In "Some of Us Had Been Threatening Our Friend Colby," Donald Barthelme tries to show how inhumane man can be by telling an absurd story of a man named Colby who, "had gone too far." (Barthelme, 1973, pg. 19) In the story, Colby's so-called friends decided that they must hang Colby because of his going too far. Barthelme uses this story to illustrate how people can sometimes let their emotions get in the way of their good …showed first 75 words of 545 total…

…showed last 75 words of 545 total…had made them angry. Colby's friends let this anger take over, causing their logic to become skewed. They rationalized that since Colby had hurt them, they had the right to hurt him back. But because of their anger towards Colby, they became the ones who went too far. References Barthelme, D. (1973). "Some of Us Had Been Threatening Our Friend Colby", Found in Hall, D., To Read Literature Third Edition pp 193-196, Harcourt Brace College Publishers