In the short story, “And of Clay Are We Created” written by Isabel Allende, a reporter named Rolf finds himself alone with a small girl, Azucena, of whom he tries to save from a mudslide. As tragedy strikes, he finds himself staying by her side until help arrives. His darkest secrets creep out of the dark as he begins to tell the girl stories from his childhood. In the end, he lets her sink into the mud as she closes her eyes to fall into a peaceful sleep that becomes the end of her life. The theme of the story is that as a person, no one can move on if they have not taken care of their personal demons or past that haunts them. The author shows multiple forms of literary devices within the story, such as foreshadowing, flashbacks, and imagery, to form the theme of the story.
In the beginning, Isabel shows a form of foreshadowing when the narrator states “ … the little girl obstinately clinging to life became the symbol of great tragedy” (Allende 247). This informs the readers about the death that is to come to the girl towards the end of the story. Both Rolf and Azucena accept their fate and lock eyes. Rolf removes the makeshift life buoy that holds her above the mud, and watches her
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eyes close. He holds onto her for a moment and lets go, allowing her to sink into the mud where the corpses of her family lay beneath. Isabel shows another form of foreshadowing when she signals to the readers that Rolf would speak of his past that he has kept buried for years. “And every time we saw her on the screen, right behind her was Rolf Carle, who had gone there on assignment, never suspecting that he would find a fragment of his past, lost thirty years before” (Allende 248). As a child, Rolf did not have a very good childhood. Due to his harsh childhood, he decides to keep those memories stored away. When Azucena starts to tell him everything, he felt it was only fair to tell her his own story. This gives them a connection that brings them closer until death consumes the girl and gives him pain. Foreshadowing helps to give a clue to what will happen, which keeps readers interested in the story. Within the whole story, Isabel depicts imagery. This imagery causes great visualization, giving readers a chance to become involved with the story. “ The towns in the valley went about their daily life, deaf to the moaning of the earth, until that fateful Wednesday night in November when a prolonged roar announced the end of the world, and walls of snow broke loose, rolling in an avalanche of clay, stones, and water that descended on the villages and buried them beneath unfathomable meters of telluric vomit” (Allende 248). This shows how tragic the volcano eruption was. One day the town was going about its business, and the next it was contained with tragedy. Nobody ever knows when tragedy will strike, just as the town did not. It gives a sense of what happened and how it happened. The town was buried under rubble and earthy contents, most being consumed within it. “ He filmed volunteers who discovered her, and the first persons who tried to reach her, his camera zoomed in on the girl, her dark face, her large desolate eyes, the plastered-down tangle of her hair. The mud was like quicksand around her, and anyone attempting to reach her was in danger of sinking” (Allende 249). Readers are able to get an idea of what it was like to be Azucena. Saying it was like quicksand gives an idea about how thick the mud was and just how dangerous it was to be there. When Rolf zooms in on his camera, he realizes how fast he must save her, risking his life while doing so. The description helps readers to visualize how she looked. This helps to show how tragic and painstaking it was to be her. A girl,whose main emotion was fear, was trapped and could not be saved. Imagery gives a sense of how it looks or was and helps to form the setting. Flashbacks were also a form of literary devices that helped to form the story. They help to bring Rolf and Azucena closer as Rolf releases the one thing that haunts him; memories. On the second day, Rolf tries to sing Azucena to sleep with old songs that his mother had taught him. Sleep did not come, allowing the two to engage in conversation. Though he could not tell her everything from his past, for some were too awful to tell a child. “Nor did he mention the night that he had seen his mother naked, shod in stiletto- heeled red boots, sobbing with humiliation. There was much he did not tell, but in those hours he relived for the first time all the things his mind had tried to erase” (Allende 254). This is a memory that was one of his inner demons. He kept it away to the back of his mind, not thinking about it until Azucena surrenders her fear to him. “ He reverted to the years when he was the age of Azucena, and younger, and, like her, found himself trapped in a pit without escape, buried in life, his head barely above ground; he saw before his eyes the boots and legs of his father, who had removed his belt and was whipping it in the air with the never-forgotten hiss of a viper coiled to strike” (Allende 255). As a child his father abused him, causing his mind to be scarred for his entire life. Those scars may have healed over, but were being opened again as death seemed so close to him and Azucena. He may have tried to forget what his father did, but never did he forget completely. His memories are what create the flashbacks. With these literary devices, Isabel Allende is able to show her readers the idea that before anyone dies, their personal demons must be taken care of.
Rolf’s close to death situation caused him to remember the things that make him who he is today. Foreshadowing allows readers to get clues to what will happen, while the flashbacks allow readers to understand why Rolf is so scared of his past. His past scares him and by thinking about it, he could become an entirely different person, which is why he has to deal with it. The imagery allows her readers to get a visual of the story and gives them the chance the feel what the characters feel. Therefore, these three devices show the connection that two broken people share and how the past must be dealt with before it is too
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As the first poem in the book it sums up the primary focus of the works in its exploration of loss, grieving, and recovery. The questions posed about the nature of God become recurring themes in the following sections, especially One and Four. The symbolism includes the image of earthly possessions sprawled out like gangly dolls, a reference possibly meant to bring about a sense of nostalgia which this poem does quite well. The final lines cement the message that this is about loss and life, the idea that once something is lost, it can no longer belong to anyone anymore brings a sense...
The prologue of a novel plays a crucial role in introducing the setting of the story. The prologue also sets the tone of the tale and can sometimes hide vital information from the reader. The art of foreshadowing is often used in the prologue, and after reading through the story, reverting back to the prologue can help connect the many themes and motifs that are prevalent throughout the narrative. A high-quality example of a prose with a prologue that is riddled with underlying foreshadowing is The Assault, by Harry Mulisch. By analyzing a single passage of the prologue and comparing it with other small potions of the text, the foretelling of events in the prologue of The Assault by Harry Mulisch can easily be related to how Anton believed the killing of his family was a simple affair, when in reality, it was a more complicated incident than
The mood established by Edgar Allan Poe in his short story, "The Cask of Amontillado," plays a crucial role in conveying to the reader his underlying theme. For example, when Montresor, the narrator, st...
? . . . it made no difference if they studied medicine or had the right to vote, because they would not have the strength to do it, but she herself [Nivea] was not brave enough to be among the first to give up the fashion.? (6, Ch 1) The women in this society are dependant on the dominant male figure to handle political and economical duties. This point of view is intended to mimic the older generation of women ad present a foundation for the growth of an enlightened generation. Allende uses this excerpt to present a foundation of structure to the novel by beginning with the extremes of opinion, which are followed in the novel through different generations. Alba for example, become a very outspoken activist by trying to attend the student protests and follow Miguel on his demonstrations, a sharp contrast to the indifference or shallowness found in her great grandmother.
For instance, foreshadowing takes place when, after shooting the doe, Andy runs away and “Charlie Spoon and Mac and her father crying Andy, Andy (but that wasn't her name, she would no longer be called that);” (338) this truthfully state that she no longer wanted to be called Andy, she wanted to be called Andrea. Finally, Andy realized she is at the stage of growing up so she depicts between the woods where she can be a male or the ocean where she can be a female. She chose to stay true to herself and become Andrea because “Andy” lost her innocence when she shot the doe. Another example of foreshadowing is when Charlie was having distrust that Andy should come with them because she is a girl. The allegation Charlie made can be an example of foreshadowing because of how Andy will never go hunting ever again because she hated killing doe and it hurt her to see the doe suffering. This resulted to Andy never wanting to kill doe ever again. She changes her nickname to Andrea, her real name, because that’s who she is. Andy must face the reality of death before she can grow up. Additionally, foreshadowing contributes the themes overall effect by explaining how Andy’s loss of innocence happened and how she realized she must grow
Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown,” and Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado” utilize character responsibilities to create a sinister plot. For Hawthorne, protagonist Young Goodman Brown must leave his wife at home while he partakes in a night journey. For Poe, ancillary Fortunato covets a pretentious manner towards his wine tasting skills, and after being ‘challenged’ decides to prove his expertise by sampling Amontillado. Hawthorne and Poe showcase a theme of darkness but differ in their approach to the setting, characters, and fate of entrapment.
In “Out of the Dust,” a story told by 14-year-old Billie Jo, she describes her grief and feelings of lost hope including guilt from the accidental death of her mother and her mother’s unborn child. The accident crushed Billie Jo’s hope and her spirit, as well her father’s. It is a story of remarkable struggle where Billie Jo tries to find inner strength. She seeks the light through the Oklahoma “dust”. The “dust” is symbolic as it signifies a lack of life, dreams, and hope. Billie Jo takes the reader through her emotional of the journey that evokes compassion and empathy. The reader becomes part of the story and part of Billie Jo’s persona. Her journey embraces whom we are in the most profound sense of sadness and loss of her beloved mother. The story also guides us through the powerful enlightenment that defines the clearest explanation of the human spirit. In “Out of the Dust” Billie Jo demonstrates the power of forgiveness in herself and her father. These acts of forgiveness allowed her to move past the darkness and into the light. Her story gives the reader details on how the human spirit is philanthropic by nature and a lifelong process. “Out of the Dust” captures the essence of forgiveness including the transformations that occur during the process.
Because Belisa Crepusculario had such a difficult childhood in which she experienced so much loss in her life, she is forced to become a stronger person both mentally and physically to survive such devastating circumstances. It will ultimately be this strong sense of survival that she develops through these experiences of great loss, which will guide her through the survival of life threatening situations.
Edgar Allen Poe’s tale of murder and revenge, “The Cask of Amontillado”, offers a unique perspective into the mind of a deranged murderer. The effectiveness of the story is largely due to its first person point of view, which allows the reader a deeper involvement into the thoughts and motivations of the protagonist, Montresor. The first person narration results in an unbalanced viewpoint on the central conflict of the story, man versus man, because the reader knows very little about the thoughts of the antagonist, Fortunato. The setting of “The Cask of Amontillado”, in the dark catacombs of Montresor’s wine cellar, contributes to the story’s theme that some people will go to great lengths to fanatically defend their honor.
...e grandmother and her family. Although O’Connor uses foreshadowing from the beginning of the story, she never directly reveals the story’s ending. By understanding O’Connor’s usage of foreshadowing, the reader can further understand the development leading toward the story’s climax.
Effectively using these elements in a piece of literature enhances the reader’s curiosity. One prime example of such usage of these elements is seen in Kate Chopin's writing. Her use of foreshadowing and use of emotional conflicts put into few words in the short piece "The Storm" adds an element that is alluring, holding the reader's interest. In this short piece of literature, a father and son, Bobinot and Bibi, are forced to remain in a store where they were shopping before the storm, waiting for the storm to pass over them. In the meantime, the wife and mother, Calixta, whom is still at home, receives an unexpected visit from a former lover named Alicee. The two have an affair and the story starts to come together. The story shows us how we tend to want what we beli...
Foreshadowing in The Book Thief is one literary device used that some readers love and some readers hate. There are more than a few instances when the narrator, death, uses foreshadowing to keep the reader interested in the story and to further on certain thematic ideas in the novel. For example, death says that “Hans Hubermann was not granted membership in the Nazi Party. Not yet, anyway” (183). Here, it is being foreshadowed that Hans Hubermann will be forced to join the Nazi Party at some point in his life. By giving us this piece of information, the narrator is causing the readers to be curious and wanting to know more. This foreshadowing blends in with the thematic idea of war because by joining the Nazi Party, Hans will have to go fi...
It is said that this book is considered as one of the most famous horror novels, if not the most famous one. The Gothic descriptions in the novel are very prominent at the beginning. The portrayal of the countryside of Transylvania, of the ruined Dracula Castle, etc, all provide the effect of horror in the sense of spooky and gloomy atmosphere, which you can obtain close at hand. Everything is so obvious. The originally beautiful scenes are changed by the writer¡¯s magnification of some specific details which provide certain effect on the readers. All of the above reminds how one¡¯s personal feelings can alter their attitudes towards what they see or what they experience. Sometimes when you are sad, everything look so depressing. It is like the whole world is against you. The sunset could be a fantastic scene when you are filled with joy but an extra source of sorrow when you are not in the mood. Harker is separated from her lovely fianc¨¦e to meet some foreign count in the exotic and unknown eastern world.
In conclusion, if you read this story carefully you will pick up the small hints and know the outcome of the story. This also shows that foreshadowing can be direct statements or simple statements of fact.
First, Thomas Wolfe and Richard Connell use foreshadowing in their stories to give the audience a glimpse of what is to come. Foreshadowing is a literary technique that subtly reveals events that are going to occur later in the story. In “The Child By Tiger,” Wolfe uses many signs to show the audience that the main character, Dick Prosser, had underlying anger towards the other character. When Prosser was beat up by a drunken white man, the narrator of the story described the immense anger in his eyes. Also, at the beginning of the short story, it is made clear to the audience that Prosser is good as everything, including shooting a gun. The narrator says, “There was nothing that he did not know. They were all so proud of him” (Wolfe 156). His extensive knowledge of these skills foreshadow that he is going to use these skills later in the story. These are both example of foreshadowing in “The Child By Tiger”. In “"”, Richard Connell also uses foreshadowing to hint at the terrifying event that was about to occur. At the beginning of the story, the main character Rainsford is having a conversation about how fun hunting is for the hunter and not for the hunted. When discussing hunting with his friend Whitney, he refers to it as the best sport in the world. Whitney comes back by say...