ComprehensiveReview—Prose

INTHISCHAPTERSummary:Abriefreviewoftermsandprocessesassociatedwithproseanalysis

KeyIdeasUnderstandthecomponentsofanarrativeExplorevarioustypesofnovelsLearnliteraryterminologyrelatedtoanalysisUnderstandvariouslevelsofinterpretation

IntroductiontoProseOurdesiretoknowourselvesandothers,toexploretheunknownmysteriesofexistence,tomakesenseoutofchaos,andtoconnectwithourownkindareallprimaryreasonsforengagingintheprocessofliteraryanalysis.

Thebenefitstoselfandsocietythatresultfromthisinteractionincludeasenseofwonderatthegloryofhumanity’simagination,asenseofexcitementattheprospectofintellectualchallenge,andasenseofconnectionwiththeuniverse.

Youhavealreadyengagedintheseloftyexperiences.Thissectionwillprovideabriefreviewoftermsandprocessesassociatedwiththestudyofliterature.Includedaresomesuggestedactivitiesforyoutotrywhichwillhelpyoupreparefortheexam.

Whatisprose?

Asyouknow,proseisthewrittenequivalentofthespokenlanguage.Itiswritteninwords,phrases,sentences,paragraphs,andchapters.Itutilizespunctuation,grammar,andvocabularytodevelopitsmessage.Proseismadeupoffictionandnonfiction.FortheAPLitexam,youarerequiredtobewellreadintheareasof:

•Fiction,whichincludes:•Novels•Shortstories

•Nonfiction,whichincludes:•Essays•Autobiographiesandbiographies•Speeches•Journals•Articles

Note:Abriefwordaboutdrama.SincethissectionisareviewofprosedesignedtoprepareyoufortheAPLitexam,itisnotfeasibletoaddresseveryliterarydistinctionanddefinition.Therefore,wewishtostressthefollowing:

•Specificterminologycanbefoundintheglossaryatthebackofthisbook.•Allthetechniquesexaminedforprosecanbeusedtoanalyzedramaaswell.•Theoverlappingnatureoftheanalyticalskillsmakesthemsuitableforprose,poetry,anddrama.

FiveAspectsofEveryNarrative

Thereisacertaindegreeofuniversalityregardingdefinitionsoftermswhenanalyzingliterature.Forclarityandunderstanding,youshouldbeawareofthefollowingterms.

PlotTheplotisaseriesofepisodesinanarrativecarriedoutbythecharacters.Herearetheprimarytermsrelatedtoplot.Youshouldbefamiliarwithallofthem.Obviouslyeachworkmanipulatestheseconceptsinitsownuniqueway.

•Initialincident:theeventthatputsthestoryingear.•Risingaction:theseriesofcomplicationsinthenarrative.•Theclimax:thehighestpointofinterest,action,ortension.Moresubtly,itisaturningpointintheprotagonist’sbehaviororthoughts.

•Fallingaction:theseriesofeventsoccurringaftertheclimax.•Denouement:theresolutionthattiesupthelooseendsoftheplot.

Theseformtheskeletonofadiscussionaboutplot.Buttherearealsootherelementsthataddtoyourcomprehension.

•Foreshadowing:hintsatfutureevents.•Flashbacks:cutorpieceapriorsceneintothepresentsituation.•Inmediasres:literally,tobeinthemiddle.Thisisadevicethatplacesthereaderimmediatelyintotheaction.

•Subplot:secondaryplotthatexploresideasthataredifferentfromthemainstoryline.

•Parallelplot:asecondarystorylinethatmimicsthemainplot.

SettingTraditionally,settingisthetimeandplaceofawork,butitisalsosomuchmore.Settingisnotaccidental.Itisavitalpartofthenarrative,anditcanservemanyfunctions.Youshouldconsidersettinginlightofthefollowing:

•General:tounderscoretheuniversalityofthework(“TheOpenBoat”)•Specific:tocreateadefinitiveambiancethatimpactsonthework’spossibilities(GonewiththeWind)

•Characterorfoil:inrelationtotheprotagonist(ThePerfectStorm)•Limitingfactor:toallowtheplot,character,andthemetodevelop(LordoftheFlies)

•Torevealstyle(TheSecretSharer)•Torevealcharacter(HeddaGabler)•Torevealtheme(HeartofDarkness)

YourTurnChoosealiterarytextyou’vereadduringthepasttwoyearsandexamineaparticularlyeffectivesetting.

1.Jotdownthemajorspecificsofthesetting.

2.Identifythefunction(s)ofthatsetting.

CharacterCharacterdevelopmentcanbebothsimpleandcomplex.Theauthorhasavarietyofmethodsfromwhichtochoose.Here’samnemonicdevicethatmayhelpyouanalyzecharacter:UsethewordSTAR.

•S—whatthecharactersays;•T—whatthecharacterthinks;•A—howthecharacteractsandinteracts;and•R—howthecharacterreacts.

Traditionally,characterscarryouttheplot,anditisaroundthecharactersthattheplotrevolvesandthethemeisdeveloped.Therecanbemanytypesofcharactersinagivenwork:

•Protagonist:themaincharacterwhoisthecentralfocusofthestory.Forexample,Hamletistheeponymousprotagonist.

•Antagonist:theopposingforce.Itdoesnotalwayshavetobeaperson.Forexample,theseaorthefishinTheOldManandtheSea.

•Major:thecharacterorcharacterswhoplayasignificantroleinthework.•Minor:thecharacterswhoareutilizedforaspecificpurpose,suchasmovingtheplotalongorcontrastingwithamajorcharacter.

•Dynamic:referstocharacterswhoundergomajorchanges,suchasJaneEyre.•Static:generallyreferstocharacterswhoremainthesamethroughoutthestory.Forinstance,BrutusinJuliusCaesaralwaysconsidershimselftobean“honorableman.”

•Stereotype:acharacterwhoisusedtorepresentaclassoragroup.•Foil:acharacterwhoprovidestheopportunityforcomparisonandcontrast.Forexample,inShakespeare’sJuliusCaesar,BrutusandCassiusarefoilsforeachother.

CharacterasHeroOnceagain,youmayencountermanyvariationsontheconceptofhero:

“Beconsistentandpersistentinmaintainingaliteraryjournal.Studentswhodothishavegreaterrecallofinformationthattheycanincorporateintotheirliteraryessays.”

—CharlesV.APteacher

•Aristoteliantragichero:•Ofnoblebirth;largerthanlife•Basicallygood•Exhibitsafatalflaw•Makeserrorinjudgment•Possesseshubris(excessivearroganceorpride)whichcausestheerrorinjudgment

•Bringsabouthisowndownfall•Hasamomentofrealization,anepiphany•Livesandsuffers•Examples:CreoninAntigone,OedipusinOedipus,JasoninMedea

•Classicalhero:avariationonthetragichero:•Examples:MacbethinMacbeth,LearinKingLear,HamletinHamlet

•Romantichero:•Largerthanlife•Charismatic•Possessesanairofmystery•“Savestheday”ortheheroine•Embodiesfreedom,adventure,andidealism•Oftenoutsidethelaw•Examples:RobinHood,Ivanhoe,JamesBond,Mr.RochesterinJaneEyre

•Modernhero:•Maybeeveryman•Hashumanweaknesses•Caughtintheironiesofthehumancondition•Strugglesforinsight•Examples:WillyLomaninDeathofaSalesman,TomJoadinGrapesofWrath

•Hemingwayhero:•Brave•Endures•Maintainsasenseofhumor

•Exhibitsgraceunderpressure•Examples:SantiagoinTheOldManandtheSea,JakeBarnesinTheSunAlsoRises,ButchandSundanceinButchCassidyandtheSundanceKid

•Antihero:Protagonistisnotablylackinginheroicqualities:•Examples:MeursaultinTheStranger,RandallMcMurphyinOneFlewOvertheCuckoo’sNest,HomerSimpsonofcartoonfame

ThemeThemeisthemainidea,themovingforce,whatit’sallabout,the“why”behindthe“what,”theuniversalconceptorcomment,thebigpicture,themajorinsight,theraisond’être.Butthemeismuchmorethanasimplechecklist.And,wecringeeachtimewehear,“Whatisthetheme?”Remember,theenlightened,complexmindquestions,ponders,responds.Aliteraryworkevolvesandcanbevalidlyinterpretedinsomanywaysthatitwouldbeadisservicetolimitittoanysingle,exclusivetheme.

Keepinganopenmind,understandthatthefollowingisanoverviewofwaysofassessingthemes.Allelementsofaliteraryworkpointtowardthedevelopmentofthetheme.Therefore,youwillapplyallthatyouhavebeenlearningandpracticinginyoursearchforadiscernible,supportabletheme.

MotifInitsmostgeneralsense,motifistherepetitionofanimage.Itmaybecloselyconnectedtosymbol,oritmaybeathematicrestatement.

Thefollowingisapreparationprocessfordiscoveringandanalyzingthefunctionofmotif.Youcantrythiswithanywork.

•Isolatesomegeneralmotifsyou’venoticedinawork.•Providespecificexamplestoillustratethemotif.•Drawinferencesfromyourobservations.

Theseroughinferencesmayleadyoutoabetterunderstandingofcharacterandtheme.ThefollowingisasampleworksheetthatusestheaboveprocesstoanalyzemotifinTennesseeWilliams’sAStreetcarNamedDesire.

MotifinAStreetcarNamedDesire

Here’sanotherwaytoworkthroughanideaabouttheme.Sometimesit’seasiertoinputathemeandthenproveitwithsupportfromawork.Ifyoucandefendanideawithseveralspecifics,youprobablyhaveidentifiedatheme.Let’slookatShakespeare’sHamlet:

Hamlet

Obviously,wehaveprovidedtheorganizationinoursamples,butthesetwotechniquesaresolid,reliableprocesses.Theywillworkontheexam,too,especiallyasyouinterrelateideasforyouressaysoridentifypointsthatmaybethetopicofmultiple-choicequestions.

Keepasectioninyournoteswhereyouenterimportantmotifs,images,andsoonandtheirimplicationsfromworksyoustudy.Theseconcretedetailswillbeinvaluablewhenyouwritethefree-responseessay.Keepinmindthatmotif,imagery,symbol,andthemebuildononeanotherandareinterrelated.

PointofViewPointofviewisthemethodtheauthorutilizestotellthestory.Itisthevantagepointfromwhichthenarrativeistold.You’vehadpracticewiththisinbothreadingandwriting.

•Firstperson:Thenarratoristhestory’sprotagonist.(Iwenttothestore.)•Third-personobjective:Thenarratorisanonlookerreportingthestory.(Shewenttothestore.)

•Third-personomniscient:Thenarratorreportsthestoryandprovidesinformationunknowntothecharacter(s).(Shewenttothestoreunawarethat

inthreeminutesshewouldmeetherlong-lostmothersellingapplesonthecorner.)

•Streamofconsciousness:Thisisanarrativetechniquethatplacesthereaderinthemindandthoughtprocessesofthenarrator,nomatterhowrandomandspontaneousthatmaybe(e.g.,JamesJoyce’sUlysses).

•Chorus:AncientGreekplaysemployedachorusasanarrativedevice.Thechorus,asneeded,couldbeacharacter,anassembly,theplaywright’svoice,theaudience,anomniscientforecaster.Thisfunctioncanbeseeninmodernworksaswell.

•Stagemanager:Thistechniqueutilizesacharacterwhocommentsomnisciently(e.g.,OurTown,TheGlassMenagerie).

•Interiormonologue:Thistechniquereflectstheinnerthoughtsofthecharacter.Note:Inmodernliterature,authorsoftenusemultipleformsofnarration.For

example,inAsILayDyingbyWilliamFaulkner,everychapterhasadifferentnarrator.

TypesofNovels

TherearemanytypesofnovelsyouwillencounterduringyourstudyofEnglishliterature.Somenovelsexhibitseveralqualities.Afewofthemostcommongenresare:

•Epistolary:Thesenovelsutilizetheconventionofletterwritingandareamongtheearliestnovelforms(e.g.,Pamela,Dracula,TheColorPurple).

•Picaresque:Thisearly,episodicnovelformconcentratesonthemisadventuresofayoungrogue(e.g.,HuckleberryFinn,DonQuixote,TomJones,Candide).

•Autobiographical:Thisreadilyidentifiabletypeisalwaystoldinthefirstpersonandallowsthereadertodirectlyinteractwiththeprotagonist(e.g.,DavidCopperfield,CatcherintheRye).

•Gothic:Thistypeofnovelisconcernedwiththemacabre,supernatural,andexotic(e.g.,Frankenstein,InterviewwithaVampire,Dr.JekyllandMr.Hyde).

•Historical:Thisformisgroundedinarealcontextandreliesheavilyonsettingandfactualdetail(e.g.,ATaleofTwoCities,WarandPeace).

•Romantic:Thisnovelformisidealistic,imaginative,andadventuresome.Theromanticheroisthecornerstoneofthenovel,whichoftenincludesexoticlocales(e.g.,WutheringHeights,MadameBovary).

•Allegorical:Thistypeofnovelisrepresentativeandsymbolic.Itoperatesonatleasttwolevels.Itsspecificscorrespondtoanotherconcept(e.g.,AnimalFarm,LordoftheFlies).

Considerthis.JaneEyrehaselementsofallthesetypes,asdomanyothernovels.Listandlooselycategorizesomeofthemajornovelsyou’veread.

LiteraryTerminology

Literaryanalysisassumestheworkingknowledgeofacommonvocabulary.

TheKaleidoscopeofLiteraryMeaningLiterarymeaningisdevelopedandrevealedthroughvariousdevicesandtechniques.Whatfollowsisabrieflistingofthosetermsanddevicesmostoftenusedinprose,poetry,anddrama.

•Allusion:Anallusionisareferencetoanotherwork,concept,orsituationwhichgenerallyenhancesthemeaningoftheworkthatiscitingit.Therearemanytypesofallusions,andtheymaybeimplicitorexplicit,highlylimitedorbroadlydeveloped.Often,modernreadersmaymissthecontextofaparticularreferencebecausetheyhavealimitedframeofreference.Afewcommoncategoriesofallusionfollow:•Mythologicalallusions:Theseoftencitespecificcharacters.CommonallusionsmightrefertothebeautyofAphroditeorthepowerofZeus.“ShefollowedlikeNiobe,alltears”(Hamlet).Sometimestheentireworkmayrefertoamythologicalevent.TheplayDesireUndertheElmsisasustainedallusiontothePhaedralegend,aswellastheOedipalmyth.

•Biblicalallusions:Thesereferencesmaydealwithcircumstancesasfamiliaras“themarkofCain,”“thefallfromparadise,”“thetribulationsofJob,”or“destructionbyfloodorfire.”Acharactermayhavethe“strengthofSamson”orthe“loyaltyofRuth.”

•Historicalallusions:Thesekindsofallusionsmightrefertomajorhistoricalevents,suchasNapoleonmeetinghisWaterlooorNixondealingwithWatergate.

•Literaryallusions:Oftenworkswillrefertootherwell-knownpieces.Forexample,WestSideStoryexpectsyoutothinkofRomeoandJuliet.Todescribeacharacteras“quixotic”referstoCervantes’sgreatnovelDonQuixote.

•Politicalallusions:ThesereferenceswouldbesustainedinworkslikeGulliver’sTravelsorAliceinWonderland.Theymightalsobeusedbriefly.IfacharacterwerecalledthenextJuliusCaesar,wemightsensethathewouldbebetrayedinsomemanner.TheCrucibleisahistoricalallusiontotheSalemwitchtrialsandisalsoastatementaboutMcCarthyisminthe1950s.

•Contemporaryallusions:Theseareoftenlostwhenthecurrentcontextisnolongerinthepubliceye.Forexample,“valleygirls”or“BeavisandButthead”maynotremaininvogue,and,therefore,referencestothemwouldlosetheireffectiveness.

•Ambiguity:Thisistheseeminglyincongruousandcontradictoryinterpretationsofmeaninginawork.JamesJoyceandWilliamFaulknerutilizeambiguityoftenintheirwriting.

•Allegory:Aworkthatoperatesonanotherlevel.Thecharactersandevents

maybeinterpretedforbothliteralandsymbolicmeaning.Forexample,OfMiceandMenbySteinbeckisanindictmentoftheexploitationofthemassesandacalltounionismaswellasastoryofdoomedfriendship.OtherallegoricalworksincludeTheOldManandtheSeabyHemingway,AnimalFarmbyOrwell,CandidebyVoltaire,andPilgrim’sProgressbyJohnBunyan.

•Parable:Aparableisanallegoricalstorythatisintendedtoteach.Itgenerallyprovidesamorallessonorillustratesaguidingprinciple.“TheNun’sPriest’sTale”inTheCanterburyTalesbyChaucerisaparableaboutvanityandpride.

•Symbol:Thisisanimagethatalsorepresentssomethingelse.Somesymbolsappeartobeextremelyspecific.InHawthorne’sTheScarletLetterthescarletletterisasymbolofHester’simpropriety.ItcanalsorepresentHester’spride,talent,responsibility,andshame.Thereadershouldalwaysbeopentothebroadestinterpretationoftheconceptofsymbol,whetheraboutcharacter,setting,situation,detail,orwhatever.AnotherexampleofsymbolisthesplittingofthechestnuttreeinJaneEyre.HereBrontesymbolizesthebreachintherelationshipbetweenJaneandRochester.ThewhitehatinTheSecretSharerbyConradisasymbolofman’scompassionandpityforhisownkind.

•Connotation:Thisistheimplicationthatissuggestedbyawordorphraseratherthanthewordorphrase’sactual,literalmeaning.Forexample,theuseof“antiqueland”insteadof“ancientland”bringsaricherconnotationtoShelley’s“Ozymandias.”Thereadermustbeespeciallyopentothevariedlevelsofmeaninginpoetry.

•Denotation:Theliteralmeaningofawordorphrase.Ifareaderisattemptingtopresentavalidinterpretationofaliterarywork,heorshemustpayattentiontoboththedenotationandtheconnotationofthelanguage.

•Tone:Toneisdifficulttodefinebutisrelativelyeasytoassess.Itisasubtlefeelingthattheauthorcreatesthroughdiction.Thefollowingisashortlistofwordsoftenusedtodescribetone.Noticethattheyareadjectives.

•Transition:Donotbefooledintothinkingthat“transition”isanunimportantterm.Anauthorwillgiveyouaroadmapthroughhisorherstory’sjourney,andoneofthebestindicatorsofdirectionisthetransitionwordorphrase.Transitionshelptomovethereadersmoothlyfromonepartofthetexttoanother.Belowisalistofthemosteffectivecommonlyusedtransitions:

ProseAnalysisAwordaboutthissection:Therearemanyprocessesthatwillhelpyoutounderstandprose,poetry,anddrama.

Theseapproachesmaynotallbesuitableforeverywork,buttheycertainlyareworthconsideringasmethodsforrespondingtosubtletiesthatareinthe

work.

NameAnalysis

Consideryourname.Didyourfolkshaveaspecificreasonforchoosingit?Doesithaveafamilysignificanceoraspecialculturalmeaning?Whatwouldyouchooseforyournameandwhy?Remember,namesandidentityarecloselylinked.

Authorsoftenchoosenamesthatbringanotherdimensiontoacharacterorplace.Agoodreaderissensitivetotheimplicationsofnames.Hereareafewinterestingnamesandobservationsabouteach:

•Oedipus—swollenfoot,seekeroftruth•BillyBudd—simple,melodic,younggrowth,readytobloom•JaneEyre—Janus/beginning,air,err,heir,ere,eerie,ire•HelenBurns—fever,fervor,mythologicalinspiration•Mr.Mason—theMasonsareasecretfraternity;heholdsthesecret•Stella—star,light•Kurtz—short,curt•WillyLoman—lowman

YourTurnCreateyourownlistingofliterarynamesandtheirinterpretationsandimplications.(Thiscouldalsoincludeplacenames,etc.)