1000 words book analysis, due 48 hours
Nancy 00001
ENGL101CWeek2-SettingCultureTheManagementofGrief.pptxSETTING & CULTURAL CONTEXT
EngL 101 | sarah brown
Short Analysis Assignment
Begin with your interpretation of the theme, followed by evidence from the text which supports it.
SAMPLE: The theme of The Catcher in the Rye is the inevitable loss of innocence, which can be argued by examining:
A. The subjects of the protagonist’s internal monologue (CHARACTER, POV)
B. The imagery of children in the rye field (SYMBOLISM)
C. Conversations between the protagonist and callous, jaded adults (DIALOGUE)
THESIS: The theme of the inevitable loss of innocence in Catcher in the Rye can be found in the story’s imagery, dialogue, and Holden’s internal monologue.
Short Analysis: Format
Title: The title should reference the story you’re focusing on, as well as your interpretation.
EXAMPLE TITLE: “Fakes and Phonies: The Loss of Innocence in Catcher in the Rye.”
Introduction: introduce the story - give a brief overview (main characters, main plot points) and include your thesis
Body paragraphs: topic sentences should mention the literary element being analyzed and relate back to your thesis. The paragraph itself must include direct quotes from the text and your interpretation of these quotes.
Conclusion: Summarize your main ideas. You may end with some general thoughts on how your interpretation could be expanded further, but do not incorporate new information or large ideas into the conclusion.
MLA Citation Format: Short Stories
IN-TEXT CITATIONS
If you are citing the same author throughout, you do not need to add their name into your in-text citation each time. However, the page number must always be included.
Example: The author continues this characterization by describing Zelda as ”a boisterously good time” (6).
Quotes of four lines or fewer can be incorporated into your paragraph in regular quotation format. Longer quotes should be indented and block quoted.
Link: MLA Quote Formatting
MLA Citation Format: Short Stories
WORKS CITED PAGE
Short stories are quoted rather than italicized
The name of the anthology is italicized
The editors of the anthology should be noted after the anthology name
Example: Moss, Peter. “Scarlet Dance.” Anthology of Canadian Literature, edited by Amanda Leigh, Goose Down Publishers, 2018, pp 142-150.
Essay-Writing Resources
Writing & Learning Centre: How to Write a Literary Analysis
MLA Formatting and Style Guide
Setting
The time and place (the when and where) of the story
Setting can help us determine:
The genre of the story: whether it’s realist or sci-fi, for example
An aspect of culture the author wishes to reference thematically
The sense of time in the piece (are we moving in between time periods, or in the past?)
| Realism | The Surreal |
| Does not attempt to exaggerate events, or display unnatural drama/emotion Attempts to accurately depict “ordinary people” and their way of living | Elements of surprise, exaggeration, mysticism, the bizarre Stories may still feature “ordinary” characters, but incorporate elements of magic, horror, etc. into plot |
| “Literary” fiction Some genre fiction like mystery, picaresque will still try to make their characters/dialogue realistic | Sci-fi Fantasy Gothic/Southern Gothic |
Cultural Context
Context: the situation in which the entity exists
Culture: a ‘way of life’ exclusive to a group of people. Includes religion, race, nationality, gender roles, dress codes, manners, politics, etc.
How do we contextualize a literary work? Consider:
The story’s setting
The time and place the author was writing in
The author’s biography
What is happening to the characters
Bharati Mukherjee
Born in Kolkata (1940)
Educated at University of Iowa (1963-1969)
Lived in Canada (1966-1980)
“In the beginning of our stay in Canada…[i]t was in the mid-’70s, 1973, that we started to see the visible effects of racism…there was a backlash against what they called the ‘visible minority.’ Even though these people were not on welfare, were in fact professionals and businesspeople, their presence created an atmosphere of hostility” (Mukherjee in 1990, to The Iowa Review)
Biography sourced from Encyclopedia Britannica
Thinking About “The Management of Grief”
What happens in the story – what are the main plot points?
Is this a realist story? Why or why not?
Where is it set? Where does the setting change?
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Cultural Context - “The Management of Grief” – Air India Attack
Dialogue vs. Internal Monologue
| Dialogue | Internal Monologue |
| Conversation, back and forth between two or more characters | Inner voice of a character (usually the narrator’s) – thoughts, feelings, decisions |
| Reveals how characters behave socially – do they uphold conventions? | A look into a fiction character’s mind; can often contrast with their outward actions (ie. dialogue) |
| Shaila’s speaking dialogue with community members and Judith on top of page 548 - “Do you know this woman?” | Shaila’s internal thoughts near the bottom of page 548 – “I want to say…” |
“The Management of Grief”
What is this title imply? Is there a “right” way to manage grief?
Why do you think Shaila needs to travel both back to India and back to Canada in the story?
Discuss the idea of “managing grief” with a partner, considering these questions in connection with culture and Shaila’s travel.
Setting in “The Management of Grief”
“David Mura's call for "a new set of myths, heroes, and gods, and a history that has been occluded or ignored" transforms, in Mukherjee's imagination, into stories of immigrants as active agents of change. These stories join, rather than replace, the histories of economic and physical violence that fuel immigration and that immigrants face upon reaching the New World. To bring these stories and histories together, Mukherjee marries the literal and the metaphorical.”
(Drake, Jennifer. “Looting American Culture: Bharati Mukherjee’s Immigrant Narratives.” Contemporary Literature, vol. 40, no. 1, Spring 1999, pp. 60–84. EBSCOhost, doi:10.2307/1208819.)
Setting is important in this story as Shaila moves between two cultures. She is shown both in Canada and India, part of two worlds. Both of their grieving rituals seem important to her, showing how she’s become a member of two different cultures.
Shaila In Two Cultures
“Like my husband’s spirit, I flutter between worlds” (545) – Shaila on being both a part of Indian and Canadian culture.
Shaila’s internal monologue in India shows her healing through ritual:
“In an abandoned temple in a tiny Himalayan village, as I make my offering of flowers and sweetmeats to a tribe of animists, my husband descends to me. He is squatting next to a scrawny sadhu in moth-eaten robes…my husband takes my hand in his” (545).
Shaila’s dialogue with Dr. Ranganathan in Canada shows her finding community to discuss grief:
“Talk is all we have, says Dr. Ranganathan…He says, whom better to talk with than other relatives?...He calls me twice a week from Montreal.” (546)
