In “Gift of the Magi” the author O. Henry uses different elements throughout the story such as colors, repetition, and humor. Each of these elements are used to set the tone of the story and show various feelings of the characters. It also shows the narrator’s personal opinions and what they think of the characters. O. Henry is a master at creating and switching tone very quickly and cleverly does so. Colors are used in “Gift of the Magi” to create tone. For instance, the author writes, “a gray cat walking a gray fence in a gray backyard”, (pg 153). The color grey is often associated with sad feelings which is what the character Della is feeling setting a gloomy tone.The author uses the color red to set tone. As stated on pg 155, “a tear or two splashed on the worn red carpet”. The color red used in this quote sets a very passionate tone because Della is upset to cut her hair but is ok with it as it is for love. Therefore, this is how O. Henry creates tone with color, but he also does it with repetition.
O. Henry uses repetition throughout the“Gift of the Magi” to create tone. An example being the fact that Della “had only a $1.87 with which to buy Jim a present”, (pg 153). This is repeatedly mentioned throughout the story to show that the Dillinghams are a poor couple
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Henry to develop tone. This can be seen on pg 153, “There was clearly nothing to do but flop down on the shabby little couch and howl. So Della did it”. O. Henry says this to lighten up the mood of the story as there is an infinite amount of things Della could've done setting a facetious tone. Another example of humor is made apparent when it is stated “Oh and the next two hours tripped on by rosy wings. Forget the hashed metaphor. She was ransacking the stores for Jim’s present”, (pg 154). This quote creates a humorous tone because they are direct opposites. O. Henry completely contradicts what he just said. That is how humor is used to create
Henry's first-person narrative is the most important element of these stories. Through it he recounts the events of his life, his experiences with others, his accomplishments and troubles. The great achievement of this narrative voice is how effortlessly it reveals Henry's limited education while simultaneously demonstrating his quick intelligence, all in an entertaining and convincing fashion. Henry introduces himself by introducing his home-town of Perkinsville, New York, whereupon his woeful g...
This paper addresses the issue of portraying the main character, Ad Magic, using literary elements such as symbolism, contrast and imagery by Thom Jones, in his short story "A White Horse".
Every year, more than two million new works of literature are issued in the world. This number is, of course, no surprise, as literature has been, for many centuries, an extremely efficient way of communicating and telling stories. It is quite a challenge, however, to write an interesting, beautiful, and powerful piece of literature, yet analyzing it can be even harder. One piece of literature that, I believe, demonstrates these qualities is Magus Magnus’s poem, “An Old Soldier Cleans His Rifle for the Last Time.” The poem’s movement, for instance, is an important aspect to this work.
The humor used throughout the novel breaks the tension of what would otherwise be a very depressing story. When confronted with fleas in the mattress of the bed, the father is instructed to by a man on the street to “confuse the little buggers” by turning the mattress upside down. Obviously, this is not going to rid the mattress of fleas, nor will it confuse them. The reader is aware of this, and the incident is humorous. Another example of humor that can be found in the novel occurs on the day of Frank’s first communion. He becomes sick and his communion wafer finds its way into his grandmother’s back yard. She then sends him to confession and instructs him to ask the priest what can be done to fix the problem. The big deal she makes about having “God in my back yard” is humorous to the reader, who knows that the communion wafer is not really God.
Tales change with every teller. Features may be added or subtracted, stories may be broken apart or combined. Often the story-teller will adapt the tale for his own purposes to emphasize some theme of his own. C. S. Lewis uses and modifies older sources in many ways in his novel That Hideous Strength, incorporating themes and portions of Arthurian literature to add color and emphasize the subjects of his plot.
Color is used to draw attention to important characters and objects in the painting. The red of Mary’s shirt emphasizes her place as the main figure. A bright, yellow cloud floating above the room symbolizes the joy of the angelic figures. De Zurbaran uses warm colors in the foreground. The room, used as the background for the scene, is painted in dark colors utilizing different hues of gray and brown.
Mark Twain applies humor in the various episodes throughout the book to keep the reader laughing and make the story interesting. The first humorous episode occurs when Huck Finn astonishes Jim with stories of kings. Jim had only heard of King Solomon, whom he considers a fool for wanting to chop a baby in half and adds, Yit dey say Sollermun de wises?man dat ever live? I doan?take no stock in dat (75). Next, the author introduces the Grangerfords as Huck goes ashore and unexpectedly encounters this family. Huck learns about a feud occurring between the two biggest families in town: the Grangerfords and the Sheperdsons. When Huck asks Buck about the feud, Buck replies, 搾... a feud is this way: A man has a quarrel with another man, and kills him; then that other man抯 brother kills him; then the other brothers, on both sides, goes for one another; then the cousins chip in ?and by and by everybody抯 killed off, and there ain抰 no more feud挃 (105). A duel breaks out one day between the families and Huck leaves town, heading for the river where he rejoins Jim, and they continue down the Mississippi. Another humorous episode appears n the novel on the Phelps plantation. Huck learns that the king has sold Jim to the Phelps family, relatives of Tom Sawyer. The Phelps family mistakes Huck for Tom Sawyer. When Tom meets with Aunt Sally, he ?.. [reaches] over and [kisses] Aunt Sally on the mouth?(219) This comes as a surprises to her and Tom explains that he 揫thinks] [she] [likes] it?(219) Later, Huck runs into Tom on the way into town and the two make up another story about their identities. The two then devise a plan to rescue Jim. They use Jim as a prisoner and make him go through jail escaping clich閟.
There is only one way an author can get their readers to cry, laugh, and love or just enjoy their master pieces. That one way is through the uses of literary devices such as similes, metaphors and personification. These are the small things that brings the author`s thoughts and ideas alive. The author`s ability to use literary devices through the book helps in direct characterization and lets readers get a better understanding of Lennie and George, the two main characters Of Mice and Men. It also helps in keeping readers thinking on their feet and constantly questioning George and Lennie`s next move while in Salinas, California. John Steinbeck, in his novel Of Mice and Men, makes use of similes and foreshadowing to keep readers in touch with the characters and at the edge of their seats throughout the story.
...d theme between The Knight’s Tale and The Miller’s Tale, it is evident that genre has an influence on the creation of meaning within the two stories; it also allows the reader to recognize The Miller’s Tale as a parody of the courtly and aristocratic values of The Knight’s Tale. By first recognizing that both stories are grounded in a similar basic plot, it is easier to compare the differences between them. Some major themes that exemplify the influence that genre has on meaning are divinity and predestination and love at first sight. By examining these themes and other aspects of the stories such as the combat and the endings, it is clear that style, theme, and genre are crucial in influencing the creation of meaning in a story. And this is how two stories can shift meaning from a tragic idealized courtly love among nobility, to a comic affair among middle class.
Conflicts identified in literature are opposing actions, ideas, and decision that hold a plot together. Conflicts may be external (person against person) or it may be internal (struggles within the characters) (Clugston, 2014). In this week’s journal, I plan to discuss specific conflicts that I observed in Tim O’Brien (1990), The Things They Carried and William Sydney Porter (1906), The Gift of the Magi (Clugston, 2014).
Every writer has a style of writing that is unique to them. This literary element, style is the author’s personal way of describing, events, object and ideas. An author’s style is also comprised of his or her word choice (diction), sentence structure (syntax), sentence arrangement (organization) and figurative language (imagery). All those thing come together to create mood, image and meaning throughout the text. Similarities and differences in style can be established in the writings of nineteenth century British writer, Charles Dickens, and his French comrade, Guy de Maupassant. Both author’s diction is unbelievably comparable, but their imagery is far from being related. One of the many things Dickens is famous for is his extensive and detailed imagery, which can be seen in his classic short story “A Christmas Carol”. Maupassant’s imagery is in fact very concise and nonspecific, which can be seen in his short story “The Necklace. Both stories “A Christmas Carol” and “The Necklace” show various similarities and differences. But in the aspect of style, diction, both authors use formal and sophisticated word choice.
In "The Gift of the Magi" O' Henry used symbolism in reference to the Three Magi. They come bearing gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh to Baby Jesus in Bethlehem. The gold is a symbol of love, the frankincense and myrrh were used to burn and had a sweet smell. They were also ingredients used in developin medicines. These gifts were not only practical, but precious.
The combination of parallelism and antithesis along with symbolism littered throughout the story help transform the novel from a story of war and defeat to a tale of peace and triumph in romantic literary tradition (McCarron and
Most works of literature derive the basis of their meaning from a moment of time of the respective author that directly relates to situations that influence him as a person. Because Hans Christian Andersen encountered first-hand the struggles of an impoverished lifestyle in infancy, he expresses the problems associated with life in his short fairytale The Stead Fast Tin Soldier. In order to elicit to a posterity that would not understand otherwise the perseverance and struggles that accompany success, he uses the fairytale as a mechanism for persuasion. When composing a piece of literature for the purpose of elucidating an emotion, making analysis, or, as in the case of The Steadfast Tin Soldier, to persuade, an author uses many tools of his arsenal, known in its generic collective as rhetoric. In order to achieve what he desires in this piece of work, a story that encourages personal individuality, drive, and the pursuit of self-actualization, Andersen uses many measures of rhetoric such as juxtaposition, symbolism, irony, motifs, and emotional manipulation.
Author’s craft is the main source of creative writing for many authors, especially for Mark Twain. In the book The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Huck Finn has been trying to get Jim to escape from Aunt Sally and Uncle Silas. Both boys know that this is a hard escape to pull off because both Aunt Sally and Uncle Silas are trying to keep Jim hidden. While trying to keep Jim they would never guess that a plan to escape would ever happen since Jim already knows what it is like to get caught as a runaway. Mark Twain really helps to depict this scene through his author’s craft techniques. Throughout this section Twain uses exaggeration, humor, and irony in this passage to get the point across that Aunt Sally was not a happy camper