Quirks mode

Stories can sometimes contain an unreliable narrator. Many times it can be difficult for the reader to detect if the author is reliable or unreliable. Greta Olson explains in detail how to determine if an author is unreliable through her article, “Reconsidering Unreliability: Fallible and Untrustworthy Narrators.” She includes details such as textual signals, implied author's, irony inconsistencies, indications and external circumstances to support her claim. However, Olson does not include…

In Catherine Calloway’s article, “How to Tell a True War Story”: Metafiction in The Things They Carried, Calloway highlights the inner workings of both the writing style and alternate persona Tim O’Brien creates within the book. By using fiction and introducing different viewpoints, O’Brien is able to strengthen the truth behind the story. In order to tell his story, O’Brien uses many different types of elements, ranging from unfinished works to altering the stories to fit his narrative. However…

As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner is the story of the Bundren family. The reader follows the quest of the Bundren’s before and after the death of the matriarch, Addie. Stream of Consciousness is used to relate from each Addie’s husband, their children, and several neighbors point-of-view. Through the consciousness of each of the characters the story of their “epic” journey to bury Addie in Jefferson and the events that ensue. The telling of the story each character’s true motives for traveling…

INTRODUCTION “Novel and shorter works of literary fiction are narratives: in other words, they all in some sense present readers with a ‘telling’ rather than an ‘enacting’, and this distinguishes them in an important sense from the drama[,]” and “generally restricted to works with characters, action and a plot” (Hawthorn, 2010, pp. 6 & 237). In this paper, The Cave by Jose Saramago, a recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature, and the third book of the global phenomenon from the Potter series,…

Throughout the ages, we have seen that a symbol in literature can suggest more than its average run of the mill meaning. In Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” she uses several different symbols for their realistic and symbolic meanings. On the realistic level, each symbol sets as a part and that has its own place in the story but represents a hidden thought or idea upon closer inspection. She uses symbolism for these items in the story to create a sense of foreshadowing and to create some…

In his short story Blankets, Alex La Guma takes us through the life story of Choker. He makes use of the blankets as a motif and flashbacks to help us understand the past, which intern help us to understand the present. The essay will show how the story of Choker can be seen as tragic, and how the onlookers are antagonistic toward Choker and vice versa. It will also show how the readers can show both sympathy and antipathy toward Choker, and will indicate a reversal of initial assumptions.…

Characters within fictional narratives exist in a space that is created through elements such as the time and location, referred to as the setting of the story. These elements help to set the tone that the rest of the story will fall under. Some narratives reveal only minimal details concerning the setting, but given the opportunity, a rich setting can play a significant role in shaping the story and the lives of the characters. Dana Gioia supports this in the following quote: “But often, in an…

The Catcher in the Rye This is an analysis of the novel The Catcher in the Rye written by J.D Salinger. The analysis will contain Holden’s development throughout the course of the novel, as well as what kind of a character I personally perceive him to be. I will also bring up some minor characters. Let’s start with Holden’s development. At the beginning of the novel, he is an unhappy boy with a lot of problems. He is depressed and confused. It seems that every since his little brother Allie…

This short story “The Rocking-Horse Winner” is told in 3rd person omniscient. This is obvious as the story is told by a narrator giving thoughts and statements by more than one character in the story. We hear and understand thoughts of Mother, Paul, Uncle Oscar, and many more. This is proven in the opening paragraph when we realized how the mother has felt and then we receive the opinion of others when stated “everybody else said she is such a good mother” and receive the thoughts of both her…

A & P John Updike’s short story “A & P” is full of chaos. At first the reader speculates what the short story is about and why it is called “A & P”. The narrator Sammy tells and describes all the things he sees and experiences while working at “A & P”. The text’s artistic value comes from its plot, characters, theme, and style. In the plot of the story, the protagonist, Sammy, starts by describing three girls who have walked into the A & P grocery store where he works. The three girls are…