Redemption

In some ways, the primary arc of “Two Wrongs” can be read as a redemption story, with regards to the story’s primary male character, Bill McChesney. Bill spends the first three sections of the story becoming increasingly entangled in problems of his own making: his fight with friends in New York spurs him to move to London; his unfaithfulness and abandonment of Emmy contribute to her giving birth to a stillborn child; and in the end, the way he mistreats his body by smoking and drinking too much leads to the downfall of his health, and the reason why he must seek a cure away from Emmy in Colorado.

Nevertheless, after a mounting set of bad decisions causes Bill significant problems in his career, in his marriage, and in his health, the story’s fourth section is structured in such a way as to give...