Aspects to Analized in a Novel

8/12/2019 Aspects to Analized in a Novel

1/6

Back to OWL Home

Literary Analysis: Using Elements of

Literature

Students are asked to write literary analysis essays because this type of

assignment encourages you to think about how and whya poem, short

story, novel, or play was written !o successfully analy"e literature, you#ll

need to remember that authors make specific choices for particular

reasons $our essay should point out the author#s choices and attempt to

e%plain their significance

&nother way to look at a literary analysis is to consider a piece of literaturefrom your own perspective 'ather than thinking about the author#s

intentions, you can develop an argument based on any single term (or

combination of terms) listed below $ou#ll *ust need to use the original te%t

to defend and e%plain your argument to the reader

Allegory + narrative form in which the characters are representative of

some larger humanistic trait (ie greed, vanity, or bravery) and attempt to

convey some larger lesson or meaning to life &lthough allegory was

originally and traditionally character based, modern allegories tend to

parallel story and theme

William Faulkners A Rose for Emily- the decline of the Old South

Robert Louis Stevensons Strange ase of !r" #ekyll and $r"

%yde- mans struggle to contain his inner &rimal instincts

!istrict '- South African A&artheid

( $en- the evils of &re)udice

%arry *otter- the dangers of seeking +racial &urity,

Character - representation of a person, place, or thing performing

traditionally human activities or functions in a work of fiction

Protagonist+ !he character the story revolves around

Antagonist+ & character or force that opposes the protagonist
http://www.roanestate.edu/owl/http://www.roanestate.edu/owl/


2/6

Minor character+ Often provides support and illuminates the

protagonist

Static character+ & character that remains the same

Dynamic character+ & character that changes in some

important way

Characterization+ !he choices an author makes to reveal a

character#s personality, such as appearance, actions, dialogue,

and motivations

Look for onnections. links. and clues bet/een and about characters" Ask

yourself /hat the function and significance of each character is" $ake this

determination based u&on the character0s history. /hat the reader is told

1and not told2. and /hat other characters say about themselves and

others"

Connotation + implied meaning of word BW&'- .onnotations can

change over time

confidence3 arrogance

mouse3 rat

cautious3 scared

curious3 nosey

frugal3 chea&

Denotation+ dictionary definition of a word

Diction + word choice that both conveys and emphasi"es the meaning or

theme of a poem through distinctions in sound, look, rhythm, syllable,

letters, and definition

igurati!e language + the use of words to e%press meaning beyond the

literal meaning of the words themselves

Metaphor+ contrasting to seemingly unalike things to enhance

the meaning of a situation or theme without using li"eor as

o 4ou are the sunshine of my life"

Simile+ contrasting to seemingly unalike things to enhance the

meaning of a situation or theme using li"eor as


3/6

o What ha&&ens to a dream deferred. does it dry u& likea

raisin in the sun

Hyperbole + e%aggeration

o 5 have a million things to do today"

Personification+ giving non+human ob*ects human

characteristics

o America has thro/n her hat into the ring. and /ill be

)oining forces /ith the 6ritish"

oot + grouping of stressed and unstressed syllables used in line or poem

Iamb+ unstressed syllable followed by stressed

o $ade famous by the Shakes&earian sonnet. closest to the

natural rhythm of human s&eech

How do/ lovethee0 Letme countthe ways

Spondee+ stressed stressed

o 7sed to add em&hasis and break u& monotonous rhythm

Blood boil, mind-meld, well- loved

rochee+ stressed unstressed

o Often used in childrens rhymes and to hel& /ith

memori8ation. gives &oem a hurried feeling

!hile/ nodded, nearly napping,suddenlythere c

amea tapping,

"napest+ unstressed unstressed stressed

o Often used in longer &oems or +rhymed stories,

!was the ni#htbefore $hristmas and allthrough

the house

%actyls + stressed unstressed unstressed

o

Often used in classical 9reek or Latin te:t. later revived bythe Romantics. then again by the 6eatles. often thought to

create a heartbeat or &ulse in a &oem

Picture yourselfin a boaton a river,

With tangerine treesand marmalade skies


4/6

;he iamb stumbles through my books< trochees rush and tumble< /hile

ana&est runs like a hurrying brook< dactyls are stately and classical"

#magery + the author#s attempt to create a mental picture (or reference

point) in the mind of the reader 'emember, though the most immediate

forms of imagery are visual, strong and effective imagery can be used to

invoke an emotional, sensational (taste, touch, smell etc) or even physical

response

Meter+ measure or structuring of rhythm in a poem

Plot+ the arrangement of ideas and1or incidents that make up a story

&oreshadowin#+ When the writer clues the reader in to

something that will eventually occur in the story2 it may be

e%plicit (obvious) or implied (disguised)

Suspense+ !he tension that the author uses to create a feeling

of discomfort about the unknown

$onflict+ Struggle between opposing forces

'(position+ Background information regarding the setting,

characters, plot

)isin# "ction+ !he process the story follows as it builds to its

main conflict

$risis+ & significant turning point in the story that determines

how it must end

)esolution*%enouement+ !he way the story turns out

Point of $iew+ pertains to who tells the story and how it is told !he point

of view of a story can sometimes indirectly establish the author3s

intentions

+arrator+ !he person telling the story who may or may not be a

character in the story &irst-person+ 4arrator participates in action but sometimes has

limited knowledge1vision

Second person + 4arrator addresses the reader directly as

though she is part of the story (ie 5$ou walk into your

bedroom $ou see clutter everywhere and67)


5/6

hird Person b.ective/+ 4arrator is unnamed1unidentified (a

detached observer) 8oes not assume character3s perspective and

is not a character in the story !he narrator reports on events and

lets the reader supply the meaning

mniscient+ &ll+knowing narrator (multiple perspectives) !henarrator knows what each character is thinking and feeling, not

*ust what they are doing throughout the story !his type of

narrator usually *umps around within the te%t, following one

character for a few pages or chapters, and then switching to

another character for a few pages, chapters, etc Omniscient

narrators also sometimes step out of a particular character#s mind

to evaluate him or her in some meaningful way

%hythm + often thought of as a poem#s timing 'hythm is the *u%taposition

of stressed and unstressed beats in a poem, and is often used to give thereader a lens through which to move through the work

(See meterand foot)

Setting+ the place or location of the action !he setting provides the

historical and cultural conte%t for characters /t often can symboli"e the

emotional state of characters %ample 9 /n :oe#s ;he Fall of the %ouse of

7sher, the crumbling old mansion reflects the decaying state of both the

family and the narrator#s mind We also see this type of emphasis on

setting in !homas ;ann#s !eath in =enice

S&ea"er+ the person delivering the poem 'emember, a poem does not

have to have a speaker, and the speaker and the poet are not necessarily

one in the same

Structure 'fiction(+ !he way that the writer arranges the plot of a story

Look for Re&eated elements in action. gesture. dialogue. descri&tion. as

/ell as shifts in direction. focus. time. &lace. etc"

Structure'&oetry( -!he pattern of organi"ation of a poem +line poem written in iambic pentameter

Because the sonnet is strictly constrained, it is considered a closed or fi%ed

form &n open or free form poem has looser form, or perhaps one of the

author#s invention, but it is important to remember that these poems are

not necessarily formless
http://www.roanestate.edu/owl/ElementsLit.html#meterhttp://www.roanestate.edu/owl/ElementsLit.html#foothttp://www.roanestate.edu/owl/ElementsLit.html#meterhttp://www.roanestate.edu/owl/ElementsLit.html#foot


6/6

Sym)olism+ when an ob*ect is meant to be representative of something

or an idea greater than the ob*ect itself

ross - re&resentative of hrist or hristianity

6ald Eagle - America or *atriotism

O/l - /isdom or kno/ledge

4ello/ - im&lies co/ardice or rot

*one + the implied attitude towards the sub*ect of the poem /s it hopeful,

pessimistic, dreary, worried0 & poet conveys tone by combining all of the

elements listed above to create a precise impression on the reader

Aspects to Analized in a Novel

Documents

Transcript of Aspects to Analized in a Novel