Country Of The Pointed Firs Rhetorical Analysis

Module 8 Prose Essay Prompt #1 The passage of Sarah Orne Jewett’s The Country of the Pointed Firs characterizes the narrator through literary devices such as imagery, diction and syntax. With Jewett’s descriptive words, sentences, and word choice we are able to get an insight into the narrator without actually knowing anything about her. The passage’s characterization of the narrator makes the reader feel that the narrator is sentimental, wise, and knows all when it comes to the people around her. These assertions can easily be backed up with textual evidence. Within the first sentence of the passage selected from The Country of the Pointed Firs we immediately feel a sense of sentimentality from the narrator. Jewett writes “There was something about the coast town of Dunnet which made it seem more attractive than other maritime villages of eastern Maine.” This leads us to assume that the narrator takes pleasure in the little things in life. She appreciates Dunnet and its simplicity more than any other maritime village of eastern Maine. Other examples of the narrator being sentimental are found in the text. We find that the narrator often reflects. This can be found when …show more content…
A quote from the text that immediately stands out to the reader is when she says “The process of falling in love at first sight is as final as it is swift in such a case, but the growth of true friendship may be a lifelong affair.” Prior to this quote, the narrator was providing imagery and describing to us her surroundings. She ends the paragraph with wise words that the reader can relate to. This is an example of the literary device syntax. The way that Jewett positioned the sentence at the end of the paragraph after the description of her surroundings, grabs the reader’s attention and makes the quote memorable. The use of syntax enhances the characterization of the narrator being wise, not only that but it also conveys meaning to the