Sheila Finch's "Out of the Mouths" is, on the surface, a short story about the scientific use of a developping relationship between a human and alien child to learn an alien language. Beneath the surface, it is resonant with important themes. Although short, it delivers as good a story and as important a message as any novel. This is because of Finch's use of imagery. Through this poetic device, she makes apparent to attentive readers …showed first 75 words of 1342 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1342 total…in order to get to more plot; the imagery complements and supports the plot and enriches the themes of the story. Every word was put there for some reason. Through a deeper reading, one can appreciate the elegance and hidden importance of those symbolic passages and understand how Finch's work transcends its format as a short story. Works Cited Finch, Sheila. "Out of the Mouths." Year's Best SF 2. David G. Hartwell, ed. New York: EOS, 1997.