Magazine's September 3rd edition. Written by Lara Vapnyar, another name not new to the New Yorker, it tells the story of two women with the same name who met at a free ESL class. Together, the bring the word competitive to a new meaning. Always trying to one-up the other, Milena said that Luda “looked like Saddam Hussein with bigger hair and a thinner mustache.” At the same time, others said they saw “a striking resemblance to the young Elizabeth Taylor.” As two desperate women would seemingly do, both Luda and Melina laid eyes on Aron, and spoiled him with their best home-cooked foods and lavish conversation. The ESL class that the women are taking is supposed to help them converse with others better in English, and Luda seems to be trying. Melina, on the other hand, is short with people and only really talks to Aron.

What disturbed me the most about this short story was Melina’s reaction to Aron’s death. Her comment to his death was that it was “an enviable death. Quick and easy. And he died happy, didn’t he?” I found this perplexing since Melina had seemed to have been interested in Aron and her comment suggests that she did not care as much as I had thought she did. Over all I found this story entertaining, but sad. It showed the pathetic life of two old women who fight each other for a man who doesn’t care about them except for their food.