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Literary Analysis: A Study in Short Bursts – Week 31

4/15 - Diction / He spend hours in front of the mirror trying to herd his teeth into place with his thumb. He asked his mother if he could have braces, like Frankie Molina, her godson, but he asked at the wrong time.
Gary Soto, “Broken Chain”, Baseball in April and Other Stories
Consider:
1.  What is Gary Soto implying about the narrator’s teeth when he uses the verb herd in the first sentence?
2.  How would the meaning change if the sentence were written like this: He spend hours in front of the mirror trying to push his teeth into place with his thumb.
Now you try it: Fill in the blank below with a strong verb that creates a clear picture in the reader’s mind like Soto’s does. Avoid such obvious verbs as brush, comb, or fix. Be Creative!
She spent hours in front of the mirror trying to______her hair in place for the party.
4/14 - Imagery / Something warm was running across the backs of her hands. She saw with mounting horror that it was mixed slime and blood running from the dog’s mouth.
Stephen King Cujo
Consider:
1.  What kind of imagery is used in this passage? Is the imagery also figurative?
2.  How does the imagery in this passage help create the horror of the situation?
Now you try it: Pretend that your best friend just threw up. You are helping your friend and you accidently touch the vomit. Think about what it feels like. Using King’s sentences as a model, write at least two sentences describing the experience.
4/13 - Symbol / The one tree in Francie’s yard was neither a pine nor a hemlock. It had pointed leaves which grew along green switches which radiated from the bough and made a tree which looked like a lot of opened green umbrellas. Some people called it the Tree of Heaven. No matter where its seed fell, it made a tree which struggled to reach the sky. It grew in boarded-up lots and out of neglected rubbish heaps and it was the only tree that grew out of cement. It grew lushly, but only in the tenement districts.
Betty Smith, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
Consider:
1.  Remember that a symbol is itself AND something else. This paragraph is about a tree, but it’s also about something else. What is that something else? When you identify the something else, you have understood the symbol.
2.  How would the passage be different if Smith had used a simile instead of symbolism, like this:
Francie’s spirit was like a tree with pointed leaves which grew along green switches which radiated from the bough and made a tree which looked like a lot of opened green umbrellas. She always tried to rise above her troubles like a Tree of Heaven which struggles to reach the sky, no matter where its seed falls.
Now you try it: Think of a plant that symbolizes your spirit. Write a paragraph which develops the plant as a symbol. Don’t compare the plant to anything (Don’t say, for example, “I am like a willow, flexible, graceful, and strong.”) Instead, talk about the plant in such a way that the reader understands you are talking about your spirit. (Of course, it’s hard!) Use the paragraph as a model.
4/12 – Figurative Language / The ruddy brick floor smiled up at the smoky ceiling; the oaken settles, shiny with long wear, exchanged cheerful glances with each other; plates on the dresser grinned at pots on the shelf, and the merry firelight flickered and played over everything without distinction.
Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows
Consider:
1.  Identify the examples of personification in the passage, and fill in the following chart:
Example of Personification / Literal Term / Figurative Term (What are the person’s characteristics?)
2.  How does the use of personification help the reader visualize and connect to the passage? What kind of feeling is created by the personification?
Now you try it: Write a short paragraph describing a friend’s room. In your description use personification at least one time. Use Grahame’s paragraph as a model.
4/11 - Syntax / Grayson said, “Pitcher.” This word, unlike the others, was not worn at all, but fresh and robust. It startled Maniac. It declared: I am not what you see. I am not a line-laying, pick-up driving, live-at-the-Y, bean-brained parkhand. I am not rickety, whiskered worm chow. I am a pitcher.
Jerry Spinell, Maniac Magee
Consider:
1.  Notice that the passage alternates long, layered sentences with short sentences. What is the purpose of the short sentences? What is the purpose of the longer sentences?
2.  Why is the last sentence in italics? What effect does this sentence have on the impact of the passage?
Now you try it: Write a short sentence that follows and emphasizes the long sentence:
Although I’m not a great athlete, that day I was flying—running as if I’d been training for weeks—and I felt capable, for the very first time, of winning a race, of being a track star, of helping my team.