Analyzing Literature (M1) - Past Paper PDF

**Analyzing Literature (M1)** **Literature** **-** It irrigates the desserts that our lives had already become (C.S. Lewis) \- Came from the Latin words: 1. 2. \- Written works, especially those considered of superior or lasting artistic merit \- Books, writings, leaflets and other printed...

**Analyzing Literature (M1)** **Literature** **-** It irrigates the desserts that our lives had already become (C.S. Lewis) \- Came from the Latin words: 1. 2. \- Written works, especially those considered of superior or lasting artistic merit \- Books, writings, leaflets and other printed materials **Literary standards - *A great literature should possess:*** A. B. C. D. E. F. G. **Story Elements** A short story is a work of fiction that can be read in one sitting. - - - - - - - **Setting** - - - - - - - - - - - **The Functions of a Setting** - - - - - **Mood** - - **Characters** - - - - - - - - - - - - **Plot (definition)** - - **Parts of a Plot** - - - - - **Special Techniques used in a Story** - - - - - - **Conflict** - - - - - **Types of External Conflict** - - - - - **Type of Internal Conflict** - **Point of View** - - - - - - **Theme** - - - - - **Short Stories** ***Shirley Jackson's 'The Lottery'*** The story takes place one morning between ten o'clock and noon on 27 June, in a village somewhere in (presumably) the USA. The year is not stated. The three hundred villagers are gathering to undertake the annual ritual of the lottery, which is always drawn on this date every year. Some of the children of the village are busy making a pile of stones which they closely guard in the corner of the village square. The lottery is led by a Mr Summers, who has an old black box. Inside the black box, slips of paper have been inserted, all of them blank apart from one. The head of each household, when called up to the box by Mr Summers, has to remove one slip of paper. When every household has drawn a slip of paper, the drawn slips are opened. It is discovered that Bill Hutchinson has drawn the marked slip of paper, and it is explained that, next, one person from within his family must be chosen. His family comprises five people: himself, his wife Tessie, and their three children, Bill Jr., Nancy, and Dave. Bill's wife, Tessie, isn't happy that her family has been chosen, and calls for the lottery to be redrawn, claiming that her husband wasn't given enough time to choose his slip of paper. But the lottery continues: now, each of the five members of the Hutchinson household must draw one slip from the black box. One slip will be marked while the others are not. Each of the Hutchinsons draw out a slip of paper, starting with the youngest of the children. When they have all drawn a slip, they are instructed to open the folded pieces of paper they have drawn. All of them are blank except for Tessie's, which has a black mark on it which Mr Summers had made with his pencil the night before. Now, the significance of the pile of stones the children had been making at the beginning of the story becomes clear. Each of the villagers picks up a stone and they advance on Tessie, keen to get the business over with. One of the villagers throws a stone at Tessie's head. She protests that this isn't right and isn't fair, but the villagers proceed to hurl their stones, presumably stoning her to death. ***O. Henry's 'The Last Leaf'*** The story focuses on two female artists. The women are named Sue and Joanna, who is known as 'Johnsy'. They live in Greenwich Village in New York among a 'colony' of artists who reside in the area. One particularly cold winter, Johnsy falls ill with pneumonia and it looks likely she will die of the disease. The doctor takes Sue to one side and tells her that Johnsy has perhaps a ten per cent chance of surviving, but what she needs is something worth living for that will give her the strength to rally and recover. He asks Sue if Johnsy has a man in her life she loves, but Sue says she has not. Johnsy herself believes that she will perish when the last leaf of the year falls from the ivy vine outside her window. She has resigned herself to dying, much to the frustration of Sue, who is trying to help her friend. Sue and Johnsy live in the top apartment of the house. On the ground floor, Behrman, a male artist in his sixties lives. He has a beard like Moses in Michelangelo's famous sculpture. He is always talking about being on the brink of producing his 'masterpiece', but has never yet done so. He is, in short, a failed artist. When Sue tells Behrman about Johnsy's belief that she will perish when the last leaf falls from the vine, he scoffs at such a superstitious idea. But when Sue asks him to come and pose for her (he often poses for other artists), he agrees. The next day, Johnsy asks Sue to roll up the blind so she can look out at the ivy vine and see if the last leaf has fallen. But when the blind is put up, they find the last leaf still holding onto the branch. The day turns into night and still the last leaf clings to the vine. Johnsy apologises to Sue, realising how selfish it was to long to die like that. She interprets the ivy leaf's tenacity as a sign that she should not have been so ready to embrace death. The doctor visits and announces that Johnsy's condition has much improved. However, he has also come to visit Behrman downstairs, who has fallen seriously ill with pneumonia. Sure enough, he dies soon after. In the final paragraph of the story, Sue tells Johnsy that Berhman painted an imitation ivy leaf and attached it to the vine on the wall the night the real last leaf fell to the ground. That leaf, which was good enough to pass for a real leaf, is his masterpiece, which he has finally produced. But in going out into the cold weather to paint the leaf, he caught pneumonia and died. ***O. Henry's 'The Gift of the Magi'*** It is Christmas Eve. Jim and Della are a married couple living in a modest furnished flat in New York. They have little money. The story opens with Della upset because she has just one dollar and eighty-seven cents to spend on a Christmas present for her husband. The narrator tells us the married couple each have a possession in which they take great pride. For Jim, it's a gold watch that had been his father's and, before that, his grandfather's. Della's prized possession is her beautiful hair. Della goes to a woman who deals in hair goods. This woman agrees to buy Della's hair for twenty dollars. With the newly acquired money, Della goes to buy a platinum fob chain for Jim's gold watch. This costs her twenty-one dollars, leaving her just eighty-seven cents in the whole world. When she gets home, she sets about curling what's left of her hair so it looks presentable. When Jim gets home, he is surprised by his wife's actions, but when she explains why she had her hair cut off, he embraces her and gives her the present he has bought her: two jewelled tortoiseshell combs she has long admired in a shop window. The combs are useless to her until her hair grows out again, but at least she can give Jim his present... But in a last twist, Jim tells Della that he sold his gold watch to pay for the expensive combs he bought for her. So now, she has two combs but no hair to use them on, and he has a platinum fob chain for a gold watch he no longer owns. ***Kate Chopin's The Story of an Hour*** Louise Mallard has heart trouble, so she must be informed carefully about her husband's death. Her sister, Josephine, tells her the news. Louise's husband's friend, Richards, learned about a railroad disaster when he was in the newspaper office and saw Louise's husband, Brently, on the list of those killed. Louise begins sobbing when Josephine tells her of Brently's death and goes upstairs to be alone in her room. Louise sits down and looks out an open window. She sees trees, smells approaching rain, and hears a peddler yelling out what he's selling. She hears someone singing as well as the sounds of sparrows, and there are fluffy white clouds in the sky. She is young, with lines around her eyes. Still crying, she gazes into the distance. She feels apprehensive and tries to suppress the building emotions within her, but can't. She begins repeating the word Free! to herself over and over again. Her heart beats quickly, and she feels very warm. Louise knows she'll cry again when she sees Brently's corpse. His hands were tender, and he always looked at her lovingly. But then she imagines the years ahead, which belong only to her now, and spreads her arms out joyfully with anticipation. She will be free, on her own without anyone to oppress her. She thinks that all women and men oppress one another even if they do it out of kindness. Louise knows that she often felt love for Brently but tells herself that none of that matters anymore. She feels ecstatic with her newfound sense of independence. Josephine comes to her door, begging Louise to come out, warning her that she'll get sick if she doesn't. Louise tells her to go away. She fantasizes about all the days and years ahead and hopes that she lives a long life. Then she opens the door, and she and Josephine start walking down the stairs, where Richards is waiting. The front door unexpectedly opens, and Brently comes in. He hadn't been in the train accident or even aware that one had happened. Josephine screams, and Richards tries unsuccessfully to block Louise from seeing him. Doctors arrive and pronounce that Louise died of a heart attack brought on by happiness. **Imagery** **Imagery** - - 1. - - 2. - - - 3. - - 4. - - 5. - - **Metaphysical Poem** - - - **METAPHYSICAL POEMS** **"Death, be not proud"** **by John Donne** **John Donne -** was a soldier, a secretary, and a cleric in church **Type of literature - Petrarchan Sonnet** **Rhyme scheme - ABBA ABBA CDD CEF** **Theme - Death is powerless** Out of the night that covers me, Black as the pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be For my unconquerable soul. In the fell clutch of circumstance I have not winced nor cried aloud. Under the bludgeoning of chance My head is bloody, but unbowed Beyond this place of wrath and tears Looms but the Horror of the shade, And yet the menace of the years Finds and shall find me unafraid It matters not how strait the gate, How charged with punishments the scroll, I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul. **William Ernest Henley** - - - **Invictus : Unconquerable** **Type of literature - Shakespearean Sonnet** **Rhyme scheme - ABAB CDCD EFEF GBGB** **Theme - \_** **Sonnet** - - **PETRARCHAN** - - **SHAKESPEAREAN** - - **LINEAR & NON-LINEAR TEXT...** **READING PATH** 'It is the way the text or text plus other features, can determine or order the way you read it. **Linear** \- Most common type of reading sequential \- It focuses on the arrangement of the words, both grammatically and stylistically \- It is a traditional type of text that is read from beginning to end. Examples: story, speech, letter, newspaper report **Non-Linear** \- Text combined with visual elements \- The reading path is a non-sequential Examples: pictures, graphs, tables and graphic organizer **Textual Aids** Textual aids are educational instruments, tools or materials that provide support and facilitate understanding of texts. These aids are, most of the time, **graphical outlines or images** that give a general idea of a certain topic. **Graphic organizers** Also called as "concept map" A communication tool that uses visual symbols to express knowledge, concepts or thoughts and the relationships between them. It is used to organize information and ideas in a way that is easy to comprehend. **EXAMPLES OF TEXTUAL AIDS**   **LINEAR VS NON-LINEAR TEXT** ***Linear text*** **Definition:** Refers to traditional text that needs to be read from beginning to the end. **Reading path:** There is only one reading path. Which is decided by the author. **Content:** Typically includes printed texts. **Efficiency:** It may take time to find the information readers are searching for. **Examples:** Novels, poems, letters, textbooks, newspaper articles ***Non-linear text*** **Definition:** Refers to text that does not need to be read from beginning to the end. **Reading path:** There are multiple reading paths. They are determined by the reader. **Content:** Typically include digital texts. **Efficiency:** Allows readers to find more efficiently. **Examples:** Flowcharts, knowledge, maps, and encyclopedias