Under the Radar is one of the short texts in a collection of short stories by Richard Ford called A Multitude of Sins. In the book, Ford explores the theme of infidelity and its repercussions on marriage. Despite the title of the narratives, the author’s only focus is on the complexities of the aftermath of his characters’ behaviors and the vague line between what is right and wrong in such situations. Most of the stories revolve around a married couple that is at a loss when one of them decides to venture into an extra-marital affair with one of their closest friend.
The collection commences with a short story called Privacy. The narrative tells a story of a man who has sexual fantasies with a nude woman he sees dancing from his bedroom window. His wife sleeps in the same room. After many nights of fantasizing and ogling the woman from afar, he learns that he had been gazing at an elderly Chinese woman in her seventies. He feels ashamed and disgusted by his foolish and illicit pleasure.
In the second and main story in the collection, Under the Radar, dramatizes a scene highlighting the uncovering of an affair. Steven and Marjorie Reeves are a married couple who have been going through marriage problems. As the couple makes its way to a dinner party in a friend’s home, Marjorie admits to having an affair with the same man they are visiting for over a year. Steven is speechless and parks the car on the side of the road. He remains quiet for some time trying to comprehend his wife’s revelation. He feels humiliated and angry. In a blind rage, he smacks his wife and later apologizes upon realizing the consequence of his action. Marjorie then insists Steven should go and help a ran-over raccoon on the side of the side. As Steven heads out to help the raccoon, Marjorie gets into the driver’s seat and drives off leaving her husband.
Steven’s predicament is the same in many other characters in the story. Ford uses different characters in the collection to show different scenarios of infidelity and how different characters react when faced with the same dilemma.
