River Runs Through It Figurative Language

From the start to the end A River Runs Through It is about Norman and his brother and how fishing brought them together. Most of the time not spent fishing in this book is with the brothers together. Fishing is a way for these two completely different people to connect. Paul drinks, engages in street fights, and does generally self harming things, Norman is a teacher, a husband, and has his life together. Fishing is how Norman tries to help Paul. The story is very melancholy because it highlights many positive memories of the brothers fishing, but also mentions Paul’s destructive behavior. Near the end of the book Norman includes increasingly obvious hints about Paul’s sudden and brutal death. These ‘hints’ make the story more sad than melancholy near the

For example, “They were out in the field as soon as breakfast was over, and southern Illinois at that hour was pink with sunrise and swelling redbud and clusters of bloom over the apple orchard across the road”(7). As the setting is described it creates a warm feeling that makes the readers feel enchanted and lighthearted. The author also allows the readers to feel peaceful and content. Mood is also used to enhance the story by creating an atmosphere that allows readers to feel different emotions and feelings. “If someone had asked Jethro to name a time when he left childhood behind him, he might have named that last week of March in 1862”(92). This gives the readers feelings of sorrow and anger. The atmosphere is used to bring the reader into the novel by allowing them to feel powerful and remorse for the characters. As a result, the mood creates a flood of emotions that helps bring the story to life through the setting and

In the poem, “Paul Revere’s Ride,” the author, Henry Longfellow, uses figurative language, and sound devices to create suspense and tension within the poem. The way he uses the figurative language and sound devices makes readers want to keep reading to find out what will happen next. In Longfellow’s famous poem he uses devices such as rhyming, rhyme scheme, and repetition to allow the readers to feel fear and push them to the edge of their seats. Some figurative language the storyteller uses is personification, and similes to compare objects, and fearful moments to something more dramatic.

Steven Herrick’s verse novel “By the River” is very successful in conveying the significant ideas about human nature. He uses key themes such as grief, environmental influence and coming of age to explore these ideas. To convey the themes Herrick uses multiple techniques such as imagery, repetition, personification and positive and negative influence throughout his text.

A River Runs Through It is, deservedly so, the work that Norman Maclean will always be best known for. His 1976 semi-autobiographical novella tells what is really only a brief piece of the life story of two brothers who grew up together in the Montana wilderness; but the scope of this timeless tale of fishing, family, and religion extends beyond just a few months. It touches on the entirety of the complicated relationship between Norman Maclean and his parents, and his prodigal yet distant and troubled brother Paul. In masterful and stirring prose, Maclean examines the strength of their bond, and yet how neither he nor his family could keep Paul from self-destruction. Maclean also mulls over his and his family’s ideas about grace and man’s relation to nature. Maclean’s enthralling vision is delivered through the artistry of his writing, earning the book its deserved position as a classic of American literature. In 1992, a film adaptation of the novel was released,

In both Mark Twain’s “Two Ways of Seeing a River” and Charles Yale Harrison “In the Trenches,” the authors use elaborate imagery to enhance the reader’s perception of their autobiographical narratives. The descriptive language allows Twain to illustrate an image of the once lustrous river in the reader’s mind while it allows Harrison to immerse the reader in the gruesome reality of the trenches. Both authors effectively use sensory imagery to describe their surroundings; however, they use different approaches. Twain creates visual images in the reader’s mind whereas Harrison uses all the senses to augment the reader’s imagination.

Finally, he is “haunted by waters” because they contain the memories and words of everyone Norman has ever connected with. This demonstrates Norman’s deep connection to the river, and how the way he understands his life is through the river, and without it, cannot find the words to explain how he has grown accept his life. For Maclean, the river was

“The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst is a short story about a man looking back on his childhood and his experience with his little brother, Doodle. The author uses simile to foreshadow the ending of the story and to show the theme. One of the first examples of is when the protagonist’s parents decide on a name for their child, “They named him William Armstrong, which was like tying a big tail on a small kite,” (Hurst) The simile foreshadows the ending because it is exactly what happens in the ending. After the protagonist teaches his brother how to walk, he decides to train Doodle to fight, run, and swim.

Similes are a poetic device that are commonly used throughout The Odyssey to compare one thing to another thing that may be more familiar or easier to picture. When Odysseus arrives at the island of the man-eating giants called the Laestrygonians,

Using similes to describe whereabouts helps the reader to connect with the story at a deeper and more meaningful level. Brian’s entry into the wilderness occurred when he was put in the position where he only had one choice, to crash the plane. “Then a wild crashing sound, ripping of metal, and the plane rolled to the right and blew through the trees, out over the water and down, down to slam into the lake, skip once on water as hard as concrete, water that tore the windshield out and shattered the side windows, water that drove him back into the seat.” (Paulsen, pg. 23). The comparisons made between Brian’s location, and the objects and specific things in our lives, helps the reader to create a better understanding as readers can relate to their own personal

Ernest Hemingway's "Big Two-Hearted River"* is such a rich text that it has probably received more literary critical attention than many novels of several times its length. Hemingway's ardent use of intricate detail and his intentional, calculated use of short, simple sentences help to make "River" a treasure chest of critical ideas and possible interpretations. Historically, much of the criticism of "River" has examined the dark underlying themes of the story, such as the alleged omission of some preceding, devastating event and Nick's wounded spiritual and mental state. These sentences, such as "There was no town, nothing but the rails and the burned-over country," are

Throughout the story, A River Runs Through it we see a reoccurring theme of help between the characters in the book. While the book promotes independence, it additionally addresses its probability, recommending that characters are constantly interrelated regardless of the circumstances. Norman and his family are constantly trying to help Paul with his alcohol problem but he is constantly resisting. The role he takes is insurmountable and it's quite sad to watch as his family crumbles apart around him because he won't take the help.

The theme of A River Runs Through It , a book written by Norman Maclean and a movie directed by Robert Redford is that people want to help those they are close to, but they have to let them live their lives as individuals even though they may be in the wrong. Basically, you have to let people make their own choices in life, and the theme is supposed to give us an overall message of how to live life in this way. Therefore, the traits of pride and acceptance that the lives of Norman, Paul, and the people around them, who are foils, show impact the message of the theme and prove it. Pride is a true element to the story that Paul, Norman, and other characters show to relate to the theme. One example of this is when Paul has gambling debt, and refuses to let Norman help pay it off.

In the short story “Two Words” by Isabel Allende, she uses figurative language effectively. Similes are used effectively throughout the story. El Mulato treats “her like a sea bag” (p.239) because doesn’t care if he hurts her, El Mulato sees women as non-human. For this instance, simile is successfully used by Allende, to compare Belisa Crepusculario to a sea bag. Simile is successfully used, because Allende compares Belisa to something that is completely different from her.

“Big Two Hearted River”, a semi-autobiographical short story by Ernest Hemingway, is a story about the main character, Nick, returning to Big Two Hearted River in order to recover from his inner wounds. Nick Adams goes on a journey alone in nature for a therapeutic purpose as he suffers from PTSD. However, Hemingway purposely avoided any direct discussion regarding to Nick’s mental wounds. The absence of the discussion is contributed by Hemingway’s writing style, the Iceberg principle. Hemingway focuses explicitly on what occurs on the surface without mentioning actual theme. This indicates that the theme of self-healing cannot be uncovered by simply looking at the text itself. In order to comprehend the actual theme of the story, the character development of Nick must be examined. This is possible since Nick Adams is a recurring character of Hemingway’s stories. The two preceding stories of “Big Two Hearted River”, “Now I lay me” and “A Way you’ll Never Be”, directly discusses Nick’s suffering from shell-shock and how he comforts himself by returning to Big Two Hearted river in his mind. The two short stories will be analyzed and connected to “Big Two Hearted River” in the essay first. This will provide a strong understanding of Nick’s psyche and the reason behind his return to nature. Then, “Big Two Hearted River” the short story itself will be carefully analyzed.