Literary theory

But while we have discussed the most important diegetic components of epic—heroes and their victories—no discussion of that genre can be complete without a consideration of the way in which their story is told. To this end, we must consider Absalom, Absalom! an oral epic, despite its novelistic form. We may resolve this seeming contradiction by considering David Konstan and Kurt A. Raaflaub’s assertion that “[t]he notion of “oral” epic is [itself] problematic. What survives from antiquity is…

Even though the book was published in 1994, the fact that it is a non-western historical fiction may have resulted in its lack of literary criticism. Sandra Adell (2001) appreciates the novel’s literary contribution in her critical article emphasizing that the publication itself has greatly enriched the rapidly developing field of African diaspora literature” (679). In addition to mentioning that Nunez’s writing technique…

What does it mean to be symbolic or to have symbolism? To have symbolism can mean that one thing in particular stands for something else entirely. You can look around and see symbols everywhere. For example, our American flag is the symbol of our country, and stands for the United States of America, the American idea or dream, and immigrants from all over the world of all ethnicities and cultures coming together as one. That in itself is pretty amazing. But, on the other hand, there are other…

Storylines Against The Truth “False facts are highly injurious to the progress of science, for they often endure long; but false views, if supported by some evidence, do little harm, for every one takes a salutary pleasure in proving their falseness,” Charles Darwin once said. This quote highlights the importance of learning anything in a proper manner and how false facts have no foundation and are not necessary. Darwin expresses how learning should be done through hard and true facts and not…

Good symbolism is a sign of a well written piece of literature. A symbol creates a direct and complex relationship between a specific object, scene, character, or action and ideas, values, or way of life. In some ways the symbol substitutes a physical, palpable key for an abstract concept. A symbol is capable of submeaning and hidden pieces but a symbol can’t be fake, must be a literal term present in the text. In “A Rose for Emily”, symbolism runs deep and gives a new level of non superficial…

A symbol in literature contains several layers of meaning. It expresses an idea, clarifies meaning, or enlarges literal meaning. In the “Namesake”, the symbol and idea of immigrant culture is clearly evident in the novel especially among the characters, the themes, and overall flow of the novel. The characters, settings, and issues faced by the characters in the novel provide examples of immigrant culture including problems faced by immigrants such as adjusting to a new country. The “Namesake”…

My Aesthetic When I sit down and read a book, I like it to tell me all of the pieces throughout the story. It can be suspenseful, but give me all of the details. The main thing I dislike is when I am finished reading, sitting there wondering what happened. I contemplate if this or that happened and I normally do not come to a conclusion over arguing back and forth with myself about how it should have ended. These past couple weeks I have read some interesting stories. One of my favorites being…

Spotlights In almost every piece of literature you find certain words or descriptive objects that point towards a meaning that the author is trying to convey. Although sometimes one can look right over them and not notice them at all. These symbols play a key role in helping to move along a piece, as well as to help expose any meaning the author is hoping to expose. One such meaning is from “The Pardoner’s Tale,” Geoffrey Chaucer, which takes place and was written during the middle ages.…

Analytical Essay Traditions have led to people having a restricted point of view on the use of images in various types of texts (Books, articles, etc.). In Scott McCloud’s graphic essay, From Show and Tell, he discusses how the use of images in a story does not lessen the effect the story has on the reader. He believes when text and image come together the greatest works are made. McCloud makes this claim due to his background of being a comic artist. His profession incorporates the usage of…

Terry Eagleton, in his essay, “What is a Novel?” talks about the various definitions of novel and among one of them points out that novel is the genre which “affirms and is wedded to the common life” (5). However, in comparison to the common and realistic novels, readers as Eagleton mentioned, prefer the “exotic and extravagant” or “monstrous and miraculous” as a contrast to their ordinary lives. Eagleton find these thoughts of the readers to be ironic because although novels are written to…