Introduction
Robert Olen Butler’s short story “Jealous Husband Returns in Form of Parrot” details the story of an insecure husband who returns to life as a parrot only to witness his most profound fears about his wife. The story, told from the narrator’s perspective, offers insight into a loop of life, death, and reincarnation. The narrator experiences death twice by his own doing, leading to sentiments that the short story of his life is tragic and negative (Butler 103). However, the story features reincarnation for the character, which amounts to a second chance at life. Thus, the narrator’s situation and the story’s ending represent a second chance at life and correcting past mistakes through reincarnation.
Life as a Human Versus Life as a Parrot
The story depicts an opportunity to gain a new perspective on life through the eyes of a different individual or living organism. The narrator tragically dies while spying on his wife, only to return with a parrot that his wife buys from a local pet store (Butler 104). The differences between the life of the narrator as a human being and his life as a parrot are significant.
For instance, he is incapable of communicating with the rest of the world through speech other than mimicking phrases and sounds, compared to his human form, where he innately fails to do so as a character flaw. In both instances, he fails to communicate his feelings, spiraling into events that lead to his death (Butler 104). Essentially, reincarnation allows the narrator to explore a different perspective, living as a human, a parrot, and whichever animal comes next when he reincarnates again.
Reincarnation as a Tool for Revealing Insecurities
The story also uses reincarnation to confirm or demystify an individual’s insecurities. In the story, the narrator dies tragically but returns to life as a parrot and gets to confirm or demystify his insecurity regarding his wife’s infidelity. Unsurprisingly, his wife seems to have found a fresh lease on life that permits her to engage with several men without her deceased husband (Butler 105).
Witnessing his wife’s indiscretion leads him to display fits of anger by repeatedly biting the rawhide toys at his disposal in his cage. His initial death and reincarnation provided him an opportunity to confirm his wife’s philandering ways, thereby lessening the impact of his second death as a parrot (Butler 104). Thus, he received a second chance to witness his wife’s ways instead of relying on suspicions, jealousy-driven curiosity, or third-party rumblings or rumors. In the context of the story, his death and reincarnation were positive developments, which opens the possibility of a similar development to his second death as a parrot.
Jealousy, Infidelity, and the Strain of Marriage
The narrator’s description of his life in marriage presents a bleak picture that indicates that his wife is likely a victim of flawed character and repugnant behavior (Butler 106). His death offers his wife the opportunity to live as she wishes without the incessant supervision of her jealous husband (Butler 104). He only realizes his suspicions after he reincarnates as a parrot, where he witnesses her befriend several other male companions, much to his chagrin. It represents an opportunity for the aggressors to review actions that infringe on the freedoms that any adult should typically enjoy.
Death as a Catalyst for Freedom and Reflection
The narrator’s first death is a testament to his intrusive ways, where he followed his wife in an attempt to catch her in any unsavory dalliance, but met his untimely death (Butler 104). Arguably, his death served as a cathartic moment that released his wife from over-policing by her husband on suspicions of infidelity, as evidenced by her multiple relationships (freedom). Finally, the narrator’s death provided an opportunity for self-evaluation and correction aimed at uncouth behavior that would have derailed his marriage or any other relationships he had. The story depicts the narrator as a deeply distrusting person incapable of correctly expressing anger or any other form of communication (Butler 105). Instead, he hides his feelings as a human or aggressively bites at his toys like a parrot.
Reincarnation as an Opportunity for Character Growth
In this instance, reincarnation offers a second chance at reflection and correction aimed at uncouth behavior that would undoubtedly affect interpersonal relationships with those in the immediate environment. As such, reincarnation was an opportunity to recognize the narrator’s flaws and instigate change in character or behavioral traits. Cumulatively, the possibility of reincarnation softens the sting of a second death because it indicates a potential perpetuity of chances to learn from destructive tendencies or behaviors. In the narrator’s case, this would include extreme jealousy and anger that stifle his ability to maintain a functional relationship with his wife as a human and parrot.
Conclusion
In hindsight, the short story is a sad outcome, but reincarnation is a silver lining, indicating a second chance at life that the narrator did not take advantage of. The chance to use hindsight to implement corrections or adjustments to one’s character far outweighs the gravity of death. In an ideal scenario, the narrator should recognize his errant ways and actively pursue recourse to improve his character and relationships. Thus, the repeated tragic death does not weigh heavily because there is a silver lining in the form of reincarnation.
Work Cited
Butler, Robert Olen. “Jealous Husband Returns in Form of Parrot.” The Scribner Anthology of Contemporary Short Fiction: 50 North American Stories Since 1970, edited by Lex Williford and Michael Martone, Touchstone-Simon & Schuster, 2007, pp. 103-108.