Use Of Diction In The Great Gatsby

In writing, authors chose particular words and phrases to effectively convey their message or to engage the reader. Writer's word choices, also known as diction, can help communicate ideas, reveal emotion and opinions that they may have toward something or someone. There are many different levels of diction such as formal diction, used by Richard Rodriguez in his autobiography The Hunger of Memory, and neutral diction, used by Charles Bukowski in his novel Ham on Rye. The use of diction in these pieces make the stories come to life in the reader's head.

The Glass Castle written by Jeannette Walls is story that revolves around a family that faces the hardships of a low class life, constant frustration, and hopelessness. I believe this story is centralized by the title of the book. “The glass castle” throughout the book is a dream, it is dream to Jeanette and her whole family, it represents a better life in a better place. Jeannette Walls centralizes her writing based on diction, the writer specifically chose unique words to show her experiences and emotions, this helps readers interpret the story from the writer's point of view.

Fitzgerald used various different examples of figurative language throughout the novel. For example, Fitzgerald writes, “The windows were ajar and gleaming white against the fresh grass outside that seemed to grow a little way into the house. A breeze blew through the room, blew curtains in at one end and out the other like pale flags, twisting them up toward the frosting wedding cake of the ceiling, and then rippled over the wine-colored rug, making a shadow on it as wind does on the sea,” (Fitzgerald 8). Fitzgerald uses imagery to have the readers experience the event that is happening as if the readers were looking at it through their own eyes. Another type of figurative language that is used to enhance the novel is symbolism, when Nick says, “...he stretched out his arms toward the dark water in a curious way, and, far as I was from him, I could have sworn he was trembling.

Diction is an extremely important aspect of writing and it usually affects the writer’s whole story. Almost all authors utilize diction to impact the mood and tone of their writing. Diction is the choice of words or phrases that a writer intentionally chooses to influence other aspects of their story. Authors use commonly use diction to develop tone and mood in their stories. Tone is the author’s attitude towards a specific subject. Mood is how the reader is made to feel based on the writing. Both tone and mood can easily be altered by the author’s careful use of diction. In “Salvador Late or Early” and “The House on Mango Street” the author, Sandra Cisneros, utilizes strong diction by using undesirable words and phrases to develop the pessimistic

The author wrote this story to inform the reader of the life of Louis Zamperini, while also telling the story in an entertaining way. Hillenbrand demonstrated the main idea throughout the book by using rhetorical devices such as diction, syntax, imagery, and tone. Hillenbrand’s use of these rhetorical devices contribute to the book Unbroken by emphasizing the main character, Louis “Louie” Zamperini’s, life before, during, and after becoming a prisoner of war.

Although chapter four of “The Boy’s Ambition” by Mark Twain and chapter five of Frederick Douglass's “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave” were written in the 1800’s and tell about the author's childhood, they are written very differently. While Twain uses exaggeration to create humor, Douglass uses a formal diction to create ethos. The use of these writing techniques make each piece of writing believable and lasting. Although the situation for each author was very different, the similarities between the texts show the similarities in their character.

In modern day, some teenagers may be put into a conflict in which they cannot let their voice be heard. In the novel Speak, by Laurie Halse Anderson, her protagonist Melinda Sordino faces the same problem. In her character’s voice, she speaks as a shy, intimidated teen, which eventually branches out to woman of confidence and strength. With the use of diction and tone, Anderson is able to construct a developing voice for Melinda.

In the first chapter of the book, “The Great Gatsby”, the author F. Scott Fitzgerald advances the idea that despite Daisy’s husband, Tom’s, countless achievements he was granted, his character development became an anticlimax. Fitzgerald’s use of juxtaposing diction, a glorious diction to an arrogant diction depicts Tom’s change in personality parallel to to his success. The author uses glorious diction, such as “accomplishments”, “excellence”, “wealthy”, “freedom” and “powerful”, to reinforce Tom’s countless achievements and fame he has received that shaped his character. This pattern of diction allows the author to display Tom as a successful figure, compared to many others in the same generation as him. While Tom is portrayed as a successful

The American dream influences the American people to have the opportunity to achieve success through work, determination and self- motivation. Many Americans were motivated and commit themselves to having their perfect life. However, not all Americans were able to achieve their dreams. Fitzgerald’s rhetorical device affects the American dream that characterizes the morality of people’s social classes and gender.

The black man on the back porch is afraid of the rattle snake because it is bad luck, or the innocent little slave is quick to believe everything one tells them at the drop of the hat. These are just some of the many racist stereotypes of the 1840s. A character named Jim is the star African American whom Twain bestoys the mission of being the stereotypical black man to prove a point. He along with his much more pallor companion Huck go on exciting adventures that unfold the events which expose the racist conduct of the time. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Twain saturates his novel with potent images of acute racism severe enough as to create a satirical mien that exposes the absurdity of prejudice.

F. Scott Fitzgerald once said, “You don’t write because you want to say something, you write because you have something to say.” Fitzgerald had something great to reveal to his readers in The Great Gatsby. To give some background, the novel is about a man, Nick, who is on the outside peering into the lifestyle of the extremely wealthy. His neighbor, Gatsby, has persistently worked for the past few years to meet Daisy again after he woefully departed from her to fight in the war. In the classic novel The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald has something to say and he uses effective diction, symbolism, and characterization to convey his idea that Americans must ceaselessly work towards living their own version of the great American Dream but they must not get caught up in wanting too much.

Should the book The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain be banned in American high schools? This question has been asked by parents, teachers, and administrators many times. Huck Finn truthfully displays communication between white and black men during the time period. Although many may disagree, we cannot erase history, only learn from it. Therefore, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn should be taught to high school students.

Imagine, being accused of a crime you didn’t commit by your neighbors and friends out of jealousy, and desire. This is what many people in the town of Salem had to go through during the time of the Salem Witch Trials. People's motives such as: gaining and maintaining power, and aspirations for what other people had caused them to make irrational, and atrocious decisions. In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, desire and power drive characters to create chaos in the community.

Throughout his pieces of literature, the famous American author Mark Twain portrays his personal views of society using satire and irony in his stories. He makes fun of broken parts in the American society relentlessly and makes sure the readers understand how outrageous some acts were during the early-to-mid 1800s. Twain seems to target specific aspects in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn such as how young people could be conflicted between morality and legality, the loss of self-respect for money, and the effects of herd mentality. He has an interesting approach at giving the reader insight, but his main ideas for the theme shine through and are clearly depicted.

War was absolutely devastating; emotionally and economically throughout the world. Especially after World War I, is was shocking to people because it was the first time anyone had witnessed something so distorting. In America, it changed everyone 's life styles. People became more materialistic and rebellious. The UXL Encyclopedia of U.S. History talks about that time period by saying “The novel reflects the outward glitter and the inward corruption of the Roaring Twenties , also known as the Jazz Age, a decade of prosperity and excess that began soon after the end of World War I (1914–18) in 1918 and ended with the 1929 stock-market crash”(656). This included women wanting to work and be more equal and men who came back from the war just wanted to forget everything. F. Scott Fitzgerald was an author in the “Twenties” and lived a very typical lifestyle at the time. Through his book, “Great Gatsby”, you really get the taste of the era. The analysis of the book through his language, characters and events, it shows how his life was and how people acted at the time.