Realism And Narrative Techniques In Short Stories

Realism And Narrative Techniques In Short Stories Alice Munro is one of the most well-known and highly praised representative of Canadian short fiction writing, both on the Canadian and on the international scale. As American writer Mona Simpson notes, [Munros] genius, has the simplicity of the best naturalism, in that it seems not translated from life, but, rather, like life itself. In other words, she is praised for being a realist writer. In another article, Canitz and Seamon showed what techniques Munro uses to create the impression of her stories not being stories, but truth, or the reality as such. Also, they comment on how the narrator in Munros stories reflects from time to time on the narrative technique or the plotline and the development of the story. However, they have omitted some aspects of Munros work which would, in fact, support the argument that despite her realism, her short stories are in fact very well-structured, and fit into the general pattern of traditional criteria towards short stories: they excessively us e foreshadowing technique, the opening sentence initiates the predesigned effect and every word has its place in the story line, they are indeed chosen very carefully in order to contribute to the effect that the author wants to create, and thus creating a dense text. (Critical perspective online) In this paper, I show how the techniques described by Canitz and Seamon can be depicted in Munros novella Miles City, Montana. Then the essay goes on to discuss the other techniques employed by Munro in this short story, including the ones that do not fit into this analysis of realist fiction. Canitz and Seamon explain how Munro, as all realists, must somehow persuade her audience that her fiction is not a product of imagination and creativity, but it is rather the truth. (Canitz and Seamon, 1996: 67) This is done in her writings through a variety of subtle strategies which she uses to build our faith in her reality. (Canitz and Seamon, 1996: 68) Moreover, as Munro is aware that including realistic details into her stories would not suffice to convince readers that the story presented to them is not fictional, she rather chooses, in a post-modern manner, to acknowledge that she is making up a story. So, we are not simply exposed to the story line, but we are included in a way in the process of writing down the story and creating the characters. Ironically, this technique is in fact a doubly-twisted tool: the fact that she drags the reader into the process of writing does not mean that the writing in fact happened in the way as she told us within the frames of the story. Ho wever, this is not obvious at the first glance, and is indeed an effective method to persuade readers on the reality of what they read. Interestingly, the short story Miles City, Montana, involves a triple twist as to the narrative technique: the narrator is also a character at the same time, who reflects on her story-telling. For example the narrator says at one point: It seems to me now that we invented characters for our children. (Munro, 1985: 661) And indeed, all happenings are told from one point of view, and we only know about other characters what the mother and wife, who is also the narrator, reveals about them. Moreover, this point of view is not consistent in itself: both childhood and adult memories are involved, (Tragedies that help online) which means a change in the way events are seen by the narrator, and also a change in her feelings. This fluctuating view-point, or in better words multiple perceptions of single events can be seen as a post-modern feature in the narrative construction. (New, 2003: 239) In other words, what we read is not the reality, but we are explicitly told that it is not real, th erefore we are more willing to trust the narrator. The second method used by Munro to create the impression of reality is, as the pair of authors point out that the storyline is not linear. Rather, it fluctuates in time and location and subject, and it is left to the reader to figure out the reasons why the shifts are made where and how they are made. (Canitz and Seamon, 1996: 69) Sometimes Munro reflects on the shifts I have forgotten to say that but in Miles City, Montana, the shifts are not explained. However, careful reading reveals why the chunks of paragraphs follow each other in the way they do. Steve Gauleys story is told first to open a frame structure, to set the tone and to begin the foreshadowing sequence that follows. The view of the landscape on their road trip to Ontario evocates childhood memories from the narrator, so this time, it is a stream of consciousness that links together the paragraph on their trip with the following sentences on her past. Then when the mother talks about her hope of Meg not having a tem perature, and then jumping back right next to her relation with her parents-in-law, it might be not too far-reaching to conclude that the link that bounds together these two events is the feverishness of the mother to meet up to Andrews parents expectations. I hope she isnt feversih, says she, and at the same time she herself is overly anxious about what opinion her husbands parents would have on their family life. She even compares herself and her husband to strenuous children. (Munro, 1985: 668) Finally, while she goes to get some drink in the park in Miles City, she observes the environment very carefully -as carefully as she is supposed to watch out for her daughters. [Y]ou feel their singleness and precise location and the forlorn coincidence of your being there to see them. (Munro, 1985: 670) This is the sentence that precedes her sudden thought of the children, and it can be interpreted in both ways: meaning the nature, and meaning Cynthia and Meg as well. So, Munros story-te lling is of a rambling nature (Canitz and Seamon, 1996: 68) which reminds the reader constantly that what he or she is reading is only a recollection, and successfully creates the impression that we are not being exposed to a story, but to a real, true event. Finally, the article notes that [m]any brief passages in Munros stories quietly create the reality effect she seeks. (Canitz and Seamon, 1996: 73) For example when the parents reflect on Megs accident, both reject its unnatural, or supernatural features. The mother denies that she would have a mothers instinct, and attributes her sudden thought about the children to mere luck. Similarly the husband does not recollect properly how he had jumped over or climbed the fence, but plainly states that he cannot understand it, rather than mythologize what had happened. Thus, the narration becomes free of legend-making. (Canitz and Seamon, 1996: 77) On the other hand, this episode could be also interpreted as a sign of the ambiguity and unreliability of experience, a sign of how à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¾events and memories, experience and fictional reconstruction, never precisely coincide which is also characteristic of Munros style. (New, 2003: 239 and 299) In addition, by the end of the short story, w hen we already know that Meg had survived the accident, we are nevertheless confronted with another possible ending to this story details of a tragic ending with Meg being dead are elaborated in a lengthy paragraph, at the end of which the narrator poses the question: Theres something trashy about this kind of imagining, isnt there? (Munro 1985: 673), again reflecting on the story-telling. Having showed all this, and before turning towards other techniques that are in contradiction with the claim of reality in the short story, let me point out some further evidence that support Munros realism, but are not elaborated in Canitzs and Seamons article: Firstly, Munros language is not very poetic or literal. She prefers to use everyday langauge, which adds to the real life taste of her stories. As one crticic puts it, Munros stories are translations into the next-door language of fiction of all those documentary details, those dazzling textures and surfaces, of remembered experience. (Ross, 112, quoted in Canitz and Seamon, 1996: 68) However, simple language does not exlude the use of lirical devices. All characters in the short story create images, and make lirical similes themselves. The narrator compares Steve Gauley to a heap of refuse (Munro, 1985: 656) and draws a parallel between the Gauleys tumbledown house and their shackly family life. The children, who play import ant, but not dominent [sic!] role (Jakabfi, 2003: 195) give an old-lady like image to their previous family car, and a sporty image to the new one. The parents make fun of their daughters by the father telling them about the beach which would be after the next curve and the mother pretending to produce some lemonade and grape juice with her magic wand. Cynthia adds that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¾[i]n Miles City, there is a beautiful blue swimming pool for children, and a park with lovely trees. (Munro, 1985: 668) In short, it seems that they are creating reality around themselves. Canitz and Seamon claim that Munro creates the impression of realism [by giving] a significant place to improbability and contingency, elements that are opposed to the conventionally well-constructed realist narrative. However, some techniques utterly contradict the claim that this story would be developing before our eyes, with no obvious plotline at hand at the beginning, but through accidents rather. The most obvious such tool is that of foreshadowing. In Miles City, Montana, there are several hints in the story that imply what the readers can expect to happen by the end. Throughout reading the story, as soon as we learn about the road trip, we fear that one family member, possibly one of the children, will die. This impression is already created in the very first sentence of the novella: My father came accross the field carrying the body of the boy who had been drowned. (Munro, 1985: 656) Immediately, the tone is set: it is rather sinister. The narrator continues to give readers hints about an expected tragedy. Meg waves good-bye to the house, and although Cynthia, the elder girl assures her it is not forever that they are leaving it, the readers are left with a feeling of doubt and uneasiness whether the family would really return. On their way to Ontario, they see a dead deer on the road, which was probably hit by accident readers wonder is one of the family members going to suffer an accident? This fear of one character dying at the end is reinforced by Cynthia song, in which five little ducks go out, but only four come back. Then we learn about the narrator and her husband not living together anymore, which raises the question did their marriage got ruined because of the death of a child? This is followed by the recollection of the narrator and her father saving turkeys from drowning, and finally, the family plays Who am I?, and Cynthia is someone dead. This massive amount of hints indicate a very consciously used foreshadowing technique by the author. To sum up, I have showed in the above paragraphs how the narrative technique of Miles City, Monatana, is in accord with what the Canitz-Seamon article argued about Alice Munros techniques to create the sense of realism in fiction. I have added that language and creating imagery are also techniques used in this short story, while at the same time pointing out that the excessive use of foreshadowing technique does not fit into the line of argument about Munros realism and conscious restraint from linear story-telling. A look at other Munro short fiction could lead to a better understanding of Munros status as a realist writer.

Your Networks Logical and Physical Design :: Networks Software Technology Essays

Your Network's Logical and Physical Design Contents 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Planning a Logical Network Design 2.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Planning and Design Components 3.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Physical Network 4.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Planning Resources Article Description Scott Mueller and Terry Ogletree talk about your network's logical and physical design, including planning and components of a logical network design, the physical network, and planning resources. From the Book Upgrading and Repairing Networks, 4th Edition $53.99 (Save 10%) Some of the Main Topics in this Chapter Are †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Planning a Logical Network Design †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Planning and Design Components †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Physical Network †¢Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Planning Resources Many types of networks were discussed in Chapter 1, "A Short History of Computer Networking," from ARCnet to TCP/IP. And in Chapter 2, "Overview of Network Topologies," you learned about the various topologies you can employ when designing and creating a local area network (LAN), and we also looked at some scenarios in which several networks were connected to form a wide area network (WAN). In this chapter, we will look at another aspect of creating a network: the network's logical and physical design. The physical aspects of your LAN will depend on the underlying physical transport technology—Ethernet or Token-Ring, for example, or possibly ATM, which is now supported in products such as Windows 2000/XP and Server 2003 as a LAN protocol. Depending on which technology you use, there will be one or more LAN topologies from which to choose. NOTE Although there are other LAN technologies, such as ARCnet and Novell's IPX/SPX, these are basically legacy products that are no longer being deployed in newer networks. For example, ARCnet is now used mostly in vertical-market applications (such as on the factory floor, or for point-of-sale cash registers). If you don't need the features that TCP/IP provides, and don't need an Internet connection, then these older protocols may be a good solution for your network. Novell's NetWare products, while allowing for backward compatibility with the IPX/SPX protocol, have finally caught up with the times, and new installations will more than likely use the IP protocol. Other protocols, such as Microsoft's LAN Manager, are used only in older networks. If you are still using older proprietary protocols, you should consider upgrading to TCP/IP, which is now the de facto standard, from the worldwide Internet down to the LAN. Before you can begin to design a physical network, however, you first must determine your needs. What services must you provide to your user community? What are the resources you'll need? If you have to compromise, what will it take to satisfy the most users or to provide the more important services?

One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich Dehumanization Essay

The novel â€Å"One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich† follows the life of a prisoner in a Siberian labor camp during the communist period. Although the novel only describes one day in the life of this prisoner, the author succeeds at making the motifs that occur most likely every day clear to the reader. A major motif in the novel â€Å"One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich† written by Alexander Solzhenitsyn is dehumanization; Ivan Denisovich Shukhov is striped of his humanity because he is treated similarly to the way an animal would be treated. He is given instructions every second of the day, and has no say in how to live his life. Dehumanization occurs when people view others as less than human, therefore not giving them the moral respect they deserve as humans. In this particular Stalinist labor camp, in which the main character Ivan Denisovich Shukhov is imprisoned, the officers are instructed to attack the prisoner’s dignity, therefore they are taking away their humanity, treating them like they would treat a cattle, not people. As soon as the novel begins, so does Shukhov’s day. When he opens his eyes, he already knows how the day will proceed, because all days are the same. He must go for breakfast at the same time every other prisoner does. This shows that he doesn’t have a say in when to do things, even such a basic need that many take for granted. Yet he does not complain, this is due to the fact that food is valuable to him and he has limited access to it. The prisoners are not only instructed when to eat, but they also have to compete for food, the same way a group of chickens would fight for some grain. This fact is clearly shown when the narrator describes the scene shortly before Shukhov receives his meal, â€Å"the cook shouted through the hatch, and people were shoving at him from the other side † (86). This shows how the workers have to fight to their food, as if they were savages. The cooks treat the men like one would treat a dog; throwing food among a large crowd, thus making the â€Å"dogs† fight for their food. This is inhumane and takes away the prisoner’s dignity. It is just one of the many meals that Shukhov will have during his stay in the labor camp that represent the motif of dehumanization, and not only that, also humiliation. As humiliating as it is, the prisoners are grateful for any type of meal they get, â€Å"A bowl of thin cabbage soup, half burned, was as welcome to them as rain to parched earth. They’d swallow it in one gulp. That bowl of soup—it was dearer than freedom, dearer than life itself, past, present, and future † (126). The prisoner’s minds are set the way an animals mind is, they only think about food, and it is their main reason for living. They have stepped to the level of an animal and lost their humanity and any hope in achieving anything else in their life. Another way in which the prisoners in this novel were dehumanized was the fact that they could not own anything that the officers found too dangerous. However, the officers took advantage of this and would not give the laborers any freedom. For example, Shukhov had to hide a loaf of bread in his mattress so he doesn’t get punished in one of the daily searches, â€Å"Stich, stich, stich, and the little tear in the mattress was ended, with the bread concealed under it† (25). This proves that the prisoners feared the officers, and the consequences that would come with not following the directions. Another way that the prisoner’s identity was taken away from them was that they were assigned numbers for easy identification, in an effort to dehumanize them. By numbering them they were once again treated like animals, a way that cows are labeled on a farm, and not like individual humans. To continue, officers in the camp play a big role in the dehumanization process of the prisoners. The officers are in charge and treat the workers without any respect. The guards use forced labor and cruelty to dehumanize the workers. This is shown when the narrator himself compares the workers to animals, â€Å"†¦the fellows bringing the mortar were winded like horses† (124). The prisoners were not only compared to horses, but also mules, hawks, and wolves. The officers treated the workers as if they were animals, therefore, they did not see them as human beings. This is shows when the narrators says, â€Å" He wouldn’t treat us like human beings; now let him burst himself shouting† (118). The officers looked at the prisoners as less than humans. The officers were the ones that took away the prisoner’s identity and humanity In conclusion, a key motif in the novel, â€Å"One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich† written by Alexander Solzhenitsyn is dehumanization. Prisoners in this novel are treated not as humans should be treated but as animals. They are gathered in crowds to be fed and counted. In this way the officers strip them of their identity and their humanity. Leaving behind only humiliation and disrespect.

Imperialism Debate Essay

The dominance came every now and then by force of arms, but frequently It occurred because of trade and businesses. At this point, It allowed Imperial powers to the influence the selected civilization. While the Imperials ruled, they usually ‘robbed' the land of Its resources with little payback. These schemes obviously allowed for the imperial powers to gain a large profit and gain dominance. Imperialism was an effective and successful way for civilized countries to gain control over an indigenous countries. So, America should not become an imperial power.Core Democratic Value: Liberty Liberty is the one of the core values of American Constitutional Democracy. But this Liberty should include personal, political, economic freedom of not only American but also all nations. Imperialism based on ideas of superiority and nationalism robbed liberty of the subject country and their human rights In order to gain political, economic, and military benefits. For example, by the late sass , Americans wanted to annex Hall because of Its abundant natural resources and cultivatable lands.America, therefore, began a program of Imperialism In Hawaii and forced political and economic change. Queen Alkalinity wanted to end America's influence over Hawaii and created a new constitution. However, the United States denied it, soon took over the government office at Hawaii, and established complete control over Hawaii. American imperialism robbed economic and political freedom of Hawaii. Data: ‘If a strong people try to govern a weak one against its will, the home government will get despotic, too.You cannot maintain despotism in Asia and a republic In America. If you try to deprive even a savage or a barbarian of his Just rights you can never do It without becoming a savage or a barbarian yourself. ‘ ? Senator George F. Hoar under the pretext of spreading democracy and a Western value system, America's military intervene causes our endless warfare and the sacrifice of young military people. Ongoing Afghanistan civil war could be a good example. Prior Knowledge: Japanese imperialism robbed the liberty of Koreans. From 1910 to 1945, Japan occupied Korea.They forced the Koreans into Japanese culture under the pretext of civilizing the Koreans. Japanese language was taught In schools, and Japanese also forced the Koreans to change of their name in Japanese. Japan tried to destroy all records of histories of Korea and force the people with the conditionals pride to convert to Japanese ways of thinking. Hundreds of thousands of laborers were forced to work In Japanese factories and conscripted Into the armed forces, women were forced into â€Å"comfort stations† which is military brothels. While military power.As a result, imperialism deprived Koreans human rights, destroyed cultural factors, caused economic exhaustion, and lost natural resources. Counter Argument: Colonial officials, doctors, and missionaries strongly believed that all race s could be improved and uplifted by introducing Christianity, and they lived that it's their duty to conquer other nations to spread the religion, but it is opposed to the concept of individual freedom and freedom of religion. The dominating country thinks that their beliefs and laws are superior to the subjected nation.In fact, Imperialism civilizes and modernizes the underdeveloped country for the dominating country to gain economic benefits. If the dominate country uses the nationalistic or cultural factors to take control, there is a chance where the customs and the way of living of the domains will be lost. Conclusion: An average imperialist believed that imperial expansion was necessary for the arrival of their countries. Countries exercise great authority over large and varied territories populated by diversity of ethnic groups, cultures, and religions.Countries which exercise imperial power use a broad range of tools and incentives to maintain the dominance: political persua sive, economic advantages and cultural influences where possible, sometimes using force. But imperialism based on ideas of superiority and nationalism robbed liberty of the subject country and their human rights in order to gain political, economic, and military benefits. The reasons mentioned above are why America should not become imperial power.

Augustinian Theodicy

The Augustinian Theodicy From Augustine in his booke ‘Confessions' in 397AD. His argument was that God is good and created a world perfectly good and free from defection, evil & suffering. Based on Genesis 1-3 ‘Either God cannot abolish evil, or he will not. If he cannot, he is not all-powerful, if he will not he is not all-good. ‘ Augustine ‘The believer must have, in a cool moment, a solution to the problem of evil. If he does not, his faith is not rational†¦ ‘ Richard Swinburne The perfect world – â€Å"God saw all that he had made and saw that it was good. Genesis – Evil is a privation of good as darkness is a privation of light. – Humanity has free will to choose good over evil. The Fall – Natural & moral evil exist because things fell short of what God intended. – â€Å"The penalty of sin corrects the dishonour of sin† Augustine. – God shouldn't intervene because evil is the price of freedom. H umans can't overcome the inevitably of them sinning. – The fall marks the entrance of evil into the world. (The fall being Adam's mistake). – Humanity has an inherent guilt as descendants of Adam & Eve (original sin).We have to ‘put up with' what we have indirectly done to the Universe. The punishment for the original sin is ‘seminally present'. Intervention – There is hope through Jesus for all. This is a God given opportunity for those with good intentions to find a selfish reason for doing good. – Augustine's theodicy is soul-deciding. Meaning we have a choice of path metaphorically in life. In this way Augustine tries to prove the righteousness of God. By showing that God was right not to intervene when we chose to do wrong against God.And that giving us the choice of giving our life to christ is a act of generosity. However this contradicts the idea of him being all-loving as this theodicy tells us that God would let there be a way to bri ng evil & suffering into the world. But if he did not mean this, it either contradicts the fact that he is all-knowing or all-powerful. Basically†¦ God made a perfect world (is this true? ), humans committed the original sin (God does not have control), evil took the world, God didn't intervene (as a just punishment), but he gave us a way to desire to be perfect.Natural evil – came through the loss in nature after ‘the fall' Moral evil – came through the new knowledge of good and evil which was discovered through disobedience. Punishments: Separation from God. Expulsion from the garden of Eden. They must now live in a fallen world. Pain in childbirth. Struggle with the earth to yield a harvest. Tension between man and woman. Physical death. Old testament – God sends the law & prophets to try and restore the relationship between humans and God. But these methods fail, leading to Jesus. New Testament – God sends Jesus. In Augustine's eyes this wa s the best God had to offer.

Crt Monitors and Active and Passive Matrix Displays

CRT MONITORS AND ACTIVE AND PASSIVE MATRIX DISPLAYS The texts â€Å"CRT Monitors† and â€Å"Active and Passive Matrix Displays† gives us the necessary basic knowledge about the types of monitors. Most desktop computer systems sold now by default come with LCD monitors. But if you are one of those who want to know the difference between CRT and LCD monitors, these texts are immense help. To start with, a CRT monitor in general is nothing more than cathode ray tube with millions of diminutive red, green and blue phosphor dots.The working principle of CRT monitor is sustained by the theory of electron beam traveling across the tube to the area of deflection system where the beam is given direction to a specific pixel on the screen. The first CRT monitor has been invented in 1970s. However, monitor was greenish and the only possible sphere of usability was text-based computers. On the other hand, it was just a start. In 1987 when the VGA display system was invented and CRT monitors took a step into the astonishing success and recognition. As years went by, new technology of monitors was invented.These were an active and passive matrix display technology using monitors. First of all, these monitors were different from CRT because of the new thin film transistor technology. It was that kind of technology where particular row was switched on and a charge was generated and sent down the column. As result, the pixel appeared on the monitor at the intersect place of the row and the column. Moreover, it was a revolution in making computers portable. To sum up, it is essential to mention that technologies are not staying fixedly so it is natural that one technique displaces other as time goes by. 285 words

Law essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Law - Essay Example was carried in by the canon lawyers and then by the school of natural law leading to voluntarism, the leading lights of which were Domat and Pothier and which carried all before it under the French Civil Code during the whole of the nineteenth century. Conversely, in England, though not in Scotland, Roman law has not had the same influence. It took longer for the notion of contract to be worked out and voluntarism went into an almost immediate decline. The decline was hastened by the analyses of American writers, particularly following the famous article by Fuller and Perdue these went as far as proclaiming the death of the contract. Yet contract is alive, and it continues to constitute the basic legal instrument used to regulate the economic relations between natural and legal persons. It is, however, a concept which has undergone a certain evolution and which, from a comparative point of view, does not take the form of a uniform model. A contract under common law is not exactly the same as under the German or French legal systems. For that reason, it is necessary to begin with a study of the basic notion of a contract as it exists in the main legal systems with which we are concerned, in order to work out what it is that the various concepts with which we are concerned, in order to work out what it is that the various concepts found in those systems have in common. Once that has been done, it will be possible to determine the relationship between the notion of a contract, as thus defined, and the other sources of law giving rise to obligations, such as torts and quasi-contract/restitution. After that, it will then be necessary to move onto a higher plane, by considering what it is that gives binding force to a contract (Beale, 2002, KÃ ¶tz and Flessner, 1997). A contract is a voluntary agreement or promise between legally competent parties, supported by legal consideration, to perform or refrain from performing) some legal act. That definition may be easier to