Syntax: Form and Function
Identify and explain the function of the syntax in the following dialogue:
"The clown... I wasn't sure then... but now... if I could only find the clown... all problems would vanish... if only..."
The use of ellipses in this sentence serve to represent the rambling, disjointed, confused nature of the speaker's thoughts/words.
Identify at least one literary device present in the below lines:
"I came, I saw, I conquered."
You could identify:
Parallel Structure (repeated clauses), Anaphora (repeated first elements in successive clauses), and/or Tricolon Crescens (3 successive clauses that build in value/impact)
How does the change in diction alter our understanding of the modified sentence below?
Original: "I'm going to go tell Dad."
Changed: "I'm going to go tell Father."
In the modified sentence, the use of the term "Father" could indicate either an increased formality in the paternal relationship OR provide context for the setting of the dialogue (as "Father" was a more commonly antiquated term).
Explain whether "jumped" is most likely an example of diction in the following phrase:
"Piggy jumped nimbly over the falling rocks."
Most likely NO. Though "jumping" is an action Piggy is taking, there is no suggestion of a further or deeper meaning by the use of the term in this context. "Nimbly" does a stronger job of describing the action. Though it may be an important action, "jumped" is most likely NOT diction.
Which element of the Big 5 is analyzed here?
By using the word "intelligent" to describe Janie, the author intends to make a statement on the overall intellectual capacity of women.
CHARACTERIZATION. It appears that the quote is an element of direct characterization (as it seems to be the author's description rather than the speech or thoughts of another character).
Identify at least one literary device present in the below lines:
From Macduff to Malcolm in Macbeth:
"I think our country sinks beneath the yoke;
It weeps, it bleeds, and each new day a gash
Is added to her wounds."
METAPHOR or PERSONIFICATION. In this case, Scotland is likened indirectly to an animal via the description of the "yoke," which would not be personification by itself; however, as oxen most likely do not weep (and are not referred to with female pronouns), personification is also inferrable.
How does the change in diction alter our understanding of the modified sentence below?
Original: "Claude was a handsome young man."
Modified: "Claude was a beautiful young man."
As the term "beautiful" typically describes feminine beauty, Claude's attractiveness is meant to stand out here, either as particularly feminine or as particularly strong (i.e. emphasized or unique).
Explain whether "peered" is an example of diction in the following sentence.
"Midway through the class, Mr. Jacobs stopped and peered into the room, promptly departing several seconds later."
Most likely YES. The verb "peered" means "to look closely and keenly", and also has connotations of suspicion; the term, then, implies that Jacobs has some measure of suspicion in his actions, further supported by the context of his "prompt" departure.
Which element of the Big 5 is analyzed here?
The "floating red balloons" (Dai 44) that cannot seem to determine whether to rise or fall to the ground symbolize the moral ambiguity of the main characters' mutual love.
IMAGERY (& SYMBOLISM). "Floating red balloons" would constitute both a visual and kinesthetic image, and is also here described as a symbol.
Identify at least one literary device present in the below lines:
From Fahrenheit 451:
"Far away across town in the night, the faintest whisper of a turned page, "The Book of Job."
ALLUSION or PERSONIFICATION. The personification is present here but far less meaningful than the allusion to the biblical Book of Job, who is put through immense suffering by G-d to learn, grow, and become faithful.
How does the change in diction alter our understanding of the modified sentence below?
Original: "Mark went to go get the baby while John rested in the corner."
Modified: "Mark went to go get the baby while John snoozed in the corner."
The use of the informal word "snoozed" to describe John's actions in the modified sentence may imply his lazy or irresponsible nature, particularly when juxtaposed against the more neutral term "rested."
Explain whether "cackling" is an example of diction in the following sentence.
"Seung turned away as her classmates continued their cackling."
Most likely YES. The use of "cackling," a word typically associated with witches or other potentially evil characters, suggests the derisive or immoral nature of the classmates.
Which element of the Big 5 is analyzed here?
The author's abrupt use of both a rhetorical question combined with a sudden shift to first-person plural narration - specifically, "And where would we have been then?" - demonstrates a universal uncertainty which colors the theme of the work.
PERSPECTIVE/POINT OF VIEW. The author's shift to a wider lens, and his sudden rhetorical address of the presumed audience is most likely important to the meaning of the work.
Identify one of the possible ANTECEDENT(S) in the below lines:
While Dawn and Yuriko began to work on the project, Austin went out to buy colored pencils at their request.
The antecedent here is EITHER "DAWN and YURIKO" OR the action of "[buying] colored pencils."
An antecedent is the earlier word that a later word refers to. It is most commonly used with pronouns, which stand in for their antecedents.
Antecedents are often tested with poetry or poetic prose, e.g.:
“Me thinks the wind has spoke aloud at land,
A fuller blast ne’er shook our battlements
If IT hath ruffianed so upon the sea
What ribs of oak, when mountains melt on them …”
How does the change in diction alter our understanding of the modified sentence below?
Original: "When confronted by his parents about ditching school to watch the parade, Marco cleverly lied."
Modified: "When confronted by his parents about ditching school to watch the parade, Marco expertly prevaricated*."
*Prevaricate - verb - to speak falsely or misleadingly; to lie
The use of heavier, more sophisticated diction like "expertly" and "prevaricated" place further emphasis on either Marco's skillful ability to lie, or on the skill of the lie itself.
Explain whether "bummer" is an example of diction in the following sentences.
"After twenty years of back-breaking, soul-crushing toil, to be informed so succinctly and so patronizingly that his long-term creative raison d'etre* would be thusly extinguished was, suffice it to say, quite the bummer."
*raison d'etre - idiom (French) - reason for being/living
Most likely YES. There is a sophistication and drama to the diction in the rest of the sentence that is ironically underscored by the use of the term "bummer," which is a far more informal term.
Which element of the Big 5 is analyzed here?
Describing Jeremiah's thoughts as "blazing" figuratively connects them to both passion and fire, which serves both to show him as particularly fervent as well as to foreshadow his decision to burn down the orphanage.
DICTION & CHARACTERIZATION. The writer is examining word choice here, which appears to have both connections to indirectly characterizing Jeremiah as well as to a significant event in the plot.
Identify a literary device in the below line:
“I must confess that in my quest I felt depressed and restless.
ASSONANCE and, to a lesser degree, CONSONANCE. You have at least 6-7 repetitions of a short "e" sound (ASSONANCE), 5 of which are followed by the sibilant "s" sound (CONSONANCE). The function of both devices are typically to draw emphasis to the content of - or other devices within - the line(s).
How does the change in diction alter our understanding of the modified sentence below?
Original: "The teacher noted the odd patterns in Yara's handwriting."
Modified: "The teacher noted the bizarre patterns in Yara's handwriting."
The term "bizarre" is denotatively stronger and connotatively more negative than the term "odd," suggesting an increased strangeness of Yara's handwriting (and probably of her character as well).
Explain whether the term "whiteness" is diction in the following sentence.
"Montag did not move, but stood looking into the cold whiteness of the wall immediately before him."
Most likely NO: while intentionally symbolic and part of a meaningful IMAGE, the choice to use "whiteness" to depict the wall is not purposeful as a word on its own; it has symbolic meanings but not connotative meanings.
Which element of the Big 5 is analyzed here?
Macduff shows the impact of Macbeth's reign by referring to Scotland as a "[weeping]" and "bleeding" oxen "sinking beneath the yoke."
METAPHOR. In this case, the line is as such:
"I think our country sinks beneath the yoke;
It weeps, it bleeds, and each new day a gash
Is added to her wounds."
The line specifically likens "our country" to a quasi-humanized farm animal.