Monday, August 30, 2010
Point of View/Allegory
Comment on something you have read that makes interesting use of either point of view or allegory. Please be specific and support your point with evidence where possible. Or, if you’re inclined to write creatively, write a passage (such as the initial paragraph of a story) in which you experiment with narrative voice, point of view, or allegory.
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The prompt says "something you have read," so webcomics count. I don't want to spoil it, so if you've got a spare couple of minutes, read this first (warning for bloody and semi-graphic images): http://somuchdamage.com/stuff/diggcomic.jpg
ReplyDeleteThe point of view is first person for most of the comic, but changes to third person in the scene after the protagonist is not-quite-lethally injected. This change in narrative style provides a shift in tone from the very serious tone of the earlier first-person narrative to the description of a mundane, everyday occurrence: a random lab employee talking to his friend on the phone. Having the unnamed protagonist simply just wake up again just wouldn't have the same jarring effect that this approach does. In this case, switching from first person to third person objective more effectively brings the plot to a climax.
One of the most interesting uses of allegory that I have read comes from one of my favorite books, Animal Farm. This satirical look at communism uses animals to represent the beginning of the Soviet Union and those that initiated it. The infamous Napoleon, a hard-headed tyrant that bends the rules in favor of himself and even establishes his own secret police force,represents Joseph Stalin, dictator over the Soviet Union. Snowball, the original leader of the farm, represents Leon Trotsky, who just like Snowball was expelled from his own country. The philosophy established by these animals is given the name Animalism (obviously in reference to communism), which was secured by the Seven Commandments. Eventually, the leaders over the farm are corrupted by their power and begin to rule unfairly. Animal farm gives a comical look at a movement that had a tremendous impact on the entire world. By reading Animal Farm, I probably learned more about the effects of communism and the Soviet Union than I would have from just reading a textbook.
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ReplyDeleteIt's been a while since I read it, but I remember talking about how The Lord of the Flies is an allegory. The island represents society and the boys humankind. Piggy symbolizes intellect, and when he dies the boys completely turn into savages. This shows the importance of intelligence in civilization, and also how easily humans are able to turn into savages. Their conch shell represented order in their civilization. It kept Jack from becoming the leader, but after it breaks he immediately declares his power. The darkness that lurks in every human is represented by "the Beast" in the book. The boys are frightened by it, but eventually realize that they cannot kill it.
ReplyDeleteOverall, Lord of the Flies is an allegory speaking to human's nature to turn into savages without proper leadership. It is showing how everybody has a darkness that allows us to turn into savages if put in certain situations.
Recently, I read The Road by Cormac McCarthy, and I found that to be a very good example of an allegory. Throughout the entire book except one small excerpt, the author keeps the story in the 3rd person, always referring to the two main characters as "the man" and "the boy", which shows the authors detachment from the characters, wanting the reader to feel as if the two men really are alone. What I found to be interesting was that this book has a deeper meaning then just two people in a post apocalyptic world, it is actually about humanity and the struggles that people face in life. Also, key elements and themes throughout the book have deeper meanings. For example, the cannibals running around the entire novel show how precious life is, and the fact that the father and son do not take it for granted.
ReplyDeleteOne Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich is a novel that spans over the entirety of a day. It's told in the third limited narrative, providing insight on only the life of a man named Ivan. Ivan in a prisoner in a Soviet labor camp, and the sole intent of this novel is to make the reader feel as though he or she is in his shoes; the reader is forced to follow his mundane schedule and experiences his same emotions, which, as a result, causes him or her to take away a bit of what it was like to live and operate in one of the Soviet Union’s many labor camps.
ReplyDeleteIn the Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, the point of view is a third limited view. At most times the narrator is simply watching Gregor Samsa as he struggles with his recent transformation into a bug like creature. Although occasionally the narrator taps into the head of Gregor to experience his emotions as he deals with his new lifestyle. Being able to understand Gregor’s thoughts allow us to picture ourselves in his situation. Throughout the story, Gregor’s family has a hard time adjusting to the fact that their son had been transformed into such an odd creature. While the third limited viewpoint allows us to understand the complexities of the situation, it also forces us to sympathize with Gregor and have hatred towards his family for not accepting him in his post metamorphic state.
ReplyDeleteIn the novel, "Same Kind of Different As Me", the two authors alternate telling the story of their lives from their own point of view. The first character is Denver Moore, a "dangerous, homeless drifter who grew up picking cotton in virtual slavery" and Ron Hall, "an upscale art dealer accustomed to the world of Armani and Chanel". Each writer tells his story in first person about how a friendship was formed between two men from opposite worlds. The authors, Ron and Denver, alternate the writing of each chapter, which keeps the reader engaged in an emotional and inspirational true story.
ReplyDeleteLast year in fictional worlds we read A Life of Pi. This book was pretty good because the author made it into sort of puzzle that we had to put together. To make a long story short, the reader is simply forced to match the human characters to the animal characters. However,if I remember correctly, the author narrated the scenes in the beginning as if one of the characters, but in the second half of the book, with the animals, he talks in a third objective type of tone. It was as if he was telling the story as it happens as supposed to giving the impression that he was indeed apart of it.
ReplyDeleteThis is probably a very generic answer, but the first thing that came to my mind as an example of something I read that was an allegory was Plato's "Allegory of the Cave." Plato uses numerous symbols throughout this text to represent what we perceive as reality and actual truth. In the story, prisoners are chained to a wall of a cave and are forced to only look at one side of the wall. They can only see what is going on behind them by looking at the reflection on the wall in front of them, so that is the only "truth" they know. At some point they are released from the cave and allowed to see the light which is the actual "truth." Then once they have seen the light they get the choice to return to the cave and show the truth to others, or stay in actual reality.
ReplyDeleteThe Chronicles of Narnia uses allegory in an interesting as C.S. Lewis teaches a moral through his books. He leads his characters into a land, Narnia, where animals can talk and the good battles with the evil. Specifically in the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, the children enter into this world and the symbolism starts to unfold. The lion represents Christ who laid down his life to get rid of sin and evil, or in this book, the White Witch. The lion dies, representing Christ's death on a cross, and then is resurrected, just as Christ was. As the lion rises again, they can go to wattle against the White Witch where the good ultimately wins symbolizing the heavens and new earth.
ReplyDeleteCandide by Voltaire presents an allegory of Voltaire's view of humanity through a satire. The reader follows Candide as he is thrown out the castle into the dark realities of the world, which he had previously known to be "the best of all possible worlds." Through Candide's journey Voltaire humorously criticizes the doctrine of philosophical optimism and pokes fun at religious extremists in subtle references and events along Candide's journey. Candide's tutor, Pangloss, engraves the idea that all is for the best in the best of all possible worlds (as noses were made for glasses which is why glasses exist, just as legs were made for pants which is why pants exist). After Candide's exit from the castle he becomes a victim of the Inquisition, is flogged, must watch Pangloss be hanged, hears of the fall of his castle and the death of his past love, and watches his first friend in the real world drown at port. It is then that Candide first questions his tutors optimism, and from there on Candide wavers between belief and disbelief in the philosophy. It is through Candide's ridiculous behavior and blind following of his tutor that Voltaire snubs the optimism present in his society.
ReplyDeleteThough Voltaire makes use of third omniscient point of view, the characters and story itself is somewhat unreliable as the reader is forced to read between the lines to understand exactly what Voltaire is alluding to.
Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" takes the reader through a series of stories from the perspective of Holmes's best friend, Dr. Watson. Through Watson's language, one may see the admiration he has for Holmes and his perpetual shock of Holmes's logical acuity. Watson is consistently baffled by the conclusions that Holmes can infer from the smallest of things. Doyle uses Watson to exaggerate Holmes's findings; for example, in "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle," Watson examines a hat that he almost ignorantly analyzes as insignificant. His narrative of his findings on the hat shows little insight as to what the owner may be like, but when Holmes examines it, he infers everything down to the relations in marital state of the owner. It is one thing to merely read about the methods Holmes uses, but it is something else entirely to feel the tone expressed by Watson in his first-person accounts of his cases with Sherlock Holmes.
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ReplyDeleteThe first book that comes to mind for me is the last book I read, "The Fifth Vial" by Michael Palmer. The book uses a pretty unique point of view. Palmer uses a form of limited 3rd person in which the focussed on character changes from chapter to chapter. There are several different story arcs that eventually converge at the end and each chapter is centered on one of those characters. The author uses pronouns such as "he, she, and me" while also including the direct characters thoughts using italics. This stye proved to an effective way of keeping the story moving quickly while keeping an element of surprise and intrigue.
ReplyDeleteOne of my favorite authors, Daniel Silva, uses a long running theme of art in his novels to help display the protagonist's feelings. He has around 10 books who's protagonist lives a double life of a world renowned art restorer and as the most skilled Israeli spy. To help display the skill and delicacy that comes with an operation, the author uses the restoration of a painting as a allegory. This goes a long way to help civilize the acts that the main character is tasked with and helps to deepen the plot.
ReplyDeleteIn Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling uses multiple different points of view. In the first couple of books, she focuses on Harry. In the later books, many scenes do not even have Harry in them. This makes sense as to why she would choose to do this. Later in the books the audience gets to know all of the characters so she begins to focus on many other people. Also, this is a way for her to describe the story as a whole. If she focuses solely on Harry, she cannot tell everything that is happening. She begins to get in the mind of Voldemort and in the sixth book she evens writes a scene with just the Minister of Magic and the Prime Minister of England. Rowling strategically changes from third person limited to third person omniscient.
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