21 дек. 2010 г.

Стилистический анализ текста "Art For Heart's Sake" by Reuben Goldberg

The story "Art for Heart’s Sake" was written by Reuben Lucius Goldberg (1883-1970), an American sculptor, cartoonist and writer. 

After graduating from the University of California in 1904 he works as a cartoonist for a number of newspapers and magazines. He produced several series of cartoons all of which were highly popular. Among his best works are "Is There a Doctor in the House?" (1929), "Rube Goldberg’s Guide to Europe" (1954) and "I Made My Bed" (1960). 

The plot of the story under discussion is intricate. It centers around an old man Collis P. Ellsworth who has troubles with his health when his financial transactions end in failure. 

In order to find for him a new interest Doctor Caswell offers him to take up painting, just for pleasure. And it was a great surprise when Ellsworth’s awful painting was not only accepted for the Show at the Lathrop Gallery, but took the First Prize! 

At the end of the story the protagonist says that art is nothing, that he bought the Lathrop Gallery, what surely doesn’t coincide with the reader’s expectations. 

The problems raised in the story "Art for Heart’s Sake" are urgent nowadays – money can buy everything, art is eternal, but everybody values it from one’s own point of view, at the same time not everyone is allowed to realize what real art is. 

The controlling idea of the story conveyed by Goldberg sounds like this – you can buy the gallery, but you cannot buy the art itself. 

Speaking about the meaning of the title, art’s aim is to eradicate human shortcomings, but in this particular case its effect was quite contradictory. 

The story's subject matter – the passion of the old man for large buyings... 

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If you need this stylistic analysis, please contact me. 

Другие лингво-стилистические анализы произведений:

11 дек. 2010 г.

Интерпретация текста "The Eyes Of The Dragon" by Stephen King

The extract under the title “The Eyes of the Dragon” was written by one of the outstanding American writers in the modern literature – Stephen King, known for his huge contribution in horror fiction, compared with such names as Balzac and Dickens.

The extract under the study begins with the description of a young boy called Peter destined to be a king. It comes as no surprise he had a great number of servants to take care of him, but the most tender and vigilant of all was surely his mother – Sasha. She took it for granted to bring up her child in a manner worthy for kings only. Naturally she used all her talent, all her love and all her wit to raise the heir as well-bred and smart as possible. She was the only perfect teacher for him. To the boy’s mischief she died when he was only five and couldn’t realize everything properly, but those lessons she gave him stayed in his heart for ever.

They say “the child’s soul is blank as a white sheet of paper, what you write there will be kept till the end.” I guess this statement suits the text precisely and comes as the controlling idea of the whole narration.

Indeed, who knows better teacher and mentor for a child than its mother? Who knows all the specks and all the sores on a young body better than the woman who gave birth to the infant? No human creature. Small wonder that mothers love their children with all their heart, no matter what kind of child it is. The child is their flesh and blood, that’s the only sufficient reason.

So, the semantic arrangement of the text helps to bring the message out, which notes that we should never forget the people involved in our birth, having given us all warm feelings and letting us live. It notes we should treat them with profound respect and show unconditional obedience, be eternally thankful for all they do for us. Such a usual but extremely important moral among the lines of the author appears to be quite urgent and necessary nowadays.

Sasha’s every word and deed brings out the character's essential nature. Even reading the hero’s first recollections of his mother we start admiring her: “her remembered her dearly… he thought her sweet, tender, loving, full of mercy”. Everything proves she was so: “She wanted him to show up well, and to be mannerly.” Though many of the events and descriptions in the extract are seen through the main character's eyes, it is obvious she thought of him more than of herself.

The fact that Stephen King dedicated almost the whole passage to her wishes and responsibilities is the true evidence of his respect to the character as well: “…above all else, Sasha wanted him to be good. A good boy, she thought, would be a good King.” That’s why perhaps the author didn’t deprive her of wit: “…by the time the things degenerated to the food-throwing stage, she and Peter would long since have retired.” She first complimented him lovingly on his behaviour and then corrected where he went wrong.

To crown it all, she is the exact character worthy of the author's positive estimate. She enjoys all the sympathy of the readers and the author.

Reading on the extract we find more details attracting our attention.


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If you need this stylistic analysis please contact me.



Другие интерпретации английского текста на нашем сайте:

Stylistic analysis "On The American Dead In Spain" by Ernest Hemingway

The story under the title "On the American Dead in Spain" was written by Ernest Hemingway, who was one of the most famous American novelists, short-story writer and essayist, whose deceptively simple prose style have influenced wide range of writers.

The whole story is very short and resembles a tale spoken by an old military man. So, the subject matter of the story is the recollections of the events of the war on the Spanish area where the Lincoln Battalion held for four and a half months along the heights of the Jarama River, described by the author as eulogy (of /to) those who gave their lives in the sake of the freedom. The controlling idea deduced by the author is that not a single soldier of that fight is forgotten, all of them live in the hearts of people they protected. If to revise that Hemingway visited Spain not once and liked this country, we can underline that the given idea is quite patriotic.

What concerns the text itself, it is told in the 1st person narrative, though we don’t have any obvious evidences of Hemingway’s presence, usually marked by the personal pronoun “I”. But on the other hand, we always feel as if the author narrates us the story right now, we feel how passion, sorrow and hate boils in him, as if ready to return everything to fight again: “The Spanish people will rise again as they have always risen before against tyranny.”

The narration is interlaced with descriptive, historical and lyrical passages. We can be convinced of that for example by reading the first passage of the story:

“The dead sleep cold in Spain tonight. Snow blows through the olive groves, sifting against the tree roots. Snow drifts over the mounds with small headboards. (When there was time for headboards.) The olive trees are thin in the cold wind because their lower branches were once cut to cover tanks, and the dead sleep cold in the small hills above the Jarama River. It was cold that February when they died there and since then the dead have not noticed the changes of the seasons.”

What matters here is that there are no dialogues of personages and no individual characters at all. Just the common reference to people: the dead, the Spanish people, the fascists, the Spanish peasants, the Spanish workers. This also proves the type of narration being close to the recollection.

The prevailing mood of the story is rather gloomy and sometimes lyrical, coming into more optimistic at the end. Such words as dead, die, slavery, war – make it gloomy. The sentences like “The black trees will come to life with small green leaves, and there will be blossoms on the apple trees along the Jarama River” add some lyrical tone to the narration. And the assurance of the author in the future supplements the text with some kind of the optimism.

The style of the author is colloquial, he doesn’t applies here pompous bookish words or professionalisms, as the coloquial style fully corresponds the given situation. This fact demonstrates the talent of Hemingway as an outstanding writer.

The logical structure of the text is not simple, as while reading we come across the passages of different length. The last paragraph for example consists of only one sentence. And the logical argumentation of the paragraphs needs also deep considering of the reader, as the sentences of different passages are closely combined with the certain subject line.

Among the stylistic devices used by the author we would name the repetition, which aims to stress the things important for the narrator: “For our dead are a part of the earth of Spain now and the earth of Spain can never die”, “and there is forever for them to remember them in”.

The cases of parallel construction also contain some implied sense: “Each winter it will seem to die and each spring it will come alive again.”

All in all, the story reflects the author's preoccupation with the moral self and can give food for thought to anyone who is able to think.

8 дек. 2010 г.

Stylistic analysis "The Wedding Gig" by Stephen King

The extract under the discussion is written by Stephen King – American novelist and short-story writer, whose enormously popular books revived the interest in horror fiction from the 1970s. King's place in the modern horror fiction can be compared to that of J.R.R. Tolkien's who created the modern genre of fantasy. Like Anthony Trollope, Charles Dickens or Balzac in his La Comedie humaine, King has expressed the fundamental concerns of his era, and used the horror genre as his own branch of artistic expression. King has underlined, that even in the world of cynicism, despair, and cruelties, it remains possible for individuals to find love and discover unexpected resources in themselves. His characters often conquer their own problems and malevolent powers that would suppress or destroy them.

King was the 2003 recipient of The National Book Foundation's Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters.

King evinces a thorough knowledge of the horror genre, as shown in his nonfiction book "Danse Macabre", which chronicles several decades of notable works in both literature and cinema. He also writes stories outside the horror genre, including the novellas "The Body" and "Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption" (adapted as the movies "Stand By Me" and "The Shawshank Redemption", respectively), as well as "The Green Mile", "The Eyes of the Dragon", and "Hearts in Atlantis". In the past, Stephen King has written under the pen names Richard Bachman and once John Swithen.

King often begins a story with no idea how the story will end. He believes strongly that his best writing comes from freewriting, with no definite end at the beginning of a new work.

He is known for his great eye for detail, for continuity, and for inside references; many stories that may seem unrelated are often linked by secondary characters, fictional towns, or off-hand references to events in previous books. Read as a whole, King's work (which is centered around his Dark Tower series) creates a remarkable history that stretches from present day all the way back to the beginning of time (with a unique cosmogony).

King's books are filled with references to American history and American culture, particularly the darker, more fearful side of these. These references are generally spun into the stories of characters, often explaining their fears. Recurrent references include crime, war (especially the Vietnam War), violence, the supernatural, and racism.

King is also known for his folksy, informal narration, often referring to his fans as "Constant Readers" or "friends and neighbors." This familiar style contrasts with the horrific content of many of his stories.

Now let’s turn to the analysis of one of his works – “The Wedding Gig”.

While reading the extract under the study we realize the message easily seen in the plot of the story. The message tells us there are always fans of art, if it is real and worth one. We see the dauntless gangster who came in their place and listened to the whole show-party attentively. Then he invited the protagonist to the have a talk. No matter he did it unbecomingly and rudely – the fact is he wasn’t aware how to do it in other way, and solved the puzzle as he used to.

We know one’s appearance let us not get the full image of the person, but one’s deeds do. Firstly we could judge the guy in the white suit as a rich and spruce senior in easy circumstances by his bearing and clothes. Later having found out his name and brief history we might fantasy him as a perilous rogue and even perhaps a murderer. However at the end the idea comes into my mind he was quite a usual but intrepid and happy-go-lucky man with much confidence and liberties.

Though there isn’t a word saying he liked the music we can assume he shared his boys’ opinion concerning this band, as the fact of his coming to hear them speaks for itself. As far as I know, serious people aren’t used to joke. Besides, his invitation is the evidence the band did its best. Moreover, the modest words of the author about the band’s popularity in their place just leave no doubt they were really skillful musicians.

If to speak about the text itself we shall find rather interesting modifications of the author.

The first thing striking the eye when reading the extract is the familiar-colloquial style used in very free, informal situations of communication. Here we find emotionally coloured words, low colloquial vocabulary and slang words. This is the first sign proving the author belongs to the generation of modern writers trying to be closer to the lively English language. Among the words attracting our attention are the following:

“hick country, talkies, booze, chaperones, bimbos, hoods, to tie the knot, non-quit-legit, lassie, dancehall” etc. It’s not so easy sometimes to get the concrete meaning of the words when reading. This terminology adds the text quite a specific shade.

Giving a general definition of the extract under the study we should underline that the text is told in the 1st person narrative and the author addresses to the reader straight-forwardly through his character: “(you always know them, friend; they might as well be wearing signs)…”, as was mentioned above.

The narration is interlaced with the descriptive passages of the author and breezy dialogues of the personages. The narration is broken by no digression of any kind as the content rejects inane characteristics and leads to the realities of modern life.

The prevailing mood of the extract is rather optimistic and sometimes even cheerful.

Among the stylistic devices used by the author we should mention the cases of simile: “kept sending up rye as smooth as a varnished plank”, “smelled like a whole bottle of Wildroot Creme Oil and he had the flat, oddly shiny eyes that some deep-sea fish have” which demonstrate the character’s fantasy in creating associations and deepen our knowledge of the situations described.

The parallel construction together with the humorous effect gives great gratification to the reader: “The stars were out, soft and flickering. The hoods were out, too, but they didn’t look soft, and the only flickering were their cigarettes.” Here we see King’s dexterous choice of words.

We have here the sentences with the missing elements and shortened words, especially in the dialogues:

“Want to talk to you outside”, “My sis is tying the knot….”, etc., making the speeches of the heroes plausible and up-to-date, if I may say so.

Some statements sounds as the author’s own regret: “That was when jazz was jazz, not noise.” And we can assume Stephen King was not only an artist of a word, but as well an artist of the sound.

All in all, the extract makes me have some inscrutable interest to the whole literary work and one day when I’ve got all my things done I hope I will find the book to satisfy my desire.

Stylistiс analysis "Drawing Back The Curtain" by Denis Healey

The text under the title "Drawing Back the Curtain" by Denis Healey begins with the description of Russia in the early years after the war. The author speaks about the changes in looks at the Soviet Union, about its generation which analyzed the nature of totalitarianism. Mr. Healey believes no power could destroy national traditions which were rooted in centuries of history. After Stalin's death the author says Soviet Communism carried the seeds of its own destruction, but it was no reason for laying beneath the surface.

The author shares his views saying he was fascinated by Russia being a schoolboy. Compared to their Western rivals Denis Healey admits that the great Soviet people seemed much superior, calling them film-makers of those days. The author says he was introduced with some examples of Russian Literature and Culture by his friend. But, he says, after the war his friend had disappeared, in all probability during the great purges. In the face of Mr. Healey it increased the bitter hostility for Soviet policies and made him feel animosity to the Soviet government which prevented the creation of genuine masterpieces in various cultural spheres.

The author goes on to describe his visits to Russia. The way he values the sightseeing deserves attention. He took the air in the Hermitage in Leningrad and the magnificent summer palace of Peter the Great overlooking the Gulf of Finland, its fountains sparkling in the autumn sun, its rococo buildings gleaming with white and gold.

As the say goes butter never spoils the porridge, so Mr. Healey found the Kremlin not as a grimly functional building where the Party housed. To his great surprise he found the heart of old Russia as the mediaeval splendour of its palaces and churches, scattered among copses of birch and lilac.

Mr. Healey continues to tell he got a kick out of personal contact with the sixth formers in Leningrad school. He also called some members of creative intelligentsia, such as Sakharov, with his strong opposition to using hydrogen bomb, Solzhenitsyn, exposing the life in a labour camp, Yevtushenko with his poem Babiy Yar - people of unbending spirit, which could give a headache to the authorities for all that was done against them.

It seemed too good to last, but it was a simple truth that the signs of cultural thaw were everywhere. Lots of theatres, circuses and music halls were at people's disposal. Anyone could visit them to their heart's content. Mr. Healey wasn't an exception to the rule. He swallowed them on the wing.

Later the author assumes that the atmosphere got better when he came in 1963. He learned much from these visits to Russia, restricted though they were, and was to learn more still from later visits. He was buried in thought how much changes could affect all the aspects of life, and how useful were short visits when made annually.

While reading the text we come across many stylistic devices used by the author to make his speech more emotional. Striking example of this are such sentences as:

"I had been fascinated by Russia...", "I was impressed by pre-war Soviet culture..." showing a tender attitude of Mr. Healey towards everything connected with our homeland.

Lots of metaphors are also used:

"The Russia of Tolstoy, Tchaikovsky and Herzen..." - this means Russia isn't a simple country, but motherland of many outstanding people.

"No power could destroy its national traditions...". The author proves it's impossible to clear out all the habits and traditions in people's minds, gathered for centuries day after day.

"...were giving headaches to the authorities..." - persons making some troubles to those ruling our country.

Mr. Healey uses the epithets to show the variety of his creativity and vividness of his language:

"errate illusions", "the bitter hostility", "remarkable purity", "grimly functional building", "hair-raising obscenity".

Examples of the contrast are present at the text not to concentrate on ordinary things and to feel the differences:

"as sad comedy rather than as tragedy with humour", "a handsome vigorous young prophet of a better future, rather than as the wrinkled cynic".

"Kompository Verdi" and "Socialist Realism" are inverted commas, proving an interest of the author to the Russian Language and understandable words playing perhaps an important role for international community.

Such stylistic device as hyperbola is also used in sentences: "like hurricane", "a library of sense - impressions".

It seems to me the main thing Mr. Healey wanted us to understand is that people have much in common and have many differences but each race is extraordinary.

4 дек. 2010 г.

Stylistic analysis "W.S." by Leslie Hartley

NB: набросок анализа

Leslie Poles Hartley, an English novelist and the son of a solicitor was educated at Oxford's College and for more than twenty years he was a fiction viewer for magazines. He wrote many novels and made a good contribution to English fiction. According to his novels films were casted. Hartley was a highly skilled narrator and we can see that in his literary work "W.S.".

The main character of the story - Walter Streeter - gets one after the other four postcards with messages from anonymous and starts thinking them over. At first he was glad that he didn't have to answer them as a writer should grudge time and energy for that. He even tore the first two postcards away. But later it became so important for him that he pondered over this and nothing else. He avoided making new acquaintances and had many difficulties with his work over new book. He tried to write but the words came haltingly, as though contending with an extra-strong barrier of self-criticism. 

The third postcard wasn't burnt, Walter kept it. And only here it struck him that the initials of the postcard sender and his were the same. An idea came to Walter that perhaps he was writing those letters to himself. There were many questions and no answers. From the fourth postcard Walter found out that the sender was coming nearer and is eager to meet Walter. 

We can feel sympathetic attitude of the author towards Walter. A wave of panic surged up in Walter. And we can guess here Walter Streeter was afraid of that meeting. He'd like to avoid it, because he understood from the last postcards that W.S. wasn't satisfied with his last literary work. W.S. was saying he almost lived in those novels but he didn't like them any more.

Who was that W.S.? Taking all the facts into consideration we can say there wasn't anyone except Walter. And he - Walter had a split personality. He couldn't find all the shortcomings of his novels ,so he thought someone another had to help him. And W.S. was invented. Certainly we should know that Walter Streeter didn't control himself completely, that's why he couldn't know about it.

Let's see what devices the author used. The first one which strikes the eye is anaphora. It's used very widely in order to improve emphasis on some facts:

  • "You have always been interested in Scotland, and that is one reason why I am interested in you."
  • "But the words came haltingly, as though contending with an extra-strong barrier of self-criticism. And as the days passed he became uncomfortably aware of self-division, as though someone had taken hold of his personality and was pullling it apart."
  • "I know you are interested in cathedrals. I'm sure this isn't sign of megalomania... I'm seeing a good many churches on my way south..."
  • "It was true that Walter Streeter was interested in cathedrals... And it was also true that he admired mere size and was inclined to under-value parish churches."
  • "And was it really a sign of megalomania? And who was W.S. anyhow?"
  • "They were Gilbert's, they were Maugham's, they were Shakespeare's ..."
  • "He tried to put the thought away from him; he tried to destroy the postcard as he had the others."

Besides we can meet such an epithet in the text:

  • "November fire - makes us be closer to the time everything happened"

Metaphor: "fruitful conflict" - makes us guess the words and the deeds following the conflict.

A beautiful antithesis as "perfection of ordinariness" doesn't let us calm to Walter's style.

The author uses simile with skill: "A woman, a little mouse-like creature, who had somehow taken a fancy to him!"

Stylistic analysis "Our Man in Havana" by Graham Green

G. Greene is a marvelous writer, who is famous for his shocking and serious novels, as they expose social conflicts as well as the psychology of the people which is influenced by the situation in the country. He is considered to be a innovator in the genre of the novel as he includes in his stories the elements that bring together the readers with the situation.

The extract from the novel “Our Man in Havana” presents the collision of wishes and possibilities of the father and the daughter. The plot centers round Mr. Wormold who makes both ends meet and is shocked by the daughter’s desire to have a horse, which demands much money and effort.

The conversation is presented through the dialogue with the author’s remarks that clear up the situation and create realistic background. Mr Wormold’s daughter, Milly, yearns for having her own horse and to make the readers realize that her desire is not a whim. The author resorts to parallel constructions through semicolons that underline obstinacy and resolution of Milly to have a horse: A saddle lay on her bed; a bridle and bit were hanging on the wall from the nails she had driven in; reins were draped between the light brackets; a whip was propped up on the dressing table.

A great number of names of harness also conveys the idea that Milly seriously decides to engage in riding. For the father it is difficult to deprive his daughter of her desire but he cannot afford the horse. However Milly becomes obstinate and self-willed and even doesn’t let the father express his opinions. He is always interrupted. It is shown through the unfinished sentences: Milly, I’m sorry…; Milly, dear, you know that if I could manage it…; you’ve got to promise…; I can’t possibly afford… .

Если вам нужен полный стилистический анализ напишите мне.

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Stylistiс analysis "The Forsyte Saga" by John Galsworthy

The extract under the title is taken from the trilogy “The Forsyte Saga” written by the English novelist and playwright, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1932 John Galsworthy. Galsworthy became known for his portrayal of the British upper middle class and for his social satire. His most famous work is THE FORSYTE SAGA (1906-1921), an English parallel to Thomas Mann's Buddenbrooks (1901). Galsworthy was a representative of the literary tradition, which has regarded the novel as an instrument of social debate. He believed that it was the duty of an artist to examine a problem, but not to provide a solution. Before starting his career as a writer, Galsworthy read widely the works of Kipling, Zola, Turgenev, Tolstoy, and Flaubert. 

The extract under the study begins with the description of the protagonist – Mr. Jolyon. He feels bad and stays at bed, hiding from the light. But when with lunch he gets the telegram from Irene saying that she comes back, he feels excited and is looking forward to seeing her as earlier as possible. In order to meet her, he leaves his room without somebody’s knowledge and intends to wait her in the coppice, but the heat outside forces him to sit under the oak tree and wait just there. He admires the beauty of the nature, the allure of summer and gradually becomes asleep. Later his faithful dog notices that its master has gone, fallen in the eternal sleep. 

While reading the extract some unusual items strike the eye. The first thing we should pay our attention at is the inner condition of the character. We see that in the beginning of the extract he is rather sick and weak, a hopeless old man: “He spent the morning languidly with the sun-blinds down…” 

After reading Irene’s telegram, however, he transforms so quickly and easily, as if never being ill: “Coming down! After all! Then she did exist – and he was not deserted. Coming down! A glow ran through his limbs; his cheeks and forehead felt hot. … Coming down! His heart beat fast, and then did not seem to beat at all.” 

New bright colors of inspiration and excitement start playing in his heart. His imagination draws clear and vivid pictures of Irene’s appearance in their place. Suddenly he feels as if much younger. He wishes he were much younger. How many things he could do then, how many mistakes he could avoid then… 

The second curious thing captivating our mind concerns the whole extract itself. I guess one can’t help noticing that the author informs us of the death while illustrating the beauty, the loveliness of the summer, of the nature, of everything around. In fact, death is a horrible and awful notion for most human beings. What we observe here – the author rejects this common idea and demonstrates the last way of the man in a fascinating, extraordinary manner, avoiding all unpleasant and sorrowful words. This can be the evidence of his pleasing and worthy life. To some extent this can as well prove his being good to others. 

In order to express those feelings of Mr. Jolyon, to demonstrate those views one never would have noticed Galsworthy makes use of the certain stylistic devices assisting him to convey gorgeousness of the situation. 

Let’s have a look at them. In the first instance, the neat epithets “burning afternoon” and “delicious surge of slumber” clearing how exasperating the heat was, bereaving his strength, and explaining to us the hero’s flaccidity and weariness are worth of our observing them. 

Besides, exquisite metaphors provide the extract with magnetism and magnificence: “a violet-grey figure passing over the daisies and dandelions and ‘soldiers’ on the lawn—the soldiers with their flowery crowns”, “And he was happy—happy as a sand-boy, whatever that might be.” 

The case of personification completely astonishes the reader: “A ray of sunlight struck through and lodged on his boot.” 

The doubled case of exciting reversed parallel construction, chiasmus, even rouses the reader’s sympathy to the personage: “They were excited—busy, as his heart was busy and excited. Drowsy, too, drowsy and drugged on honey and happiness; as his heart was drugged and drowsy.”  

The parallel construction underlines his sudden emotions and observations: “What a revel of bright minutes! What a hum of insects, and cooing of pigeons! It was the quintessence of a summer day. Lovely!” The pleasurable expectance makes him notice every little movement around. This is also proved by the repetition: “passing over the daisies and dandelions and ‘soldiers’”. 

The other repetition marks the fidelity of the animal to the master: “and that dog would lick her hand. That dog knew his master was fond of her; that dog was a good dog.” No wonder it was the one discovering Mr. Jolyon’s death. 

Once we come across the protagonist’s stream of consciousness: “Ah! that was why there was such a racket of bees!...” It continues the theme of adoration and observation. 

Not once reading the extract we come across the author’s exclamations: “Summer–summer–summer!” 

Perhaps Galsworthy exposes it deliberately as if revealing that in any other season the death wouldn’t be hidden in the glamour and beauty as in the summer. 

If to speak about the text itself, one should mention that it’s told in the 3rd person narrative. The narration is richly interlaced with descriptive passages. The prevailing slant of the extract is very optimistic and emotional. The composition of the story is not complicated, though it’s not a fast moving one. The climax comes when the dog, Balthasar, notices the master doesn't budge any more. 

All in all, the protagonist enjoys all the sympathy of the reader. We feel it and we can’t help agreeing the author. The fragment made a great move in my heart and the author’s style and language impressed me extremely. I still see the image of the old man sitting under the oak tree and I believe he was a happy one.

Stylistiс analysis "Anthony in Blue Alsatia" by Eleanor Farjeon

“Anthony in Blue Alsatia” is an assemble of Eleanor Farjeon’s prose. Being a children’s writer she was able to create deligtful and charming stories about children’s life, their way of thinking, their problems and dreams. The story reveals the author’s great knowledge of a child’s inner world. She penetrates into the subtlest windings of the human heart.

The plot centers round the imaginary trip of a boy, Anthony, to Alsatia. It is understood that the main character is a small boy as he doesn’t interest world’s activities, he is greatly attached to nature and perseives it so sharply and his imaginary trip is characterized with the help of childish way of thinking.

At the beginning the story is a third person narration, but then in order to make a deep emotional appeal the author applies for stream of consciousness...

Anthony is an acute and shrewd boy who is able to distinguish between necessary and not meaningful information for him. This is understood through the case of simile: they slipped as through gauze. In order to underline that the boy has a great power of imagination and that he is impressed by the breakdown the author resorts to a long sentence with parallel constructions: it described the blue smoke rising from the heated axle, the engine-driver sprinting along the lines like madman, soldiers… .

Если вам нужен полный стилистический анализ этого произведения напишите мне.

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Анализ "The Lost Phoebe" by Theodore Dreiser

"The Lost Phoebe" is one of the short stories of Theodore Dreiser, who is famous as the writer-realist. The plot of the text centers around Henry Reifsneider, whose wife dies. In due course the lonely man becomes mad and starts to search for his wife. This search brings him to the death. The subject matter of the story is the spiritual loneliness of a person. Here we deal with the man-against-himself (internal) conflict. That is between the wish to find his wife and the impossibility to do this.

It should be noted the story begins with the exposition. Dreiser plunges the reader into the sever reality with decrepit houses and deaths. He gives detailed description of the house in which Henry and his wife live. The house was old and mildewy … high and wide and solid built, but faded looking, and with a musty odor. There are also references to the cherry wood. Maybe that is a case of allusion which hints at Chekhov's "The cherry orchard", where the cherry orchard is something valuable that comes to desolation. The creaky wooden loom like a dusty bony skeleton, a worm-eaten clothes press, broken-down furniture were also a part of the house.

In the exposition we also get some information about the members of Henry's family. It appears to me the complication is: "A certain combination of furniture … gave him an exact representation of Phoebe … Could it be she - or her ghost?" This rhetorical question and doubt are the beginning of the madness. The climax is left in the sentence: "He had been expecting and dreaming of his hour all these years … Of a sudden there came to him … the full charm of her girlish figure". The denouement is: "Oh, Phoebe! Don't leave me!"

It should be noted the name "Phoebe" means moon, the image of which becomes the leitmotif of the story.

At night a person usually stays alone and the moon gives dim light which creates favorable atmosphere for imagination. The use of colors "green" and "silver" is also likely to be symbolic: "Braches ornamented with green lichens greenish-whit, silvery effect in moonlight, Green County, silver disk", etc. Green is the color of hope, that is a hope to find the spiritual partner. Silver is the color of secret, magic.

As for the relationship, old Henry and Phoebe Ann were attached to each other. The following sentences are the evidence of this fact: "The great world sounds widely, but it has no call for them". "Old Henry and his wife Phoebe were as fond of each other as it is possible for two old people, who have nothing else in this life to be fond of." "If she wanted a pail of water, it was a grumbling pleasure for him to get it; and if she did rise first to build the fires, he saw that the wood was cut and placed within easy reach. They divided this simple world nicely between them."

They had nothing, but each other; there was mutual understanding, sympathy, and love between them. So they needed no one else. That's why the lost Phoebe becomes an ordeal for Henry. His neighbors wished to help, but they couldn't provide him with deep understanding, spiritual support, that's why he rejected their help, started to become mentally ill. But this process is long, it takes many years.

At first Henry sees the image of a middle-aged woman. That means his consciousness doesn't loose touches with reality. But his mind degrades and he becomes totally mad. He goes to his own world where he meets young Phoebe, attracting him.
So the idea is - the impossibility to find a spiritually close person leads to the loss of sense of life.

Анализ "Crooked House" by Agatha Christie

Agatha Christie is considered to be the queen of detective stories. Unlike all other detective stories her ones are called "intuitive", as the exposure of murder is revealed through psychological perspicacity of the main heroes. The main accent is made not on the investigation of evidences and arguments, but on the observation of behaviour of the main heroes, the content and structure of their dialogues. Everything in her stories is adjusted, the details are meaningful, the scenes from family life are trustworthy and expressive.

"The Crooked House" is an assemble of her prose. As the extract under study is the beginning of the story, it is a piece of description which can be considered as an exposition that introduces to the readers the main characters and their relationship.

The plot of the extract centers round the close friendship between the soldier Charles and the worker of the Foreign Office Departments Sophia. They spent together their free time and amused themselves. Their acquaintance was broken up by the order that Charles should go to the East, and in spite of this during two years they had been writing letters to each other.

The main theme of this extract may be identified as the process of development of relationship of the young people in the postwar period. On having read this extract the readers can grasp the idea that the author's message sounds like this – the feelings between young people should be tested by time and hardships, as marriage is a serious step in anybody's life. It can't be decided at once...

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Анализ "The Story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin

The story of an hour is a dramatic destiny of Mrs. Mallard. The title of the story speaks for itself. The story begins with introduction of main characters to the reader and with description of key events. Mrs. Mallard was afflicted with a heart trouble and her sister Josephine, her husband's friend Richard did their best to break to Mrs. Mallard as gently as possible the news of her husband's death. 

The first passage appears to be exposition, 'cause it contains a short presentation of time, place and characters of the story. Besides, from the very beginning the absence of Mrs. Mallard's name draws our attention. 

Further, the author describes Mrs. Mallard's state, how she accepted the news. He writes: "She didn't hear the story as many women have heard the same, with a paralyzed inability to accept its significance". So this makes us think that she didn't accept her husband's death as a fact, but realized its significance for her, perhaps she imagined her further life without her husband, she started thinking of the way her life would change. 

"There stood, facing the open window..." There's a slight hint in this sentence, that those changes will be closely connected with the improvement of her life and "the open window" the description of awakened nature in spring suggest it. 

Here we should admit the beauty of the language the author uses. "The delicious breath of rain... There were patches of blue sky..." The epithet and metaphor are employed for the expressiveness while describing nature. 

The decisive moment comes when ... whispered word escaped her slightly parted lips. She said it over and over under her breath: "Free, free, free!" It's the climax of the story. The metaphor "escape" reveals Mrs. Mallard's state. She was unconscious of her dream to be free. Every inch of her body wished that freedom and now she realized it. She was even glad that her husband died. 

But the oxymoron "a monstrous joy" suggests that her reaction was abnormal. She was unhappy in her family life. Her husband "never looked save with love upon her. And she saw beyond that bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely...she would live for herself..." 

The antithesis in the sentence "And yet she had loved him - sometimes. Often she had not." makes us arrive at a definite conclusion that all her love towards her husband was just an illusion. But still in spite of all this she shouldn't react in this way, it wasn't correct. She was too joyful. The metaphor "she was drinking in a very elixir of life through that open window", the climax "spring days and summer days and all sorts of days"; the epithet "feverish triumph in her eyes" are employed to emphasize her state and unnatural behaviour. 

The denouement isn't less unexpected than Mrs. Mallard's reaction. The crucial moment came when Mr. Mallard, which was said to be dead, safe and sound opened the front door. Mrs. Mallard was shocked and died of heart disease. The doctors said that it was joy that killed her. But it wasn't joy, it was despair. All her dreams about free life were broken by her husband and she couldn't live with him any more. She hoped that she had got rid of him, that the destiny made her a present and all her dull life was very far. And when her husband ruined all this she couldn't forgive him. For just an hour she was born again, lived in the world of her dreams and died. She wanted freedom and reached it, but was dead.  
A number of messages are conveyed in this story. A human being is born to be free, but he couldn't just rely on destiny and wait for freedom, he must fight for it and then he'll deserve that freedom. 

It's a sin to be glad for somebody's death, and one will be punished for it. It is quite difficult to forgive a man, but one should do his best to forgive and give a man another chance.

2 дек. 2010 г.

Анализ "To Sir, With Love" by E. R. Braithwaite

Dr. Edward Ricardo Braithwaite is internationally known author of the bestseller "To Sir, With Love" based on the author’s experiences as a teacher in a tough section of London. The best seller book was later made into a popular movie starring Sidney Poiter and whose title song was sung by the 1960s pop star, Lulu. Today, the book is still popular with a new reprint edition along with a release of the movie on DVD. 

In his work Braithwaite reflects on the dynamics taking place in classrooms and the important role teachers play in the development of students. His early work could be characterized as one of the first reflective memoirs on teaching to receive international attention. This early work is still considered one of the best. Although Dr. Braithwaite has published many other novels and books, "To Sir, With Love" remains to be currently cited as containing important tenets relevant to today’s youth and our educational institutions. 

Besides, the book covers much more detail than the movie. It tells of the hardships faced by the author, a well educated black man in post-war Britain, and how he was forced to become a teacher at a run-down school at London’s East End. Most of his students were ruffians off the streets, and the story of how he gradually overcame them with his love and also earned their respect with his knowledge, makes for riveting reading. 

The problem addressed in the story is acute nowadays. It is children’s misbehaviour, their unwillingness to study. It examines the growth of the relationship between student and teacher through personal understanding of each other, which is the inspirational foundation of their education. The story reflects the author's preoccupation with the moral self. 

So, the controlling idea of the story under analysis is the following – one cannot lead children using just love or strength, one should apply all his talents and skills to make children respond and be interested. That needs much patience and strong will. 

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Анализ "Astronomer's Wife" by Kay Boyle

The text under consideration is called "Astronomer's Wife" written by Kay Boyle. Three characters are involved in the story: the astronomer, his wife, and the plumber.

At the very beginning of the story we got acquainted with the married couple, the astronomer and his wife. The whole story is connected with the overflow that happened in their house. And we should note the overflow is symbolic here - how on we'll prove this idea. So the author in his work penetrates deeply into the psychology of his heroes and gives us their accurate characterization.

We come to conclusion that the astronomer was a person of a romantic mind and belonged to the heavens. As the author writes: "he was a man of other things, a dreamer. At time he lay still for hours upon roof behind the telescope". We feel that the atmosphere between the husband and the wife isn't warm, there's no mutual understanding between them.

To emphasize this idea the author uses the epithet that describes exact relations between them: the impenetrable silence of his brow. In fact, his wife was unable to understand him, and perhaps she had no desire to penetrate into his thoughts. Here we should give an example of another epithet that arrests the reader's attention: the mystery and silence of her husband's mind lay like a chiding finger on her lips. The sentence proves the astronomer's dominance. Mrs. Ames was in awe of her husband, and that's why she was so passive. As for astronomer, he didn't treat her on equal terms "that man might be each time the new arching wave, and woman the undertow that sucked him back, were things she had been told by his silence were so".

This metaphor shows that Mr. Ames considered his wife inferior, but at the same time he needed her as a servant and she would be absent from him all the day in being clean, busy, kind. Mrs. Ames in comparison with her husband was a person of practical mind. She was in charge of household chores.

Moreover, she did the things the man is usually in charge of and it was she who received the plumber. And Mrs. Ames was rather weak, oppressed, sick and tired. "Her eyes were gray, for the light had been extinguished in them". Speaking about her, the author emphasizes such characteristic feature of hers as softness. For example, the author resorts to repetition (anadiplosis). "She said softly, softly down the flight of stairs" similar and alliteration "speaking soft as a willow weeping".

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Анализ "Snow" by Ann Beattie

The story under the title “Snow” was written by an American short story writer and novelist – Ann Beattie. Born on September 8, 1947 she has received an award for excellence from the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters and a PEN/Bernard Malamud Award for excellence in the short story form. Her work has been compared to Alice Adams, J.D. Salinger, John Cheever, and John Updike. She holds an undergraduate degree from American University and a masters degree from the University of Connecticut. 

Born in Washington, D.C., Beattie grew up in Chevy Chase, Maryland. She gained attention in the early 1970s with short stories published in The Western Humanities Review, Ninth Letter, the Atlantic Monthly, and The New Yorker. Critics have praised her writing for its keen observations and dry, matter-of-fact irony which chronicle disillusionments of the upper-middle-class generation that grew up in the 1960s. 

In 1976, she published her first book of short stories, Distortions, and her first novel, Chilly Scenes of Winter, later made into a film. She has taught at Harvard College and the University of Connecticut and presently teaches at the University of Virginia, where she is the Edgar Allan Poe Chair of the Department of English and Creative Writing. 

The story under the study is written in the form of a letter. It depicts the things happened with a couple, having had a rest in the country during a winter time. The narrator revizes every little unimportant thing happened at the place they stayed with her own estimation and value, so that everything acquires new meaning and interpretation. Though there is no mentioning names or protagonists, we realize the narrator is female writing to her lover. The author’s prompts prove this, we can easily notice it in the metaphor “like a crazy king of snow”. 

Reading the story we observe the pair enjoyed their time together, but something must have occurred and for the time being they are apart. No inclinations about how it came to be, just a letter with informative facts and recollections. 

Besides, the narrator underlines that the addressee remembered everything in his own way, not paying attention at such significant details as snow and some others, as the narrator did. In general, there is a multiple apply of the word snow in the novel: the day of the big snow, knee-deep in snow, newly fallen snow, field of snow. 

Snow plays a symbolic role of love between the two. There was snow and there was love. At the moment it’s not a time for snow and accordingly love is absent in the hearts of the two. Though this letter may be the result of a hope calling for love, an approval that one of the two hearts still beats with passion and belief. Perhaps she still loves and wants to replay those days again. 

Giving a general definition of the text under the study we should note it is written in the 1st person narrative. The narration is interlaces with descriptive passages. It comes as no surprise that there are no dialogues at all, as the letter can’t include them. The narration is broken by lyrical digressions which come like stream of consciousness. The prevailing mood of the story is quite sentimental, as it carries the memories of the loving person. 

In expressing the narrator’s thoughts the author used metaphor in the following sentences, making the language of lover more sentimental and revealing her emotional attitude: 

“In the kitchen, a pattern of white-gold trellises supported purple grapes as big and round as Ping-Pong balls.”, “…you, in white towel turban, like a crazy king of snow”. 

Among the other stylistic devices we should also mark the case of asyndeton: “the child who happened to be standing on the right corner when the door of the ice-cream truck came open and hundreds of Popsicles crashed out; the man standing on the beach, sand sparkling in the sun, one bit glinting more than the rest, stooping to find a diamond ring.” Reading this sentence we observe the narrator conveying an individual perception of the things described. 

The case of anaphora as if reflects the narrator’s warm feelings of the past, enhancing the expressiveness of the text: “You remember it differently. You remember that the cold settled in stages…” 

All in all, the story is marked with pessimism, perhaps even giving us the constant reason to hope. It is a remarkable insight into human nature still full of secrets and mysticism.

Анализ "Never" by Herbert Bates

The story under the title “NEVER” was written by English writer Herbert Ernest Bates (May 16, 1905 – January 29, 1974). Described by Graham Greene as Britain's successor to Chekhov, H.E. Bates was a prolific and popular writer whose work ranges from the hit 1950s comic novel The Darling Buds of May to government-commissioned war fiction such as Fair Stood The Wind for France.

Bates's novels and short stories have been translated into 16 languages. Many of his stories are set in the rural Midlands of England, and the idyllic way of life he portrayed there included happy portraits of country characters and their simple ways.
The story under the study begins with the description of a girl – Nelly – who got completely tired of those monotonous gray days in her house, those gray days returning every morning. Once she made her mind to leave the parents’ house but failed, because of her slowness. Going back home she, however, told herself that some day she would leave anyway.

As I see it, the controlling idea of the story is the following – what seems to one stability and calmness in the house turns out to be a burden and suppression to the other.
Reading the novel we notice that the protagonist really hates everybody, it’s seen in her bearing as well as in her words: “I hate everyone. I’ve changed until I hardly know myself.”

No new event happened in her boring life. Every day the same things, the same playing piano, the same cards, even the same phrase of her father: “I never hand a decent hand, I thought the ace of trumps had gone! It’s too bad!!” We can easily take it for granted that such a life can drive to despair any person, even a patient one.

I can assume her awful problem was that she didn’t attempt to alter the situation around her. It was just her dream. The young hot blood in her required some adventures, new emotions and novelty. But she refused to make steps into unexplored future, fearing uncertainty. She merely dreamt of it, dreamt of leaving the house into new life.

I can also suggest it took her quite a long time to make a decision. Anyway, the future attracted and scared her at once. It was her inner conflict. On the one hand, her wild desire to be off the house, and on the other hand – the cold fear of indefinite future.

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Анализ "The Fun They Had" by Isaac Asimov

The story under the title "The Fun They Had" was written by a highly prolific American writer, one of the three grand masters of science fiction - Isaac Asimov. The story begins with the description of two kids who found a real book. 

It should be noted that all the events of the story take place in the future, in the year 2155, that's why a mere book from the past seems quite an interesting object for exploration. And Tommy (13) with Margie (11) read the book, thinking of those who used it many centuries ago. 

Reading the story we come across the problem, tackled by the author. It is a low knowledge level of children, their uneagerness to study. To prove it we should mention the fact when the County Inspector slowed up Margie's mechanical teacher to an average ten-year level. The girl was 11, but couldn't or didn't want to cover her own age level, "she had been doing worse and worse". And how strong was her hatred towards school! She hoped her teacher wouldn't be back, that "large and black and ugly" teacher! "The part she hated most was the slot where she had to put homework and test papers." - This sentence indicates at her being a usual girl with a usual nature, because it is the thing commonly disliked at schools. 

So the idea of the story slowly comes out of all this - no matter how clever the mechanical teacher can be, machine can't replace human being and give that love and tenderness to kids. 

To prove the idea, we should mention here the fact that when Margie went home after reading the book, her thoughts were about "the old schools they had when her grandfather's grandfather was a little boy". "Margie was thinking about how the kids must have loved it in the old days. She was thinking about the fun they had." Even the title of the story, which underlines the idea, repeated here to intensify its message.

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Анализ "The Strength of God" by Sherwood Anderson

The story for analysis is called "The Strength of God" written by Sherwood Anderson. The plot centers around a minister, in the soul of whom there is a struggle between his desires and his duty.

So the conflict comes into existence: that is the discrepancy between natural desires and religious demands, strict morality.
The main hero is 40 years old Curtis Hartman. He is a pastor of the Presbyterian Church of Winesburg. He has been in this position for ten years. The minister is a tall man with brown beard.

As for his character, he seems to be silent and reticent, quiet and unpretentious. But that isn't his nature. We should pay our attention to the word choice: "To preach ... was always a hardship for him", so he leads a religious existence but that is just his duty, that's why he suffers prolonged periods of remorse".

He isn't enthusiastic about his job. He is quiet, humble under the pressure of the strict religious rules, but he is eager for the flame of spirit to burn "in him", he dreams of a day when a strong sweet current of power would come and ruin his boring routine, meaningless existence, current which will give him energy and desire to act. So we can say his religious convictions aren't sincere, they are just imposed by the Church and society.

For example: "Reverend Hartman's experience with women had been somewhat limited." It is not his personal desire to avoid women in order to devote himself to the God, that is a rule set by the Presbyterian Church.

The following sentence also proves that: "He did not want to think of other women." His attempt to persuade himself in it attracts the reader's attention. That is the implication. So, he thinks of them as lust can't be controlled, but he doesn't want to do that, for the carnal desire is considered a sin.


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Анализ "Nobody Knows" by Sherwood Anderson

The story under the title "Nobody Knows" was written by an outstanding American writer Sherwood Anderson, well-known for using implication, the style of sober realism and depicting strange characters in his works, the most famous from which is his book "Winesburg, Ohio". 

The main character of the story is George Willard, a man who tries to court a young lady - Louise Trunnion. The whole story depicts a short period of time, so the author lets us trace all the events. 

From the very beginning we see that George wasn't in love with Louise, though it may seem so. He wanted to visit her, but doubted: "all day he had been trying to make up his mind to go through with the adventure". A number of nouns and adjectives like "in the darkness", "pitch dark" convey his state of being nervous, and intensify his doubts, preparing the reader for further events. "There had been no decision", "He didn't dare think" - those short sentences show his fear and confidence, and the author proves it: "In his mind there was a fear". Even when he met her, his fear didn't leave him. 

The sentence given by the author makes everything clear: "The whispered tales concerning her that had gone about town gave him confidence". She was a mere prostitute and George wanted nothing but her: "He became wholly the male, bold and aggressive". Love was out of the question: "In his heart there was no sympathy for her". 

Realizing all this we can formulate the problem tackled by the author - in their wishes people are contemptible, though desiring to stay clear face to face. To prove it we can mention the fact that George Willard thought over his adventure the whole day, but on his way to Louise he tried to avoid all people passing him in the street. 

So, summing up all we know about Sherwood Anderson and his characters we can say that the controlling idea of the story conveyed by the author sounds like this - people want to get rid of their loneliness, want to find support and warmth in others, but the discrepancy between their dreams and reality is too large. 

If to speak about the story, it's told in the 3rd person narrative and interlaced with descriptive passages. The prevailing mood of the story is rather pessimistic, as we for example come across the town drunkard lying asleep on the ground, and there's nothing bright in the life of town inhabitants. 

The composition of the story isn't complicated. The introduction lets us enter in the course of events and acquaints us with the character. The development of the plot is seen in the meeting of George with Louise. And the culminating point begins with the sentence "A flood of words burst from George Willard". In the denouement the pair walks along narrow bride sidewalks, as if nothing has happened. 

It would be wise to mention here that even the title of the story helps us to draw the conflict between a man and society - nobody knows what's going on in my inner world, nobody cares what I am in this world. As for me, I find the story quite deep and thought-provoking, making us reestimate our values in this life.

1 дек. 2010 г.

Анализ "Loneliness" by Sherwood Anderson

The story under the title "Loneliness" written by Sherwood Anderson begins with the description of the place where the main character Enoch Robinson lived. Old citizens remembered him as a quiet, smiling youth inclined to silence. When he was 21 he came to New York City, but had terrific problems. He wanted to talk to people, but didn't know how.

So, the plot of the story centers round a man, who didn't communicate with people, because of his inconfidence. As a result, he started inventing his own people in his own room and talking to them. Naturally that didn't last for long, later he wished "to touch actual flesh and bone people". However every conversation finished the same way - he told his companion to leave him forever, thus again and again getting lonely.

So, the problem tackled by the author is the following - man possesses the qualities, which the god gave him, and despite all reasonable and unreasonable efforts - he wouldn't see what is not written in his fate.

Lots of facts prove that: "In his own mind he planned to go to Paris and to finish his art education among the masters there, but that never turned out.", "… he was always a child and that was a handicap to his worldly development", "He never grew up and of course he couldn't understand people and he couldn't make people understand him.", "The child in him kept bumping …"

In those sentences we see the arguments of his always being the same, the way god created him. All this drives us to the idea, conveyed by the author, sounding like this - man can't live in isolation, if he can, that will bring him nowhere.

Enoch was a dynamic character. And despite that, all stumbling blocks and life handicaps didn't manage him to alter something in his life to become different himself. Lack of intercourse made him invent his own people. What counts here is the fact that he has come to the place where he started. Surely a lot changed in his inner world, but it didn't affect the result. He got lonely. So, we can safely consider this idea true.


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