Authors use literary elements and techniques as tools to convey meaning. These devices are the means by which authors bring richness and clarity to a text. They express moods or feelings that allow the reader to connect with the writing. In On Writing, the author, Stephen King makes use of literary elements to tell his story. The techniques King uses are effective in portraying vivid images and feelings in the reader’s mind. One example in which King uses such elements is early in the book. King writes, “Mary Karr presents her childhood in an almost unbroken panorama. Mine is a fogged-out landscape from which occasional memories appear like isolated trees …. the kind that look as if they might like to grab and eat you”(17). In the first sentence, King is describing the delightful grasp Mary Karr has on her childhood. He depicts her memory as an “unbroken panorama” which creates the image of a beautiful, wide view. The figurative language here is successful in expressing the totality of Mary Karr’s memoir, which King uses to differentiate his memory with. Next, he describes his memory as a “fogged-out landscape”, which conveys that his recollections are hazy and disjointed. King mentions earlier that he lived an odd, “herky-jerky” childhood, and moved around a lot in his earliest years. The figurative language he uses is an another way of making this clear in the reader’s mind. Then, King uses the simile, “like isolated trees” to illustrate a barren image, which enforces
A literary technique is a device employed in literature to add depth to a writer’s work. These techniques can be obvious, such as the technique of rhyme in a poem, or subtle, such as juxtaposition, which can go unnoticed by the reader. In The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien uses many such techniques to provide more depth to his book. Four literary techniques used by Tim O’Brien are symbolism, pathetic fallacy, irony, and juxtaposition.
In his article “Reading to Write” Stephen King uses various rhetorical strategies to persuade his audience that reading is necessary to writing. Rhetorical strategies are used as tools to strengthen an argument. These literary tools could be used to establish credibility, create emotional ties, or maintain a connection with the reader. Throughout his article “Reading to Write” Stephen King uses multiple rhetorical strategies and literary tools such as his unique use of diction, personal anecdote, and rhetorical questioning to persuade his audience that reading well is imperative to writing well.
Short story fiction is a story that is shorter than a novel, has a few characters, and is about an imaginary event or person. Because short fiction is short the writer must capture and hold the reader’s attention within the first paragraph, which requires a mastery of literary technique. Some of the most helpful tools to use in literature are literary devices. Literary devices are any element, subject, or concept that is present through an entire body of literature. If these devices didn 't exist, literature would be very hard to understand. They define the nature of a story, and they bring the text to life. Literary devices enhance the meaning of literature by establishing the theme, mood, and plot. Devices, such as situational irony, symbolism, and setting, are all helpful when reading short stories.
He uses rhetorical questions, that the reader can then answer in their minds; he also tells many vivid stories with details and imagery to engage the reader’s emotions and imagination in order to create a more relatable story. For example, in passage 24, King tells the story of how he fell in love with Tabitha and talks about their differing backgrounds with religions, but how they came from similar working class families. Despite the fact that they came from different religions, they were strongly tied with words, language, and the work of their lives. “I fell in love with her partly because I understood what she was doing with her work. I fell because she understood what she was doing with it” (King, pg 62). This supports his larger argument that writing is not only to better yourself, but to help other people better themselves and find someone who inspires you to pursue your venture to becoming your best self. He inserts a poem that Tabitha had read aloud to the workshop that they both attended to once or twice a week, where after he realizes that she has the same views
The next literary device the author utilizes is foreshadowing. The author hints at the reader in numerous ways, which builds curiosity, anticipation, and
In the novel excerpt “On Writing” by Stephen King many things are addressed in the short passage including Kings target audience along with his own views of his editor whom he worked closely with while writing the sports column for the newspaper.
When playing the piano, there are necessary “rules” to follow. Such as playing at the right tempo, knowing the difference between treble clef and base clef, and knowing how to read sheet music while playing. Writing has rules, too. Which Stephen King explains his rules in the second part of his novel “On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft”.
In his autobiographical novel On Writing, Stephen King said that “if you write (or paint or dance or sculpt or sing, I suppose), someone will try to make you lousy about it.” [King 1] King should know; before he was the best-selling author we now know and love, he was continuously rejected by publishing houses and fiction magazines ever since he began his craft as a child. What about the rest of us unknown individuals that want to become authors but just do not have the knowledge or experience (or heart) to face the daunting task of getting published? Is getting published easy? Can we do it by ourselves? Such questions are relatively common in the beginning stages of authorhood, as made evident by the ceiling-high stacks of letters that particular
one of the following stories, analyzing a literary strategy or technique the author uses to make the story more effective. Tie the use of the strategy or technique to one of the literary elements mentioned in our book.
Stephen King’s book ‘On Writing’ is a book like I’ve never read before, the book is set-up in a way that I would not have thought it to be. Part one and Part Two are set-up to be like a memoir illustrating the life of king before his big break as an author and an accident that almost killed him and ended his writing career. Part three of the book tells on the mechanics of writing, all of the little pieces and details that make a writing piece into masterpiece. King not only entwines his life into the art that he has taken up, he educates us on how to become better writers ourselves. Main mechanical techniques that king brings are: Adverbs, symbolism, and grammar.
“Each life makes its own imitation of immortality.” is exactly what Stephen King, one of top selling writers in history said when quoting on his own life. As one of the most renowned and famous authors of modern history, Stephen King has published a countless and immense number of bestsellers and worldwide hits. The King of Terror Stephen Edwin King is one of today's most popular and best-selling writers. His countless number of books have circled around the homes of millions of readers who are so intrigued by some of his most famous works. His works continue to embody the minds and fears of its reader while increasingly becoming ever more popular. Stephen King is not only a figure of present history but also a household
One of the first writing tactics King proposes is to, “Omit needless words” (King IX). He believes that enhancing a piece of literature by adding flowery language or by crafting long sentences does nothing other than alter the meaning of what you are trying to say. By the same token, Wall’s blunt and straightforward sentences such as, “I didn’t” (Walls 15) or, “He had a plan” (Walls 22) prove that she also leaves out needless words in her memoir. Instead of trying to embellish her writing by using decorative language, Jeannette Walls gets straight to the point and says exactly what she intends to. Through doing so, Walls is establishing a more defined image of her story as King suggested. Clearly, both King and Walls support effective diction that grants their audience the right amount of information to understand the story firmly.
Today, I had volleyball practice for two hours. This would be bad enough by itself, as I detest running, and practice begins with the ritual of running laps around the gym. Today, however, the assistant coach continuously pestered me with unsolicited and unhelpful advice. I was annoyed, partly because I didn’t respect my coach’s suggestions. He has never played volleyball; I probably know the sport better than he does. My annoyance turned to anger when he continued to bother me and no one else. Most of my anger came from the simple truth that I don’t like to be told what to do. As my coach told me to abandon my approach, I wanted to scream in his face that, “Hey! My way works just as well!”
Authors use language to persuade individuals to show others personal perspectives. Writers use emotional events so that the reader will sympathize what they are writing. As well they inform the reader of the situation that may be occurring in other locations. Also writers explain how it has or will be beneficial to us.
King writes in his novel that "writing is not life, but I think that sometimes it can be a way back to life." I was surprised that someone who had called himself a serious writer and devoted so much of his time to writing had declared that writing was not life. I had expected him to express his feelings that writing was the center of his life as most artists declare that they "eat, sleep, and breathe" their art. If I had the opportunity to meet with King I would ask him what he views as "life" and in