Analyse the narrative technique in The Tell-Tale Heart.

a. Is the protagonist of the story referred to as:

'I' (first person) or 'He' (third person)?

b. Does he relate events that he has personally experienced?

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c. Is he presented as likable?

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d. Is the reader encouraged to sympathise with his views?

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e. Are there unbelievable or unlikely elements in his storytelling? Is he a reliable narrator?

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f. Why did he choose the first person narrative technique?

 to lend authenticity to his work.

to add humour and satirical bite.

 to examine the psychological make-up of the narrator.

 

MODULE 7

REALISM, NATURALISM

Emily Dickinson

American poet Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) lived most of her life in total isolation, self-imposed seclusion. Not surprisingly, therefore, her poems have a very intimate feel about them. Despite having very little contact with the outside world, she managed to write nearly two thousand poems in a clear, concise style which seems surprisingly modern. Only seven of her nearly 2,000 poems were published during her lifetime. Her contemporaries found her work bewildering, but today she is considered a major writer of unsurpassed originality.

Apparently with no surprise

Apparently with no surprise

To any happy Flower,

The Frost beheads it and its play –

In accidental power –

The blonde assassin passes on –

The Sun proceeds unmoved

To measure off another Day

For an approving God.

† General understanding

 

1. What does the frost do to the flower?

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2. How does the sun respond to this act?

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3. How would you define God as He is portrayed in the poem?

* Loving * Sadistic

* Cruel * Detached

* Indifferent * Paternal

* Other: ________

 

† Literary analysis – figures of speech

1. Make a list of the elements that are personified in the poem.

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2. Personification adds drama to the poem. Which words do you find particularly dramatic?

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As she spent so much time alone, Emily Dickinson had a lot of time to observe the world around her home. See how carefully she observes a seemingly insignificant incident in the following poem.

A Bird Came Down the Walk

A Bird came, down the Walk – He did not know I saw – He bit an Angleworm in halves And ate the fellow, raw,   And then he drank a Dew From a convenient Grass – And then hopped sidewise to the Wall To let a Beetle pass –   He glanced with rapid eyes That hurried all abroad – They looked like frightened Beads, I thought – He stirred his Velvet Head   Like one in danger, Cautious, I offered him a Crumb And he unrolled his feathers And rowed him softer home –   Than Oars divide the Ocean, Too silver for a seam – Or Butterflies, off Banks of Noon Leap, plashless as they swim.

† General understanding

 

1. Where did the poet see the bird?

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2. What did the bird eat and drink?

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3. Why, according to the poet, did the bird move to the side?

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4. What emotional state did the bird seem to be in?

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5. What did the poet want to give the bird? How did the bird respond to the poet's offering?

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† Literary analysis:

 

1. The poet refers to four different creatures in the poem. Find them.

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2. Using very few words the poet creates graphic visual images of the bird's actions. Which ones do you find particularly effective? Is the view of nature presented in the opening lines of the poem sentimentalised or realistic?

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3. Find a striking example of personification in line 11. What does the image convey? Which word in line 12 conveys the texture of the bird's feathers?

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4. Line 13 'Like one in danger, Cautious' could refer to either the bird or the poet. If we read tines 12 and 13 as run-on lines it seems to refer to the bird; if, on the other hand, we pause after line 12, it seems to refer to the poet. Which of the two readings do you find more satisfactory and why?

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5. The bird seems awkward and ill at ease on the ground. In what sense is the sky 'softer' for it?

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6. The bird's flight is compared to rowing in a silver ocean of air. Why is flying in silver air superior to rowing in an ocean of water, according to the poet in line 18?

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7. In the final two lines the poet says that the flight of the bird is more graceful than the flight of butterflies. Which verbs are used to describe the movement of the butterflies? The butterflies swim in air and not water. Their leaps are 'plashless' as opposed to 'splashless'. Consider the sound of these two words and explain how the choice of 'plashless' reinforces the idea of swimming in air.

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8. The grace and beauty of the bird in flight is underlined by the use of assonance. Underline all the words that contain an 'o' sound in the final six lines of the poem. How do they affect the rhythm of the last part of the poem?

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9. The humanising of the bird and other creatures (question 1) and the association of bird and poet in the ambiguity of line 13 (question 4) suggest that the bird may symbolise human experience. The poem contrasts the awkward, comical, anxious bird on the ground with the graceful, beautiful bird in flight. These images may be associated with the physical and spiritual aspects of human existence. Which image represents man's physical life on earth? Which image represents the life of man's soul in its spiritual home?

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† Extra task. The poet offers a tiny piece of bread to the bird as a sign of friendship. Are such small acts of kindness towards animals important? Do they enrich us as human beings or are they a waste of time? If you treat animals kindly, does it mean you are a more caring person than someone who does not? Do we not sometimes worry too much about pet animals and not enough about our fellow humans? Discuss with your classmates.

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The poet is thinking about what death will be like. As you read the poem, do you get the impression that she is afraid of dying?