Literary Analysis Notes

Passive vs. Active Reading:
- Most of the time, we are passive readers.
- In academics, we need to become active readers.
- Active reading of literature requires awareness of literary elements and how they function within a story.
- This awareness allows for academic responses to the literature.
Note-Taking:
- Taking notes while reading is advisable to prepare for discussions or written responses to literature.

Definition:
- Fiction, like essays, has a point of view.
- Point of view determines whose experience is featured.
- It may establish the character of the narrator.
First Person Point of View:
- The narrator is a character within the story.
- The narrator could be the main protagonist.
- Alternatively, may be another character in the story.
- Or, a narrator who is not directly related but shares the story in a deeply knowledgeable way.
- Generally, only the narrator's thoughts and feelings are directly shared.
- Other characters' thoughts and feelings are portrayed through actions, speech, or the narrator's opinions.
Second Person Point of View:
- Rarely used in fiction, similar to non-fiction.
- If used, it's often a narrative trick.
- It places the first or third person in a context that feels more personal to the reader.
Third Person Point of View:
- The narrator is not a character in the story.
- Reader experiences vary depending on the type of third-person narrative.
- Third Person Dramatic:
  - Does not directly reveal characters' thoughts or feelings.
  - The reader knows these only through the action within the story.
- Third Person Omniscient:
  - Reveals thoughts and feelings of more than one character.
- Third Person Limited Omniscient:
  - Reveals the thoughts and feelings of only one character, usually the protagonist.

Definition:
- Voice and tone refer to the wording used and the "attitude" of the narration.
- Tone is shaped by:
  - Word choice.
  - Irony.
  - Punctuation.
  - Sentence and paragraph construction.
  - Content.
Voice:
- Related to tone.
- Narrative voice is an analysis of tone as used by the narrator.
- Authorial voice is an analysis of tone across many texts by the same author.

Motive:
- Characters have needs and wants, which are their motives.
- Motive is why characters do what they do.
- Different or conflicting motives lead to conflict.

Types of Conflict:
- Three types of external conflict.
- One type of internal conflict.
External Conflict:
- Character vs. Character:
  - Created by similar or dissimilar motivations.
  - Example: Character wants a job promotion, but the boss refuses to facilitate it.
- Character vs. Nature:
  - Character in conflict with an element of the natural world.
  - Example: A child who is afraid of the dark.
- Character vs. Society:
  - Character in conflict with the demands of living in society.
  - Often mistaken for Character vs. Character.
  - The primary conflict is with societal expectations.
  - Example: A person of a certain age feels pressured to get married.
Internal Conflict:
- Character vs. Self:
  - Character is in conflict with their own wants and needs.
  - Well-written fiction includes many levels of conflict.
  - A character may have an internal conflict about a character vs. society conflict, typified in a character vs. character conflict.

Development Basis:
- Partially based on conflict and motive.
- Based on the reader's connection to characters.
Flat/Static Characters:
- Do not change much or evoke reader connection.
Round/Dynamic Characters:
- Evoke an emotional connection from the reader.
- May undergo major development or change.
- The reader's opinion of the character may change.
- Round characters tend to be complex, even contradictory.
Character Types Reminder:
- Do not confuse flat/round characters with main/supporting, protagonist/antagonist.
- Main characters are central to the story and/or plot development.
- Protagonist: Main character the story centers on, and with whom the reader forms an emotional connection.
- Antagonist: Main character acting in opposition to the protagonist.

Identifying Resolution:
- Once conflict is identified, determine if it's resolved by the story's end.
- Contemporary fiction often has complex resolutions.
- Conflict may not be fully resolved or may be resolved unsatisfactorily.

Contemporary Fiction:
- Often character-based, emphasizing motivation and conflict.
- Conflict leads to action.
- Characters act because they are in conflict.
- Plot is a connected series of actions.

Plot Linearity:
- In the Western world, plot is usually linear.
- Action sequence follows chronological time.
- Early events occur earlier in the plot.
- Later events occur later in the plot.
Linear Plot Elements:
- Exposition: Introductory information.
- Inciting Incident: Something that starts the story.
- Rising Action: Tension is created due to conflict.
- Climax: Conflict reaches a breaking point; major action occurs.
- Falling Action: Tension is released after the climax.
- Resolution: May be the end of the conflict or just the end of the story.
Breaks in Chronology:
- Flashbacks: Recalls to previous information, even before the story's time frame.
- Flashforwards: Previews of action that hasn't happened yet.
- Distinction: Flashbacks/forwards are distinct from foreshadowing (tonal/thematic hints).

Academic Reading:
- Prereading and effective reading are important.
- Sets up the student response to the reading, whether written or in discussion.
Prereading:
- Author lookup: Knowing the author's life can provide context.
  - Caution: Don't confuse the author with the narrator.
- Year of publication: Knowing when it was written provides context.
- Title: Often gives context; relevance may be revealed later in the story.
Reading Actively:
- Character Studies: Complex fiction can have many characters.
  - Note new characters and add information as revealed.
  - Avoid character lists online (often incomplete or incorrect).
- Symbols: Note objects, names, characters, or concepts indicating another concept.
- Setting: Time and place; consider how setting relates to plot.
- Tone: Note word choice and markers of the narrator's attitude.
- Conflicts: Note conflicts, their types, major conflicts, and resolutions.
- Unknown words: Look them up and write them down because words create meaning.