In this passage from Maiden Voyage, Denton Welch portrays a situation in which an adolescent’s rebelliousness has detrimental consequences. Through the use of various literary techniques, he seems to suggest that unfamiliarity with one’s surroundings can subsequently lead to horrifying events. With a deeper analysis of the extract, it can also be inferred that the author is showing the contrast between the orderliness of the developed world and the chaotic nature of the developing world.
Characterization is significant in showing that the narrator’s rebelliousness led to the conflict. By immediately describing the narrator with phrases such as “They would never want to do what I wanted to do,” the boy is seen as stubborn, suggesting a possible reason why he “could stand it no longer” and left to explore the Chinese city. It is because of the fact that he has such a rebellious trait and disobeyed the warnings of others, that the reader suspects that something bad will happen to him.
Foreshadowing plays an essential role in setting an ominous mood and creating suspense in the reader, to emphasize the terror that the narrator feels towards his new surroundings. The first line of the passage, “Foreigners are not very popular here,” informs the reader that the narrator is from abroad, and therefore has to be careful about going into the city. By disobeying orders to not “go out alone,” the reader once again expects that something might go wrong, but since it is written in such a subtle way, it does not take away the suspense which is built up over the course of the passage.
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Imagery further accentuates this feeling of possible catastrophe as the Welch’s vivid descriptions throughout the passage articulate the harshness of the land that surrounds the narrator. From the very beginning of the passage, the speaker’s reference to “a European villa and a line of poplars” which signifies order and beauty, seems to contrast with the Chinese city that lies outside. The author’s use of figurative language and diction, or very specific word choice, only makes every aspect of the setting even more dreadful.
By describing the bushes as “stunted,” and saying that they “squeaked” and “grated,” the narrator’s environment is already portrayed in a negative light as all three of these words have negative connotations. The fact that Welch uses metaphors to compare grass to “harsh spears” and turrets to “ruined cottages,” shows once again that the surrounding seems threatening which might provoke conflict, and also that it is fairly decayed and worn out. The use of imagery is vital in creating suspense. By comparing the black speck to specific superstitious symbols such as “black cats,” it can be inferred that the horror is approaching.
Furthermore, as the narrator gets closer and closer to the object, the author’s use of words such as “loathsome” and “angrily” to describe the flies (which are seen as highly unpleasant creatures that are attracted to nasty things), causes panic and extreme suspense to be built up in the reader, as these two words also have intensely negative connotations. Finally, by giving the “numbed senses” the human characteristic of waking up, the author uses personification to convey to the reader that the horror has finally arrived.
Imagery does not only serve the purpose of foreshadowing that something bad is going to happen, but also conveys the reactions of the narrator. By using similes such as “odd white teeth stood up like ninepins in its dark, gaping mouth,” the reader is really able to imagine what the mouth must look like, by comparing it to a bowling alley with one pin missing; the gap in the teeth. By using metaphors such as “waves of sickness spread over me,” Welch is able to demonstrate the nausea that the narrator feels as well.
Other literary devices such as irony and sentence structure also serve to convey the reactions of the narrator. The fact that his “eyes had to return to it whenever [he] looked away” serves to show the irony that something which is so horrifying can actually make you look at it longer. Furthermore, the fact that the sentence “Then I ran” is so short and abrupt seems to represent the narrator’s fear of the situation he is in. First-person narration plays a vital role in enabling the reader to know what the character is feeling.
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When writing literature, authors will adapt points of view to mold the perceptions of their readers. Three points of view that authors use to draw readers into their works of fiction are the limited perspective, the first-person perspective, and the objective perspective. Three stories will be examined and critiqued for their use of these narrative techniques. Of the three perspectives that will ...
The fact that the entire passage is written in 1st person narration or that the narrator is telling his own story, gives the reader an insight into the emotions of the narrator. From the beginning of the passage when the narrator is upset that he cannot go outside, to the end where he is trying to climb up to the bastion, the author is constantly informing the reader as to what the narrator feels. When he refers to Sydenham as a place of order therefore, it is clear to the reader that there must be a personal connection between the narrator and the district of London.
It is likely that he is from that town, and could not adjust to the environment of the Chinese city, which is so chaotic and disorderly, because he is used to an organized lifestyle. After seeing the human head, the narrator says, “I jumped back, my throat quite dry and my stomach churning. ” If someone else had seen the event, he or she might tell you that the narrator jumped back, but it would be impossible to know that his throat was dry or his stomach was churning, and these are valuable details to know just how horrifying the head really was.
At the end of the passage, when it states “I could only hear [the insects] buzzing and the slap of them when they hit the wall,” it once again shows the dramatic impact the event has had on the narrator as this is all he can seem to think about now. Finally, details such as the fact that the narrator began to feel desperate towards the end, could never have been known had the story not been told in first-person. By the end of the passage therefore, it seems as if the reader knows the character better, and can relate to what has happened to him.
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It is difficult for the reader to feel much affection for the protagonist in Wolff’s memoir. Do you agree? This Boy’s Life, set in America in the 1950’s, is a compelling memoir by Tobias Wolff, whom recreates the frustrations and cruelties faced throughout his adolescence, as he fights for identity and self-respect. During this period of time, America underwent major changes in the political ...
In conclusion, the elements of characterization, foreshadowing, imagery and narration, all serve to create a tense atmosphere in which the horrors of the event are really emphasized. After careful analysis, the fact that the author continuously portrays the harshness of the Chinese city, and tries to make the reader feel sympathy for the narrator, suggests that this passage is a form of criticism towards developing countries, or perhaps a personal experience that he is reflecting upon.
