Analysis Of Louise Erdrich's The Branch

In the short chapter, “The Branch,” from the book The Beet Queen by Louise Erdrich, the author substantially relies on imagery and mood to paint the abstract concept that environmental impact can seduce to transformation. Structuring the setting, Erdrich establishes the two main characters, Karl and Mary, whose hope is deeply devastated by new surrounding conditions as encountering “dirt,” “chill,” and “watery wind.” Marking the period of the Great Depression in 1932, the author adopts the historic setting to echo the hopeless atmosphere in the American society, which makes it possible to inspect the main characters’ mood. Individuals perceive the world differently; in lieu of analyzing the environmental impact on the two children in general,

The setting is very joyful, graceful and inviting, but within the town hides much evil (mostly Miss Strangeworth) which one might also say is fairly ironic. The author is very skilled at making a well developed setting, which suits the themes of deception, secrets and incorrect first impression very well and makes the reader think more to conceive what is really happening or how the setting connects to theme, characters and other literary devices.

Into this atmosphere of spiritual paralysis the boy bears, with blind hopes and romantic dreams, his encounter with first love. In the face of ugly, drab reality-"amid the curses of laborers," "jostled by drunken men and bargaining women"-he carries his aunt's parcels as she shops in the market place, imagining that he bears, not parcels, but a "chalice through a throng of foes." The "noises converged in a single sensation of life" and in a blending of Romantic and Christian symbols he transforms in his mind a perfectly ordinary girl into an enchanted princess: untouchable, promising, saintly. Setting in this scene depicts the harsh, dirty reality of life which the boy blindly ignores. The contrast between the real and the boy's dreams is ironically drawn and clearly foreshadows the boy's inability to keep the dream, to remain blind.

1. What descriptive details does the author use to make it clear that the setting of the story is a small town?

The narrator in Louise Erdrich’s The Strange People is characterized as a doe, a “lean gray witch” (i, 20) and finally, a “shadowy body.”(i, 25) Her own actions ultimately trigger this transformation, and are further emphasized through three jarring shifts within the poem. Despite portraying the narrator as prey in the beginning, she is not faultless. By placing double meanings on the word “burning,” (i, 6) it allows the self-destructive actions of the narrator to be evident. Also, by juxtaposing the cold and warmth described in the poem, the reasoning behind the doe’s self-destructive actions is explained, and ultimately paints her in a more nuanced light. Even so, her self-destructive actions highlight the consequences resulting from her attempt at self-preservation. She transforms into a “lean gray witch” to save herself, and yet it destroys her self-identity. The poem exposes the bleak yet nuanced consequences of destructive desires and self-preservation, and how even when necessary and justified, leads to the unfortunate loss of one’s identity.

The text is very descriptive and loaded with symbols. The author takes the opportunity to relate elements of setting with symbols with meanings beyond the first reading’s impressions. The house that the characters rent for the summer as well as the surrounding scenery are introduced right from the beginning. It is an isolated house, situated "quite three miles from the village"(947); this location suggests an isolated environment. Because of its "colonial mansion"(946) look, and its age and state of degradation, of the house, a supernatural hypothesis is implied: the place is haunted by ghosts. This description also suggests stability, strength, power and control. It symbolizes the patriarchal oriented society of the author’s time. The image of a haunted house is curiously superimposed with light color elements of setting: a "delicious garden"(947), "velvet meadows"(950), "old-fashioned flowers, and bushes and gnarly trees"(948) suggest bright green. The room has "air and sunshine galore"(947), the garden is "large and shady"(947) and has "deep-shaded arbors"(948). The unclean yellow of the wallpaper is

In this story, there is a lot of imagery, but the most vivid imagery is during the fox hunt. An example of this imagery is this quote, " the hounds went raging through the shrubs beside the drive, and away down a grassy slope towards a shallow glen, in the bottom of which

The idioms of everyday American speech in a middle-class domestic situation are used in showing the events and relationships of the Berlin family. In contrast to the conversations of Becca and Stan, usually presented as straight dialogue, the discussions among the three sisters are conventionally presented, often with “she said” and other interpolations to give explicitly the emotional level of the sister’s disagreements. Madga, the Polish student who acts as Becca’s guide to the death camp site speaks fluent English but at times awkward English “Oh, they are much in appreciation” she says when given a pair of jeans. Contrast between the formal, traditional language of the fairy tale and childish, informal chatter is shown when the children comment or question as Gemma proceeds with her Briar Rose fairy tale story telling. Her contrast revisiting of just this one fairy tale shows the reader that while her conscious memory has buries the details of her past horrors, she cannot help returning to the fairy tale allegory. Contrast is also shown between the warm, happy imagery of life in the Berlin house and the bleak, harsh details of the holocaust.

Many people become entranced by beautiful scenery and quaint sea side towns, but the narrator from Sarah Orne Jewett’s The Country of the Pointed Firs takes the role of an observant lover of the Maine town Dunnet. Jewett characterizes the narrator as a romantic who is fascinated by Dunnet and its inhabitants. Her characterization of the narrator is supported by personification, strong imagery, and figurative language.

When developing the different points to analyze I found that the way I was setting this paper up was truly showcasing my abilities to analyze a passage from a well know author. While going through the text, I found a vast amount of imagery,” When considering the imagery in the folktale one of the first

The imagery shows that since the character is young and responsible, he works to support him and his family. We are first introduced to the image of the young boy working as a young adult. Then, in the first 9 lines, the author describes the setting of the poem using imagery such as, “sweet-scented stuff when the breeze drew across it,” “Five mountain ranges one behind the other,” “under the sunset far into

This entire sequence symbolizes that in this seemingly pleasant and normal family town, is a dark and evil underworld. This theme is repeated and elaborated throughout the

In addition to using symbolism, Le Guin writes using vivid imagery to describe the theme of the story. She gives the reader an image of the room the child lives. “It has one locked door, and no window. A little light seeps in dustily between cracks in the

Since the boy is the narrator, the inclusion of these symbolic images in the description of the setting shows that the boy is sensitive to the lack of spiritual beauty in his surroundings. Outside the main setting are images symbolic of those who don’t belong to the Church. The boy and his companions go there at times, behind their houses, along the "dark muddy lanes," to where the "rough tribes" (the infidel) dwell. Here odors arise from "the ash pits"--those images symbolic to James Joyce of the moral decay of his nation.

“In the public square of Goderville there was a crowd, a throng of human beings and animals mixed together. The horns of the cattle, the tall hats, with long nap, of the rich peasant and the headgear of the peasant women rose above the surface of the assembly. And the clamorous, shrill, screaming voices made a continuous and savage din