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Summary Of Total Eclipse By Annie Dillard

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Throughout a person's life, they experience memorable events that may change their perspective on life. Furthermore, a person may even change completely because of witnessing a once-in-a-lifetime event. Annie Dillard’s essay “Total Eclipse” depicts a wife, accompanied by her husband, recalling past events of her travels across the country in order to observe a total eclipse. Dillard illustrates that people change their perspective once an event forces them to open their eyes and cherish life and all of its meaningful values. Annie Dillard mentions that “all those things for which we have no words are lost” (Dillard). In other words, without any word or language to define objects or ideas, people simply would not have anything to remember it by. Not only does language allow people to appreciate everything our world has to offer, but it also prevents people from miscommunicating. The narrator only begins to realize this after viewing the total eclipse, in which she notices …show more content…

Dillard implements imagery all throughout her essay, which gives the reader a clear picture of the events occurring. For instance, she describes her husband “gesturing inside a circle of darkness” as a result of him gradually travelling farther away from her (Dillard). Ultimately, the use of imagery in this case represents the loneliness the narrator begins to feel. The author also utilizes metaphors to get her message across. Dillard compares “grammar and lexicon” to a “decorated sand bucket and a matching shovel” because without the other, they will not be able to fulfill their purpose (Dillard). The comparison proves that the mind needs these “two tools” in order for a person to further their knowledge of a language. The author manages to incorporate figurative language into her writing excellently to convince the reader the value of

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