Анализ "Cat in the Rain" by Ernest Hemingway

The story under the title “Cat in the Rain” was written by Ernest Hemingway, one of the most favourite American novelists, short-story writer and essayist, whose deceptively simple prose style has influenced wide range of writers. 

So, the story begins with the description of the hotel where two Americans stopped. It was raining, that’s why the couple stayed in and just a cat in the rain attracted the young woman’s attention. She wanted to get the cat inside but failed and was brought another cat. 

The problem of the story lies very deeply and we are to uncover it. The story is written in one mood which constantly and directly increases. It starts from the beginning where it’s created by a persistent and repeated use of the “rain” with a number of phrases associating it, such as puddles, deserted square, glistening war monument. 

Repetition is one of the widely used and favourite stylistic devices of Hemingway. Here he applies it to reveal the relationship of the protagonist to the old hotel owner (she liked ... , she liked...). As the verb “to like” is not used to characterize relations of the wife to her husband, this contrast is full of the concealed but easily read meaning. 

Though the cases of repetition in the story may seem a bit obtrusive, their modifications enter into the core of the narration very organically. They carry emotional character, however penetrating the story the deep sorrow becomes evident gradually. We realize that little, as if meaningless, capricious wishes of a young woman reveal the drama of her fate, the absence of comfort in her life, comparable with the cat in the rain. 

The title of the story anticipates this confrontation and the fact that the cat’s image makes great play twice – just increases the total effect. In fact, the young woman pines for love, for home, for her family. And the purring cat she’d like to have and to stroke is a traditional symbol of home and comfort she lacks so much. She wants warmth, attention, care, joy, happiness; however she is brought the cat – a pitiful substitution of that, what she, a young, beautiful woman needs incredibly. This is the main problem of the novel we tried to uncover. 

Perhaps the hotel owner didn’t get the reason of her yearnings and took her wish for whim. But dignity, deference and respectfulness of the old man are confronted to egoism and carelessness of George not occasionally. The war monument is also mentioned deliberately. The world George and his wife belong to – is uncomfortable, homeless after-war world, where the fates of young people joined with such hardships and troubles. 

If to speak about the text itself, it is told in the 3rd person narrative. the description is interlaced with descriptive passages and dialogues of the personages. The author makes extensive use of repetitions to render the story more vivid, convincing, more real and emotional. 

The author's style is remarkable for its powerful sweep, brilliant illustrations and deep psychological analysis. Everything he touches seems to reflect the feelings of the heroes. 

The story reveals the author's great knowledge of man's inner world. He penetrates into the subtlest windings of the human heart.

Анализ "Wee Willie Winkie" by Rudyard Kipling

The story entitled Wee Willie Winkie was written by an outstanding British writer Joseph Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936), born in India. He is best known for the children's story The Jungle Book (1894), the Indian spy novel Kim (1901), the poems "Gunga Din" (1892), "If" (1895), and his many short stories.

The story begins with the description of a boy - Percival William Williams, who was the son of the Colonel and whom everybody called Wee Willie Winkie. Once he committed a heroic deed defending his friend Coppy's future bride Miss Alardyce from the Bad Men, not even being scared of the punishment his father would give him for breaking the arrest under which Wee Willie Winkie was.

So the idea conveyed by the author is that a real friendship has no boundaries and the difference between the friends' age is not so significant. The most important thing is that no mischiefs, troubles or sacrifices can stop people doing something in honour of their friendship.

We can prove this idea. First of all we should mention the words of Willie Winkie who said to Brandis: "I like you. I shall call you Coppy". That was the beginning of their friendship. Then Coppy let him wear his own big sword - just as tall as Willie Winkie. Coppy promised him a terrier puppy and permitted him to witness the miraculous operation of shaving. And even being aware of the secret engagement, Willie Winkie said not a word to anybody. Vice versa he was used to regard Miss Alardyce gravely with unwinking eye.

We should underline that Willie Winkie broke his arrest, "it was a crime unspeakable", and rode across the river to bring back Miss Alardyce at all hazards. Isn't it enough to see how devoted he was to Coppy? His words to Miss Alardyce "Coppy will be angwy wiv me" - prove that first of all he was thinking of his friend, but not of the punishment or his father.

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Анализ "The Moon and Sixpence" by Somerset Maugham

The story under the title “The Moon and Sixpence” was written by famous English writer - W. Somerset Maugham.

The extract under the discussion acquaints us with the protagonists – Captain Nichols and his wife and describes us the situation in this family. Reading the text we find out the main problem lying in the power of wife on her husband and complete obedience and silence of Captain Nichols. While reading on we realize he reconciled this fact and continues such an existence.

Let’s turn to the general definition of the text under the study. First of all we should say it is told in the first person narrative and we constantly feel and see the presence of the author: “I am certain that…”, “I never heard her speak…” etc.

Then we should note the narration is interlaced with descriptive passages and basically these exact passages present us full sketch of the characters.

It is enough to have a look at the first sentence of the text. There we obtain the most significant characteristic of Captain Nichols. It is conveyed through a wonderful case of oxymoron, which is a feature of Maugham’s style: “married bachelor”. Indeed, it gives us the key image of the hero. The rest of his traits of character such as fear of wife, submission, inactivity are just included in his portrayal.

What concerns his wife, while describing her the author twice used intensifiers, which demonstrate she wasn’t a usual “bird”: “She gave me an impression of extraordinary tightness”, “Captain Nichols was frightened to death of her”. The following sentence depicts her nature at full rate: “Her plain face with its narrow lips was tight, her skin was stretched tightly over her bones, her smile was tight, her hair was tight, her clothes were tight…” The case of parallel construction together with the repetition of the word “tight” proves that Maugham attempted to underline this feature of hers.

Besides, a very specific and even philosophic metaphor applied by the author also illustrates her world: “inexorable as fate and remorseless as conscience”. Thus, we realize Mrs. Nichols wasn’t a match for her husband; she possessed callousness, cunning and insincerity which for sure were not the nouns suitable to portray Captain Nichols.

Furthermore, reading the following sentence combined with the case of parallel construction we can imagine that she had no desire to leave him, as he was a convenient victim for her: “He could as little escape her as the cause can escape the effect.”

To crown it all, she didn’t show her higher position to people, she tried not to address to him directly, but for example send a daughter, and all that proves she was a rational and reserved person.

“She did not call him; she gave no sign that she was aware of his existence; she merely walked up and down composedly.” Here the repetition of pronoun “she” reveals her strict and reticent but complete power on him.

We can assume that even her daughter lacked her love and support, as the author shows her as “a pale-faced, sullen child of seven”. Is that the influence of mother? I guess so.

Speaking about the extract, we can add that the prevailing mood of it is rather pessimistic. The majority of the sentences is quite long, as they bare some description to the reader.

We can outline the inner conflict of man in the extract. Surely Captain Nichols realizes his position in the family, but he undertakes no steps to make himself free, and this is his greatest problem. Thus, the extract provokes contradictory assessments, as we see Captain is able to change his life but has no wish to do that.

Анализ "Salvatore" by Somerset Maugham

The story was written by Somerset Maugham - British novelist, playwright, short-story writer, highest paid author in the world in the 1930s. Despite his popularity, Maugham did not gain serious recognition. This was expressed in his autobiography THE SUMMING UP (1938), that he stood ‘in the very first row of the second-raters’. Maugham’s skill in handling plot has been compared by critics in the manner of Guy de Maupassant. In many novels the surroundings are international and the stories are told in clear, economical style with cynical or resigned undertone. Though there are many admirers of his works, I am among them. 

In the story under the discussion we can define the style of the author as bookish more than as colloquial, as many words applied by Maugham prove that: affiance, to long, ailment, consent, etc. Although the colloquialisms are also present in the story, such as “dreadfully homesick”, etc. 

The genre of the story is a novel, as it describes a love story of a couple never going to be together, it fully correspond the boundaries of this genre. The subject matter – story about a usual fisherman’s son who returned from military service and found out that his girl refused from his love. He started a new life without her, but the loss hurt him and stayed in his heart forever. 

In this story the author voices dissatisfaction with the fact that for most people the things spoken about oneself are more important than a man himself. That causes lots of difficulties and misunderstandings. This is the problem the author arises by his work. And we can easily draw the message of Maugham who hints that the beauty of a man is defined not by his inner characteristics, but by his inner world. This item consistently helps us to formulate the controlling idea of the novel – more than often mankind forgets about morals and inner world of every person and that is much higher than one’s outer features, or in other words – the only valuable quality is much more than many unimportant and unnecessary ones. 

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If you need full analysis of this text, feel free to contact me.

Анализ "The Escape" by Somerset Maugham

The story under the title “The Escape” was written by one of the outstanding English writers – William Somerset Maugham. 

The plot of the story is quite simple, though interesting. The protagonist of the story, a young man rolling in money – Roger Charing – fell in love with Ruth Barlow, an unfortunate woman who was twice a widow. They had all the happy and pleasant moments of relationships a loving couple usually has and intended to marry. Then suddenly Roger fell out of love with Ruth. But he found a way to make Ruth release him. He said they would marry the day they found the perfect house for both of them, however, Roger rejected all the orders of the agents offering a new house. At last Ruth lost her patience and left Roger herself.

So, the problem addressed in the story lies in the relationships of man and woman, in the way they get over the quandaries, in the way they treat each other. And I believe this problem is rather vital nowadays as many families divorce because they don’t know how to overcome hardships they face. 

The controlling idea of the story is that one should put on his thinking (пораскинуть мозгами) and act very carefully, as sometimes procrastination can give better results than haste. 

The same we see in the story. Roger wasn’t hurrying to inform Ruth in his calmness to her, vice versa he kept on taking care of her not even presenting her any signs to doubt in his love. 

At the same time he didn’t let the agents stop searching the house, trying Ruth’s patience. The repetition used by the author prove non-interest of Roger to all offers: “Sometimes they were too large and sometimes they were too small, sometimes they were too far from the centre of the things and sometimes they were too close; sometimes they were too expensive and sometimes they wanted too many repairs; sometimes they were too stuffy and sometimes they were too airy; sometimes they were too dark and sometimes they were too bleak”. 

Конец ознакомительной части стилистического анализа.

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Анализ "Three Men In A Boat" by Jerome K. Jerome

The extract under analysis is taken from the book "Three Men in a Boat" written by Jerome K. Jerome.

The extract begins with the description of the beautiful view and comfortable destination of the place where the action comes to pass. From the very beginning we see the narrator admiring Sonning: “It is the most fairylike little nook on the whole river. It is more like a stage village than one built of bricks and mortar. Every house is smothered in roses…” From those exact sentences we can guess that the narrator is a kind of a person who admires beauty and can give his own estimation.

Later this fact is easily proved when three men decided to prepare a supper for themselves. The scrupulous side of the narrator is marked everywhere: “I should never have thought that peeling potatoes was such an undertaking. The job turned out to be the biggest thing of its kind that I had ever been in.” If we look at the way how the friends prepare the potatoes we realize they may have never done it before. 

And the fact that those potatoes were about the size of a peanut makes us wonder and even smile: such an easy task sometimes turns out for men quite difficult. The next sentence: “Scrapping was even harder than peeling” makes us completely sure the author wanted to show the humor of the situation. And it comes as no surprise that the narrator says: “I never saw such a thing as potato scrapping for making a fellow in a mess”, which truly confirms our guesses. As well we can’t take for granted the fact of working steadily over the four potatoes for such a long time. 

What’s more, later the fellows added some more potatoes in their Irish stew without even peeling them, and lots of other odds and ends and the remnants.

The author doesn’t forget to outline the role of their dog in the story – Montmorency made his own contribution to the meal, it brought a dead water-rat which was added in the supper.

The most interesting fact concerning all this fuss is that their supper was a great success: “I don’t think I ever enjoyed a meal more. There was something so fresh and piquant about it. …here was a dish with a new flavor, with a taste like nothing else on earth.” So, we should admit their work wasn’t in vain, if they liked it so mush.

If to look at the extract from the other point, speaking about its general definition we should note the text is told in the 1st person narrative. The narration is interlaced with the descriptive passages and rare dialogues of the personages. The account of events is interwoven with a humorous portrayal of the young fellows. The prevailing mood of the extract is rather optimistic and cheerful, is seen in their admiration of the place and the meal. 

The author makes use of the long and complicated sentences as well as the short and simple ones.

All in all, the extract under the study can present enough food for thought for those who is able to think it over. What concerns me, the extract revised me the proverb “After the dinner comes the reckoning” which proves that before having something one should make it. The fellows must have forgotten that even preparing the meal needs time and effort, that’s why were so wondered. So, I guess Jerome K. Jerome gives a wise lesson to those who are lazy-bones and afraid of hard work.

Если вам нужен полный стилистический анализ какого-либо текста, напишите мне.

If you need stylistic analysis of any text, please contact me.


Другие стилистические анализы на нашем сайте:

• The Ormolu Clock by Muriel Spark
• An Error in Chemistry by William Faulkner
• The Eyes Of The Dragon by Stephen King

Анализ "The Poet" by Somerset Maugham

The story under the title “The Poet” was written by an outstanding English writer, playwright and novelist who was known for his most famous play “Rain”, screened several times. His main literary pieces are “The Moon and the Sixpence”, “Theatre”, “The Painted Veil”, etc.

The plot of the story centers around a young “man of letters” who had a wonderful chance to meet in person a great poet of his time – Calisto de Santa Aña. In those days verses of Don Calisto “were on the lips of all young men”, so he was really a gifted poet. The story goes on to tell that Don Calisto invited the protagonist to his living place. In the circumstances there was nothing for the main character to do, but to accept the invitation. On the next day when he came to the destination, he found there a poor house, but it pleased the hero to think that Don Calisto lived in such a fitting style. He imagined Santa Aña reading newspapers sitting in the rocking-chair near a table. He wondered what dreams occupied poet’s fancy as he sat there on the warm summer nights, smoking cigarettes. When he saw a man coming down he caught his breath. And what a disappointment it must have been, when the hero found out that he had come to the wrong house.

So, the controlling idea of the story is – not knowing a man one can imagine him at full power of his fantasy, if even some of invented features contradict to what one heard about the other, i.e. autosuggestion plays an important part of man’s life.

And the problem the author wants us to realize is that a human being is so weak and imprudent that he accepts some of life situations only the way he desires.

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Анализ "The Romantic Young Lady" by Somerset Maugham

The story under the title "The Romantic Young Lady" was written by an outstanding English writer, playwright and novelist Somerset Maugham. His feature of looking at the world is perception of an event in a tragicomic key. The fact that since the 90th years of XIX century and almost up to the end of life he remained the modern artist raising global problems, surprises. In Maugham’s talent there was always a surprising keenness to the tragic beginning, the latent dramatic nature of characters and human relations.

The plot of the story under the study centers round the members of two families - Countess de Marbella and Duchess de Dos Palos. The story tells how the daughter of the duchess fell in love with the coachman of the countess and that occasion made the enemies forget of their prejudices.

So we come across man - against - himself conflict, as the duchess stepped over her feelings and ideas for her daughter’s sake.

So, the problem raised by the author in the story is penury and gentility, two terms never coming together in reality, as if two social classes, never having meal at one table.
The main idea conveyed by the author is the following - in any case quick mind gains the upper hand over the feelings. We know that those two women were almost mortal enemies. But the position in the Society became more important and the duchess came to the countess asking her help. Countess de Marbella was distinguished by her grace, wit and character, so she didn’t humiliate her rival, but found a wonderful way out of that dilemma. This is a beautiful corroboration of our idea.

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Анализ "Wild Swans" by Alice Munro

The story for analysis is called "Wild Swans" by Alice Munro. The plot centres around a girl who travels to Toronto and loses her virginity. The main characters of the story are Rose, Flo and the Minister.

Flo is nearly middle-aged woman. We learn this fact owing to the phrase "Special stockings for Flo's varicose veins". She isn't well-educated, that's why there are colloquial words in her speech: "whores", "men egged them on" etc. But she is very experienced. "She worked as a waitress in a coffee-shop in Union Station. That was how she knew all she knew. She never saw sunlight... But she saw plenty else. She saw a man cut another man's stomach with a knife, as if it was a watermelon... She saw two bad women, running the two words together like badminton... She saw a child die of a fit, too. Its face was black as ink."

The parallel constructions "I saw..." are used to prove Flo was not young. She experienced the negative sides of our life and the similes emphasize cruelty of our world. Flo doesn't cherish an illusion that viruses exist. She says to Rose: "Watch up for people dressed up as ministers. They were worst." And "The police would be the first ones to didile you".

"Well, I'm not scared," said Rose provokingly. She didn't believe anything Flo said on the subject of sex". Owing to the sentences it becomes clear that Rose is rather naive, she is under an illusion the good will defeat the evil. That's why she says: "There's the police anyway". The epithet "provokingly" and her reluctance to believe Flo's words say about her age. The spirit of contradiction (defiance) is peculiar to the teenagers.

As for their relationships we can say they are close, Flo and Rose are relatives. The older woman takes care of the girl, that's why she "took ten dollars and put it in a little cloth bag which she sewed to the strap of Rose's slip". Moreover, Flo tried to warn her against the dangers in Toronto. But Rose was just a self-assured teenager who believed that her swallowed dictionaries had made her ready for reality. That's why she was "extraordinary happy" when "she felt Flo receding". As any teenager she was curious and she wanted to enjoy independent life.

As for the minister, he became an entrance to the world of adults. He was a person who started to frustrate the girl's illusions, her stereotypes.

Concerning the structure of the text, we deal with exposition, where we learn about Flo, Rose and the relationships between them. The complication begins with the sentence "The train was fitting up and ... a man asked..." so something new starts to fill up Rose; a man appears in her life.

The culmination point is: "Her legs were never going to open. But they were. They were". The repetition shows the incandescence of Rose's feelings. She has just experiences the internal conflict: "She had a considerable longing to be somebody's object. Pounded, pleasured, reduced, exhausted". The climax conveys her temptation to cognize the world of adults - on the one hand; on the other hand her fear is expressed in the phrase "Please don't". The curiosity wins and we go to the denouement: "She thought it would be an especially fine thing... to enter on preposterous adventures in your own, but newly named, skin".

So we can say the story is about the metamorphosis of the cygnet who has been under her relatives guardianship (domestic) and changed into an independent (wild) beautiful wild swan.

The idea is we shouldtn't be afraid of cruel reality. If we want to live a full life, we have to do everything to gain our aim, but not wish to live in a fool's paradise.

Анализ "What Was It?" by Fitz-James O'Brien

The story "What Was It?" was written by Fitz-James O'Brien, who combined elements of mysticism and real facts in his books.

In the story we also deal with other questions: What do you consider to be the greatest element of terror? What might it [a King of Terrors] be?

They bring us to the subject matter - fear, which is the fruit of our mind, imagination. So the narrator highlights the man-against-himself conflict, when a person's mind gives birth to his/her fears against his/her own will.

As for the structure of the work, it begins with the exposition, for the author gives background information about the house, which "has enjoyed … the reputation of being haunted". This image is supported owing to the garden, "which is now only a green enclosure used for bleaching clothes", "the dry basin", "fruit trees ragged and unpruned".

The movement of Mrs. Moffat's company to the house is also a part of the exposition, then series of complication come: "Our dinner conversation was supernatural", thus its participants live in the presentiment of evil.

The second complication is "What do you consider to be the greatest element of terror", as this question provokes reflection. A case of comparison in the sentence "I feel as if I could write a story like Hoffman", who is famous for his fairy-tales, increases the mysticism of that evening.

The examples of intensifier in the sentence "The room was in total darkness", "of personification in "The confounded themes touched on by Hammond in the garden kept obtruding themselves on my brain" and "They still crowded upon me", of comparison in "I was lying still as a corpse…" and the unusual graphic writing in "A something dropped" lead the reader to the moment of heightened tension.

So the climax is: Then I turned to look at my captive … I saw nothing! "I saw nothing!" is the cry of the terror-stricken soul.

There is one more sentence which is rather interesting from the point of view of form and content: "This thing has a heart that palpitates - a will that moves it - lungs that play and inspire and respire."

This parallel construction hints that this thing lives inside a human being.

The story ends with the denouement: "At last it [the Mystery] died."

So the idea is that everything depends on a person if he/she gives birth to his fear or "manacle" it and becomes free from it. And the narrator's answer to Mrs. Moffat proves that: "We decline taking this creature [fear] with us. Remove it yourself if you please. It appeared in your house [mind, imagination]. On you the responsibility rests.

Анализ "My Oedipus Complex" by Frank O'Connor

The story under the title "My Oedipus Complex" by Frank O'Connor begins with the description of a family during and after the war. The protagonist of the story is a boy called Larry. The author with the help of Larry's words explains that his father was in the army and Larry never saw much of him even not worrying about it. "Like Santa Claus he came, and went mysteriously" he says. By means of this simile we find out that Larry's father came very rarely, perhaps as Santa Claus once a year. Later we become aware of the fact that Larry liked exactly those visits of his father, in the role of Santa Claus rather than his father.

Each time Father came, he brought some souvenir which was rather valuable for him. "There was a bit of the magpie about Father". We shouldn't think here that the author used this metaphoric periphrasis in order to show how talkative father was. Vice versa, he was almost as silent as the grave. The stylistic device proves Father liked to collect all sorts of things, having a resemblance with magpies known for their thievishness.

The story goes on to describe how Larry and his mother spend every day, their father being at the war. We see that the boy did everything he liked and his mother didn't punish him saying nothing at all against that. Owing to Larry's words "The war was the most peaceful period of my life" we come to the conclusion he was glad to such a coincidence of circumstances.

But suddenly one day his father returned safe and sound. It changed the course of the life in the house, as mother became a bit inattentive to her son. She didn't let him talk loudly, interrupt his parents and some other things which were unusual for the boy. He liked that less and less. Everything connected with father complicated his life greatly. It reached the point, that Larry was prepared to compete with his dad for mother's attention, but every failure disappointed him, it was unfair.

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Анализ "Widow of Ephesus" by Petronius

The text for analysis is a tale called "The Widow of Ephesus" written by Petronios. The bear facts of the text are as follows:

There was a certain woman who was considered to be the first true example of conjugal fidelity and love. But once her husband died and she was clearly courting death from starvation, she was full of inconsolable grief. And no one was able to bring her back to life. The woman spent five days near the vault of her husband without any food. One soldier was sent to the cemetery to keep watch on crosses and he met that woman. Due to his arguments he persuaded her to eat and at last she couldn't resist her temptation and submitted to him.

At first we aren't interested in the moral of the story 'cause only the actions attract our attention. And what amazes us most of all is the woman's behaviour - the way she expresses her sorrow. Finding the normal custom of following the cortege "with hair unbound and beating breast in public quite inadequate to express her grief, the lady insisted in following the corpse right into the tomb", "and set herself to guard the body, weeping wailing right a day". She was courting death from starvation and spent five days in inconsolable grief". "She was tearing out her hair by the roots". The epithet attracts our attention. What seems to us unnatural is her grief after five days. We know that people try to find strength and be man enough to go through all difficulties.

Если вам нужен полный анализ, напишите автору блога.

Анализ "Ms. Found In A Bottle" by Edgar Poe

The story for analysis "Ms. Found in a Bottle" is written by Edgar Allan Poe.

The text is about a man who describes the loss of a ship and its crew and his own discoveries. So the subject matter is the cognition of life and death. The story begins with the exposition. In this part of the text the narrator tries to persuade the reader that the story he is going to tell is true, and for this purpose the following stylistic devises are used.

"The Pyrrhonism of my opinions has at all times rendered me notorious." The metaphor "the Pyrrhonism" means skepticism, for this stylistic device refers to a philosopher's name Pyrrhon, who tended to doubt and not to believe the fundamental truths. The epithet "notorious" and the phraseological unit "at all times" also attract our attention, for "at all times" is used in official notices and stresses the seriousness of the author's intention. And "notorious" puts more emphasis on the fact the narrator has been very skeptic, and that's why his words, notwithstanding their incredibility, deserve the readers attention.

Further he continues to convince us: "No person could be less liable than myself to be led away from the sever precincts of truth by ignes fatui." "ignes fatui" are deceptive hopes which can't distract him from real facts.

One more example can be conveyed through the following metaphorical sentence: "A strong relish for physical philosophy has tinctured my mind." Physical philosophy means scientific or philosophy that needs proofs.

Owing to the sentence "Hereditary wealth afforded me an education of no common order", the reader learns that the narrator was rich and well-educated. In the following sentence the writer hints what he is going to portray: "Of my country and of my family I have little to say." The reader sees that his native land and close people are not his first consideration. So something much more profound troubles him.

The complication comes in the sentence "One evening … I observed a very singular isolated cloud…" The piling up of the epithets "singular" and "isolated" and the intensifier (adverb) "very" put us on our guard.

But then tense atmosphere increases. For conveying it the author describes the nature using epithets and comparisons effectively: "dusky-red appearance of the moon and the peculiar character of the sea … a rapid change and the water seemed more than usually transparent … The air became intolerably hot, and was loaded with spiral exhalations similar to those arising from heated iron. As night came on, every breath of wind died away …"

The description of nature helps to create the atmosphere of anticipation. But the captain doesn't share our hero's presentiments. On the one hand, it seems rather strange that an ordinary passenger foresees a simoom, and a sophisticated captain doesn't notice anything; but on the other hand that helps us to realize that the work is rather symbolic.

Speaking about the ship, the narrator uses the pronoun "she". In fact the ship implied to the soul of a human being, the soul where some changes take place.

So the internal conflict comes into existence: between the hero's skeptic attitude to life and death and his admiration to them.

As it was mentioned, the character was well-educated. And his skepticism presupposes meditation (reflection).

Анализ "A and P" by John Updike

The story "A&P" was written by a famous American writer John Updike. The events take place in a supermarket "A&P". Here is the connection between the title of the story and the story itself, which begins with the description of three girls. It was very surprising for the customers and shop-workers to see half-naked girls in bathing-suits walking along the supermarket, which was rather far from a beach.

The author presents the events from the point of view of the one of the characters - Sammy, a nineteen year-old boy. We should admit that Sammy always tries to come in contact with the reader, he waits for his response:

"...do you really think... but do you got the idea... If it hadn't been there you wouldn't have known..."

Sammy describes the girls with admiration:

* She just walked straight on slowly, on these long, white prima donna legs.
* So high her neck, coming up out of those white shoulders
* her chest down from the shoulder bones, like a dented sheet of metal tilled in the light

So all this epithets amd similes reveal Sammy's positive attitude towards the girls. But the other customers on the contrary are described negatively.

* "The sheep pushing their carts down the aisle..." - The metaphor sheep stands here for the customers.
* "She's one of these cash-register-watchers, a witch about fifty with rouge on her cheekbones." - The metaphor "witch" is standing for the cashregister watcher.

So we can arrive at a definite conclusion that for Sammy the girls were a gulp of fresh air. He was tired of his boring job which gave him no satisfaction at all. And Sammy enjoyed spying upon the girls, he liked them.

In the first part of the story the greatest emphasis is given to the description of the girls. Sammy describes them in details and admires their beauty. His attitude towards the girls presupposes the existence of another attitude.

In the second part of the story Lengel appears, resenting the girls' behaviour. He considers them to be indecent. There is an external conflict between Lengel and Sammy. Lengel seems to be the representative of the society full of rigid, time honoured rules. As for Sammy, he is a boy with an artistic soul. It's very hard for him to survive in this world. There is also the internal conflict, which takes place in Sammy's mind. He wants to get rid off the bounds with that society. He wants freedom. And those girls served as impulse for him to make the right decision. The climax of the story coincides with the moment when Sammy took his courage into his both hands and quitted.

The message sounds like this: "we shouldn't be afraid of taking initiative in our hands and showing it". In this sense Sammy is a round character. He is a unique individual and developes in the course of the story. As for Lengel he is one sided, constructed round a single trait.

The author symphathizes with Sammy. Updike chose him as the narrator, consequently Sammy represents the author's point of view. Here one can easily discover Updike's attitude towards women, he considers that it's enough for women to be beautiful but not to have brains. He says: "You never know for sure how girls' minds work / do you really think it's a mind in there or just a little buzz like a bee in a glass jar".

Besides, Updike's accuracy while choosing words, using different stylistic devices - all that draws our attention. The language is very metaphoric:

* "a few houseslaves"
* my stomach rub the inside of my apron ...

and it's very difficult to read and understand the author's message. In conclusion I'd like to point out that story wasn't to my liking.

Анализ "Cruise" by Evelyn Waugh

The story “Cruise” by E.Waugh centers at the voyage that a family of well-off undertakes. The story is written in a form of letters. The author of the letters is a young girl who shares her impressions about things that happen with her. The age of the young lady has a great impact on the style of the letters. It is colloquial. Without any doubt the story is a subjective reflection of reality as it is a first person narration and is a charm of it.

From the beginning we understand that the head of the family is the father who is a bit infantile and emotional. The fact that he hadn’t get the young lady and Bertie a sleeper, though he had slept himself shows that he is pitiless and egoistic. The situation when he is called the colonel underlines his being vain and arrogant, though his children only make profit of his selfishness, not realising his bad traits of character. They also act like he does. His son is always drunk and makes everyting in order to attract people’s attention (he climbed down the ventilator). His daughter mocks at other people and tries to humiliate them by all means (Then I bitched him a bit (goodness how Decent).

The other people on the ship are like their passengers. Toadying, dishonesty and meanness is a common thing. This can be proved by the sentences ...


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Анализ "The Happy Prince" by Oscar Wilde

The story under the title “The Happy Prince” was written by an Irish poet and dramatist whose reputation rests on his comic masterpieces Lady Wintermere's Fan and The Importance of Being Earnest - Oscar Wilde (1854-1900), (Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde). Among Wilde's other best-known works are his only novel The Picture of Dorian Gray, which deals very similar theme as Robert Luis Stevenson's Doctor Jekyll and Mister Hyde. Wilde's fairy tales are very popular - the motifs have been compared to those of Hans Christian Andersen. 

The plot of the story under analysis centers round a swallow, which travels a lot and finally finds a statue of the Happy Prince. Being alive the Happy Prince didn’t know what the sorrow was, only after the death he being set up as a statue could see “all the ugliness and all the misery of his city”. The swallow who obeyed his commands in the sake of the good, finally died, and they both were thrown in a dust-heap. 

The core of the problem raised in the story is good and evil, wealth and poverty. An important point is that the story resembles a fairy tale. While reading we come across various things and objects, which usually don’t possess emotions and feelings, the ability to speak, or aren’t alive at all. They are speaking birds and the statue, alive reeds, etc. 

We know the Swallow loved the Reed and offered to be his wife. It’s obvious that only in fairy tales the ally of different kinds of things is possible. "It is a ridiculous attachment," twittered the other Swallows; "she has no money, and far too many relations" – this exact sentence is the example of a fairy tale form, but at the same time it depicts in swallows usual features of real life, such as greediness. So, it contributes to the problem, and proves it is quite vital. 

The main idea of the story is that we start appreciating what we possessed only after losing it. The Happy Prince “lived in the Palace of Sans- Souci, where sorrow was not allowed to enter”, but death let him see all the sorrows of people living near him.

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