Literary analysis + unreliable narrator

Literary analysis: Certain argument about the central idea/theme of the story based on hard evidence from the text.

Setting: where and when story takes place

Plot: pattern of events in the story

Theme: Underlying meaning→ multiple themes that explore universal ideas

Topic: Main subject or idea of a book

Narrative perspective

Narrative perspective is the position and character of the storyteller in relation to the narrative.

First-person: Narrator plays a role and talks from their perspective

  • Character voice (Reliable or Unreliable voice)

  • Stream of Consciousness voice (an ‘unedited’ rendering of a person’s thoughts)

  • Epistolary voice (letters or other documents, may contain third-person perspectives)

Second-person: The reader is the protagonist

Third-person: Narrator typically stands out of the universe of the book.

  • Omniscient/ God narrator: Knows everything

  • Subjective/ Limited: Narrator shares the thoughts, feelings, and opinions of characters. Story follows 1 character’s inner world: third-person limited.

    → reader is limited to the thoughts of some particular character as in the first-person mode, except still giving personal descriptions with third-person pronouns.

  • Objective: Unbiased point of view with no feelings or opinions→ fly-on-the-wall

Setting

Time and geographical location → provides background/mood/context

Pathetic fallacy: weather reflects a characters emotions

3 forms of setting:

  • Man-made places

  • Natural setting

  • Cultural/historical setting

Plot

Plot: the sequence of important events inside a story where each event affects the next through the principle of cause-and-effect.

Story refers to all events of the narrative, those told or shown, and those mentioned and inferred

Freytag’s Pyramid:

  • Exposition: starting point story

  • Rising action: Initial incident and begin of tension

  • Climax: Turning point with highest tension

  • Falling action: Unwinding of the story: consequences climax

  • Resolution: all conflict officially ends. Loose ends can be tied up and we know if the protagonist was successful or not

Character

Protagonist, antagonist, deuteragonist, tritagonist, love intrest, confidant, foil

Round vs flat

Style

How something is written

2 main components

  • Diction: authors words and language

  • Text composition: sentence structure, paragraphing, and overall organization.

Tone: author’s attitude

Mood: atmosphere the reader gets

Voice: the unique personality or identity of the author that remains consistent across texts, even if the tone changes.

In non-literary writing, style should match the audience and purpose and remain consistent.
In literary writing, style is used creatively to shape meaning, influence the reader, express characters, or highlight themes.

Unreliable narrator