Poe, who is often known for using challenging and varying sentence structure, uses elements of syntax such as polysyndeton and parallel structure to create a dark and ominous mood. Poe uses syntax in the first paragraph when he starts several sentences with “But in the…” and then names a specific room. This is effective because he describes each room with different features, but each feature has an equally discomforting feeling accompanying it. He uses polysyndeton in the second paragraph when he described the sound the clock made; he wrote, “...there came from the brazen lungs of the clock a sound which was clear and loud and exceedingly musical.” The combination of the different qualities of the sound are important because not only does it mirror the complex reaction the characters have to it, but it illustrates the significance of the clock. Parallel structure/ polysyndeton is also used when Poe describes the effect the clock has on the people by saying, “... and thus the waltzers perforce ceased their evolutions, and there was a brief discomfort of the whole gay company; and, while the chimes of the clock yet rang, it was observed that the giddiest grew pale, and the more aged and sedate passed their hands over their brows as if in confused reverie or meditation.” The polysyndeton used in this sentence bolsters the overall effect that the eerie chimes of the clock had an effect on everyone who heard them.
Edgar Allan Poe’s stories all have some type of mysterious setting that makes the reader read in between the lines and decipher the meaning. His stories also incorporate a great deal of violence and sinister acts, which adds a grimness to each story he tells. “The Black Cat” is a true work of literature that incorporates a hidden meaning in the story with the use of sinister violence. In this particular story, the narrator’s use of the first-person point of view, symbolism through the characters, and the eerie setting creates a fascinating tale. Edgar Allan Poe’s story is told from the first-person point of view.
“The Masque of the Red Death,” has an abundant amount of symbolism that ranges from subtle details, to plain out personification throughout the story. It is extremely ominous and dreamlike, which helps to show it’s dark and death-oriented messages. To achieve the desired theme and mood Poe desired, he uses dream-like settings and use of words to indicate that
Roald Dahl’s use of figurative language in the short story “Poison” effectively creates a vivid description of the events that transpire. There are many different types of figurative language used in “Poison,” but the most obvious ones are similes. “The question came so sharply it was like a small explosion in my ear” (Dahl 84). This quotation is a simile comparing someone’s voice to an explosion. At this time in the story, the narrator, Timber Woods, is calling Ganderbai to take care of the krait on his roommate Harry Pope’s stomach.
This is because they are in the different type. However, they are same in the using of suspense to capture the readers and to allow the reader feel how the author felt which can portrays the imagery of the suspense. Inherently, in ‘The Signalman’ Dickens uses an unfamiliar setting to build suspense by using gloomy words to make a tunnel horrendous, deadly and isolated. Which can be seen in “his post was in a solitary and dismal a place”. The using of the words such as ‘solitary’ and ‘dismal’ construct the imagery of being abandoned and a lonesome place.
“Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul.” (Nabokov 9). Vladimir Nabokov’s language in Lolita displays the enchanting power of language in its most innate form. In the classic dark love story of Humbert Humbert, the pedophile, and Dolores Haze, the naïve child, Nabokov 's choice in syntax encapsulates the audience’s attention from line to line, readers only hoping to understand the complexity of a character such as Humbert Humbert. The usage of literary devices aid in building Humbert Humbert’s character in Lolita as his thought process and narrative exposes itself through poetic diction.
The words “entertainment” and “musical”;which are generally seen to be optimistic terms. The note that Vonnegut decides to compare the current situation of the war and the British officers with a Cinderella story brings a humour to the story; exposing a beautiful story out to a dark, miserable reality. The author also uses strong descriptions; he includes that “candles and the soaps were made from the fat of rendered Jews and Gypsies…” (Vonnegut 98). He finishes the following description with the phrase “so it goes.” It is believed that this is a fairly simple phrase to close off such a strong point and embellish it with how it relates to a Cinderella story. A real life example that is envisioned when I think about humour in a tragic circumstance is when a person begins to laugh before they
Mood is what draws a reader’s emotion to a story. The mood sets the scene for a story to play out on. In “ The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe there is a strong mood that drives the story. The mood is dark, angry, and mysterious. Key details and scenes help illustrate the mood.
Mood is a literary device that is used in Kidd’s novel “The Secret Life of Bees” to show how almost everyone has deep dark secrets that holds them in the past. Mood refers to the mental and emotional disposition of the way a subject or a character is portrayed, which in turn sets up the atmosphere or mood to the novel. For instance in Kidd’s novel, “The Secret Life of Bees”, the mood is frequently serious because it treats a series of somber issues: verbal and physical abuse, racial discrimination, violence, and death. However, Kidd punctuates these grave moments with humor and the desire of the characters to overcome. Because the characters are able to meet the many challenges they face and
Edgar Allan Poe’s use of literary devices to show the how fear of the characters in his stories are both helpful and harmful to them. Poe shows how the fears and obsessions of the narrators in his tales either lead to their inevitable death, or their miraculous survival. Edgar Allan Poe uses many literary devices in his texts, such as symbols, ironies, and figurative language, to show the strange and distorted ways of the characters, and the repercussion of their fears and obsessions. In Poe’s stories, a literary device he uses frequently throughout his stories, are symbols. For example, in the text “The The-Tale Heart”, Poe’s use of the old man’s eye symbolized the obsessions and fears of the narrator like, “Whenever it fell upon me, my blood