At the beginning of the year, if you had asked me how to write an argumentative essay, identifying figurative language, identify a theme, or write an ACE paragraph, I would have been completely clueless. Thankfully, this year I have grown in these fields, and I am able to identify and use them to help me find the meanings of different passages, and become a stronger writer. A book we read earlier in the year, And Then There Were None, helped me extend my knowledge with the ideas of theme. Theme is the message or ideas the author is trying to portray with their book, article, paper, etc.. Theme can be found by looking at recurring actions of characters, the plot of a story, hidden messages or ideas, or the overall makeup of a character. Death,
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Along with figurative language, denotation vs. connotation, and using context clues to help me find meanings of words or passages, have helped me greatly in my reading and writing alike. In Animal Farm, by George Orwell, we explored figurative language a lot, since Orwell couldn’t write exactly what he was thinking. The entire book is based on the personification of the animals, obviously, but there is more to it, that can help you further understand the meaning of the book. Orwell uses allusion to cover up who Comrade Napoleon represents, along with Snowball. In actuality, Napoleon is supposed to represent Joseph Stalin, and Snowball represents Stalin’s enemy, Leon Trotsky. Without the help of figurative language, the ideas of the Russian Revolution, the entire plot of the book, is covered up. Something else that can be used to help interpret figurative language is denotation and connotation. Denotation is the dictionary definition of a word, whereas connotation is the feeling you get from reading something. Sometimes an entire story can be dissected this way. For example, the denotative side of The Cask of Amontillado, is that a man, Montresor had a grievance against his old friend, Fortunato. He hatches a plan to get revenge and tricks Fortunato, leading him to his wine cellar, where he gets him drunk and bricks him up behind a wall, leaving Fortunato to die a slow death. Now the
Along with figurative language, denotation vs. connotation, and using context clues to help me find meanings of words or passages, have helped me greatly in my reading and writing alike. In Animal Farm, by George Orwell, we explored figurative language a lot, since Orwell couldn’t write exactly what he was thinking. The entire book is based on the personification of the animals, obviously, but there is more to it, that can help you further understand the meaning of the book. Orwell uses allusion to cover up who Comrade Napoleon represents, along with Snowball. In actuality, Napoleon is supposed to represent Joseph Stalin, and Snowball represents Stalin’s enemy, Leon Trotsky. Without the help of figurative language, the ideas of the Russian Revolution, the entire plot of the book, is covered up. Something else that can be used to help interpret figurative language is denotation and connotation. Denotation is the dictionary definition of a word, whereas connotation is the feeling you get from reading something. Sometimes an entire story can be dissected this way. For example, the denotative side of The Cask of Amontillado, is that a man, Montresor had a grievance against his old friend, Fortunato. He hatches a plan to get revenge and tricks Fortunato, leading him to his wine cellar, where he gets him drunk and bricks him up behind a wall, leaving Fortunato to die a slow death. Now the