The trip

In his study of the development of the international short story from its folktale origins to modern literature, Paul March-Russell depicts it as a type of fragment 'prone to snap and to confound readers' expectations, to delight in its own incompleteness and to resist definition' (March-Russell 2009, viii). 'The trip' highlights the short story form where a narrative is complete within itself with a condensed cast, point(s) of view, plot line(s) and timeframe. Its ending creates room for the reader to expand the moment ... But the story is neither a seed for a novella nor does it beg to become a novel. Inside its simple plot, the reader is hooked by use of action, dialogue and stylistic narrative.