The College Perspective by Lindsey

On the longform stories site, I recently read the history behind the hideous bold-printed “grandma couches” of the 1950’s through the 1970’s.

This story has two primary characters: the “grandma,” whether that’s the author’s grandma or grandmas of the time, she is a major character in the setting and telling of the story.

The second primary character is the expert: Pam Kueber, who runs the blog Retro Renovation and offers insight into what influenced people of the time.

In terms of narrative structure, the author focuses on her own personal connection to the topic, an anecdote about her grandmother, and then leads to facts about the time period and what lead people to choose that particular style for their homes for so long. Then she brings the focus back to the grandmothers and how the couches had an impact on their lives and brought families together. I would say this structure most closely follows the Kabob style discussed by Harrower.

The author follows the themes of fashion trends, history, family, and human connections. It is sometimes rare that so many people can bond over something as simple as a couch design in their grandparents’ houses. Fashion trends will always be of interest to some, but the author takes it beyond that, explaining why it is important to know how this couch came about and the mark it left on a generation.