Story Symbolism: My Date With Neanderthal Woman

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Upon reading “My Date With Neanderthal Woman,” written by David Galef, I felt rather perplexed. Here was a man taking out a cave woman. Happily, no less. A man with honorable intention who seems to have a strange admiration and acceptance of her.

It seemed…well…better than most dates anyone ever goes on during adolescence, at least. For some poor, miserable people, it continues on well into adulthood!

But, why was David Galef’s neanderthal better than those dates? What makes this story so meaningful?

Story Synopsis

The story is told in the first-person perspective of our narrator, Robert, the man taking the neanderthal woman on a date. The only backstory we are told of him is the simple fact that he’d grown tired of conventional dating. He used the TransWorld Dating Agency, explaining he’d “grown tired of modern women and their endless language games.” He hated “all the introductory explanations of a first date.”

Hence, taking a cavewoman named Glena out on a date seems like a logical option. Right?!

He knocks on her cave, offers her a box of chocolates that she eats, wrappers and all, and then takes her out to dinner. They arrive at Chez Asperge, a French, vegan restaurant. She scoops up a mashed lentil soup and gets scared at the knife in Robert’s hand when he tries to show her how to spread the lentils on pita.

But that’s just a minor mishap, as he is completely mesmerized by this woman. Robert wants to slowly take her out to the movies, or clubs, but for now, he’s content with just a rib-breaking hug, and some vice-grip hand holding from Glena.

He concludes with “some couples are separated by decades, but we’re separated by millennia. I like rock music and she likes the music of rocks. I’m modern Homo Sapiens and she’s Neanderthal, but I think we can work out our differences if we try.”

Story Symbolism

  1. The chocolate, the joke about broccoli bouquet, and the “natural time” observation, where he makes it out to seem better than the act of using a Rolex or a smartphone, all point to one thing: acceptance. Robert is not only accepting of who Glenda is, he adapts accordingly, to cater to her and be a gentleman.
  2. Glenda is described as you would expect a cave woman to look like, but he later describes her as beautiful under the moonlight. Two contrasting perceptions of the same woman, much like a man would have before and after any other date, with any other woman. However, this is more than a before and after, this is a cave woman. It doesn’t matter what she looks like, he’s well-aware of her looks, but he’s mesmerized because he sees what makes her gorgeous.
  3. Chez Asperge, the terrifying French vegan restaurant is symbolic in and of itself. French food is known for being rich in butter, wine, and meat. It’s deliciously sinful, and Julia Child would agree. However, vegan food is anything but that. Two completely different styles of cooking, blended into one restaurant. Completely different, yet functional, much like Robert and Glena.
  4. At the end of the story, Robert acknowledges how different they are. He speaks fondly and hopefully, despite it being only one date. Robert got exactly what he wanted: a woman who didn’t enjoy the formality of a regular first date, nor the accepted dating customs of today, like the word games and general “getting to know you” motions. But notice, in order to get those things, Robert had to resort to a woman that offered him basic things and nothing more. He fell in love for the pure basics.

The Verdict

Shielded behind the element of humor, David Galef makes a singular profound point: the basics always matter. Behind all the makeup, attire and questions, there’s a woman. Behind all the cliche gifts, date planning, and polished attire, there’s a man. Dating has become a game, of sorts, with questions and expectations that no one can possibly live up to.

At the end of the day, when you find that person that makes you feel less stuffy and who enjoys the simple things, without the drama, you’ve found the one.

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