Comparing and Contrasting Literary Elements
Introduction
Every story uses some form of literal elements to make the story more elaborate and easier to understand. Literary analysis means closely examining a text, interpreting meanings of particular usage of words, and seeking to find out the reason behind the author’s choices. The literary analysis does not only analyze the plot or theme but goes further to look at the structure of the text, perspective, language, and the literary elements used to convey the message. Even though literary analysis looks at much more than just the storyline, it is essential to take note of the thesis statement to be able to establish other features of the short story.
Digital and Print Material
Students rely heavily on reading material to comprehend and review content for their studies. In recent times there has been a surge in the use of digital print in many learning platforms with a reduction in the use of print media. This has been caused by the increase in the availability of educational material in electronic format. The big question becomes whether digital media is as useful in reading and summarizing as print material. While the students themselves are divided into what provides better content for study, research has come to the rescue. Research has shown that it depends on the material being studied, the length, place of education, and many other factors. In the literature scene, students have shown preference to read short stories on digital media as they are used to social sites such as linked in and Facebook that has similar.
For the long stories, print material such as books is preferred due to the long hours spent staring at the light. The other issue is taking short notes and annotations to understand a topic or theme better. Jotting down important facts or ideas has been proven to increase the retention capacity of the material by a considerable percentage. For print media, it is easy to just highlight the important parts of a book or use sticky notes that can be removed for the books that are shared. In the case of digital material, there is the use of annotations to create short notes or main ideas. While this still works fine, it is slower to use annotation as it is cumbersome because it involves many clicks and typing. Highlighting or jotting down notes is way faster. Furthermore, not everyone is conversant with the use of annotations. The only advantage that digital reading material might have is during research, whereby one can easily search for keywords or content, and it does bring it up by itself.
Characterization
One of the commonly used literary devices is Characterization. Characterization is used in literature to explain and highlight the main features of a character in a story. The character is first introduced with noticeable emergence, and then the thought process of the character is showcased as the story progresses. This is showcased through his ideas and opinions as conversations and thought process continues in the storytelling process. The response of other characters to the character in question will also expound more on the personality of the character. This is called indirect Characterization. Examples of short stories whereby Characterization was used effectively are “That Spot” by Jack London and “A respectable woman” by Kate Chopin.
Examples of Characterization
That Spot” by Jack London is a story about a dog that is deemed to be smarter than some humans due to the actions of a mean man to the narrator. There is a lot of use of Characterization in the story. The narrator uses indirect Characterization when she says, “I always sized Steve up as a square man, a kindly comrade, without an iota of anything vindictive or malicious in his nature.” She is trying to portray the nature of Steve. In another descriptive line, the dog is characterized as being cunny. The writer says, “There was no getting any work out of that Spot, and to make up for it, he was the biggest pig-glutton of a dog I ever saw. On top of that, he was the cleverest thief.” This describes the character of the dog in detail.
In the A respectable woman” by Kate Chopin looks into the situation that occurs when a visitor in the name of Gouvernail visits a married couple and tempts the wife. This temptation forces Mrs. Baroda, who is a wealthy woman, to recognize the strength of her will. In the story, we see Characterization in the way Mrs. Baroda thinks of Gouvernail, “He had been her husband’s college friend; was now a journalist and in no sense a society man or “a man about town,” which were, perhaps, some of the reasons she had never met him.” Here we get to see the character of Gouvernail as a laid back person. Later on, the narrator uses Characterization to further explain the role of Gouvernail when she says, “Gouvernail was in no sense a diffident man, for he was not a self-conscious one. His periods of the reserve were not constitutional, but the result of moods.” This provides the reader with much more information on what kind of a man Gouvernail was. Characterization is an essential part of the writing of good literature. It helps the reader to understand the characters better by providing information on their personality. Functional Characterization often leads to the readers understanding better the events that take place in the story and the creation of flow.
Conclusion
Even though writing about literature is a straightforward thing, it is vital to have the skills that enable one to be able to critically analyze the literature. Mere reading and offering interpretations are not enough as one needs to look at the literal elements used by the author to bring the story to life. Print material for reading and summarizing literature can be more effective than digital material in some instances. Digital material has not been around much, and more could be done to get students to get used to it. Characterization is one of the leading literary elements used by writers to bring out the best of stories. They become easy to follow and understand as a result.
Reflections
Reading skills are essential to one irregardless of the discipline that one is in. Creating summaries and short notes are some techniques used in reading that enhance the understanding of a text. In literature, literary elements are typically used to improve the quality of the passage. Students need to learn how to identify the literary aspects of the readings to gain more from the texts. By utilizing the literary elements in my readings, I am confident of being a better reader and grasping more from my readings than before.
Choosing between digital and print material for reading can be a tough choice to make at times. Digital material has increased rapidly and is becoming easier to access than before. A small device like a tab could access millions of reading material on simple clicks. Writing summaries and short notes using digital devices are, however not as swift as using print material. The use of annotations is slow and could slow down the speed of a person while reading. Print material has the superiority of being able to highlight and write notes on top with much ease. Digital material has, however, increased the accessibility of reading material by a considerable margin.
Characterization is a crucial literary element used by the writer to give personalities to their characters. Directly or indirectly, we can learn character attributes and attitudes. This is very important for short stories that do not have a lot of writing space to develop characters. By using the viewpoints of the characters themselves and others, it becomes quite easy to tell the personality of a character. Such literary elements make stories more exciting and have gained a lot of tracts, especially in modern times.