Интерпретация художественного текста (практикум). Учебное пособие
.pdf2.Do you sympathize with the main characters and why?
3.What could the main characters teach us?
4.Are the main characters strong or weak?
5.Are they major or minor?
Task 5. Study the style.
1)Find examples of metonymy in the story; identify its type.
2)Define the type of narration.
3)Study the quotes below to find out their stylistic means and value:
a)A voice echoed through the train: "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes' time. Please leave your luggage on the train, it will be taken to the school separately." Harry's stomach lurched with nerves and Ron, he saw, looked pale under his freckles. They crammed their pockets with the last of the sweets and joined the crowd thronging the corridor. The train slowed right down and finally stopped. People pushed their way toward the door and out on to a tiny, dark platform. Harry shivered in the cold night air. Then a lamp came bobbing over the heads of the students, and Harry heard a familiar voice: "Firs' years! Firs' years over here! All right there, Harry?" Hagrid's big hairy face beamed over the sea of heads. "C'mon, follow me - any more firs' years? Mind yer step, now! Firs' years follow me!"
b)Nobody spoke much. Neville, the boy who kept losing his toad, sniffed once or twice. "Ye' all get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a sec," Hagrid called over his shoulder, "jus' round this bend here." There was a loud "Oooooh!" The narrow path had opened suddenly onto the edge of a great black take. Perched atop a high mountain on the other side, its windows sparkling in the starry sky, was a vast castle with many turrets and towers. "No more'n four to a boat!" Hagrid called, pointing to a fleet of little boats sitting in the water by the shore.
c)"Potter, did she say?" The Harry Potter?" The last thing Harry saw before the hat dropped over his eyes was the hall full of people craning to get a good look at him. Next second he was looking at the black inside of the hat. He waited. Hmm," said a small voice in his ear. "Difficult. Very difficult. Plenty of courage, I
see. Not a bad mind either. There's talent, A my goodness, yes - and a nice thirst to
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prove yourself, now that's interesting.... So where shall I put you?" Harry gripped the edges of the stool and thought, Not Slytherin, not Slytherin. "Not Slytherin, eh?" said the small voice. "Are you sure? You could be great, you know, it's all here in your head, and Slytherin will help you on the way to greatness, no doubt about that - no? Well, if you're sure - better be GRYFFINDOR!"
Task 6. Make up the whole text analysis according to the given scheme and using the clichés from the appendix (see Appendices A and B).
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Список использованных источников
1.Ясакова, Ю.Б. Интерпретация художественного текста: Учебно-
методическое пособие для студентов V курса отделения английской филологии / Под ред. Мелиссы Грейс Леви. – Набережные Челны:
Лаборатория оперативной полиграфии филиала Казанского государственного университета в г. Набережные Челны, 2005. – 117 с.
2.Barth, J. A Raison de Coeur [Electronic resource]. – URL: https://ru.scribd.com/doc/170239238/John-Barth-Floating-Opera-1979.
3.Bio [Electronic resource]. – URL: http://www.biography.com/.
4.Biography of Kate Chopin by Neal Wyatt [Electronic resource]. – URL: http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/webtexts/hour/katebio.html.
5.Bradbury, R. There Will Come Soft Rains [Electronic resource]. –
URL: http://aroposh.wikispaces.com/file/view/There+will+come+soft+rains.doc.
6.Cisneros, S. Eleven (short story) [Electronic resource]. – 1991. – URL: http://my.ccsd.net/userdocs/documents/qP2lEuWcYaAQAtMW.pdf.
7.Famous Authors. Mario Puzo [Electronic resource]. – URL: http://www.famousauthors.org/mario-puzo.
8.Flickr. Photo Sharing [Electronic resource]. – URL: https://www.flickr.com/.
9.Hemingway, E. The Old Man at the Bridge [Electronic resource]. –
URL: http://biblioklept.org/2012/07/06/read-the-old-man-at-the-bridge-a-short-
story-by-ernest-hemingway/.
10.Jackson, Sh. Charles [Electronic resource]. – URL: https://loashared.s3.amazonaws.com/static/pdf/Jackson_Charles.pdf.
11.Mario Puzo. The Godfather [Electronic resource]. – URL: http://www.pdf-archive.com/2013/10/14/the-godfather/.
12.O. Henry After Twenty Years [Electronic resource]. – URL: http://www.classicreader.com/book/1745/1/.
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13.Sandra Cisneros. Reading [Electronic resource]. – 8 October 1996. –
Lannan Foundation. – URL: https://vimeo.com/9245804.
14.Short Stories for Students / ed. S. Constantakis. – Michigan: Gale, Cengage Learning, 2006. – Volume 1. – 327 p.
15.Short Stories for Students / ed. S. Constantakis. – Michigan: Gale, Cengage Learning, 2009. – Volume 27. – 342 p.
16.Welcome to J.K. Rowling’s Website [Electronic resource]. – URL: http://www.jkrowling.com/.
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Appendix A
(obligatory)
Plan of text interpretation
I. Author:
Who is the author of the story? What do you know about his creative activity? II. Plot:
Summarize the text with the utmost brevity.
III. Setting:
a)time and place;
b)time span.
Where is the scene laid? When does the action take place? Are there any placenames and time-indicators? Is the setting presented explicitly or implicitly? What time span does the story cover?
IV. Form of narration:
a)narrative methods: narration, description, dialogue;
b)a first / third person narrative;
c)narrator.
Is the story a combination of the author’s narration and the character’s dialogue; the description and represented speech? Can the narrator be identified with the author?
V. Plot structure:
a)the basic narrative pattern;
b)components of plot structure (exposition, complication, climax, denouement).
What is the basic narrative pattern? Does each incident grow logically out of the preceding incident and lead naturally to the next? Are the elements of the plotstructure ordered chronologically? What is the role of exposition? What events lead to the climax? Where is the climax?
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VI. Conflict:
a)multiple / local (single);
b)external / internal;
c)emotional / physical / moral / intellectual, etc. What is the conflict of the story?
VII. Characters:
a)major / minor;
b)character presentation: direct / indirect.
Who is the major / minor character? Are the characters round or flat? What
means does the author use the reveal the character?
VIII. Style:
a)the language: bookish / neutral / spoken;
b)the syntax of the text: length of the sentences, the underlying stylistic
devices.
What can you say about the language of the story? What makes the author use this or that style? What stylistic devices does the author use to make the plot quick / slow moving, lyrical thought provoking, emotional, nervous? What can you say about the syntax of the text?
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Appendix B
(obligatory)
Clichés to use
-The story / article deals with / is concerned with / describes / examines
/reveals / exposes / dwells on / explains / addresses / discusses / presents / covers / outlines / states / offers / considers / looks into / treats.
-The story is set in …
-The scene is laid in …
-The story is written in a form of … (the author’s recollections, the
dialogue, narration, autobiography).
-The action takes place in …
-As the story unfolds …
-The plot of the story centres round …
-The basic plot of the story develops slowly towards a violently dramatic incident and an ironical conclusion.
-The plot of the story is complicated (intricate, tangled up, trite, commonplace, simple).
-The plot of the story baffles the reader.
-The gist/core of the problem raised in the story is …
-The subject taken up in the story/article is …
-The issues/problems of … are the concern of this article.
-This problem is the subject of the article.
-The problems addressed in the article are acute/urgent/vital/burning.
-The main idea/message of the story is …
-… is the main thread of the story.
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-The idea is conveyed through the presentation of … (the dialogue of
…).
-The moral of the story is …
-The central conflict of the story is …
-With the beginning of Chapter … the novel gains momentum and the
mood changes.
-The story has a deep emotional/intellectual appeal.
-The content is an objective/subjective reflection of reality.
-The story deals with the burning problems of life: politics, economics, education, marriage, and so on.
-The story is a broad reflector of the aims, confusions, concerns, ideas,
and attitudes of …
-This story is intended to provoke thought.
-This story gives food for thought.
-This story is realistic in style, cordial in comedy, sympathetic in mood.
-The story is full of problems, but they emerge as part of life which is so energetically, vividly, frankly offered for our inspection.
-The story provokes contradictory assessments.
-The story is marked with pessimism/optimism.
-The story is characterized by gripping narrative and deep emotional
impact.
-The story is permeated with irony/lofty ideas/strong feelings.
-The story is a remarkable insight into human character.
-The story is an in-depth study of human nature.
-The story reveals human virtues and vices.
-This story reflects the author’s preoccupation with the moral self.
-The story shows the author’s concern with the moral principles.
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-The story has a(n) interesting / entertaining / exciting / gripping / amusing / enjoyable / funny / witty / banal / skillfully developed / slow-moving / fast-moving plot.
-The charm of the story lies in a realistic portrayal of the characters and
a truthful description of …
-This story is a delight to read, even though it is made of material which is so disgusting and depressing.
-Whatever is sick, sad and ugly in modern urban life is depicted in the story; its rare moments of beauty too.
-The author reveals the nature of his characters through (actions, details,
dialogues, etc.)…
-The author gives an account of …
-The author conveys his emotions to the reader using …
-The author brings to the reader’s notice …
-The author gives a comprehensive and vivid picture of …
-The author remains concentrated on these problems throughout the
story.
-In this story the author voices dissatisfaction with …
-The author shows (presents) complex / complicated / simple / imaginary
/realistic / (un)convincing / superficial / flat / round / well (badly) portrayed characters.
-The author seems to be the spokesman of the spirit of time.
-The author’s aim is to concentrate the reader’s attention on the inner
world of his characters.
-The author displays a mastery in rendering the subtleties and contradictions of life.
-The author is focused on human feelings and relationships, actions and
motives.
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-The author explores the complexity of human character / smb’s inner
motives.
-There is one trait always present in this author’s books, which singles
him out of commonplace writers.
-The author unfolds a theme in which stupidity, hypocrisy and ambition play their sorry parts.
-The author’s attention is focused on …
-The author portrays / depicts a man in close cooperation with society.
-In this story the author turns to the conflicts of contemporary life.
-The reader can easily understand the author’s own attitude towards his
characters.
-The reader grasps the idea that …
-… serves to convey to the reader the mood of the narrator / author.
-It is … that falls under the author’s observation.
-The author’s strong point lies in a vivid description of the beliefs, customs, manners, costumes, language of the epoch plus the energy and movement which his story displays.
-The author’s sympathy lies with …
-The author’s real central figure seems to be …
-The author’s irony exposes the vices of this society: hypocrisy, moneyworship, and moral degradation. That is why one can hardly find any positive character in the novel.
-The author is known for a deep psychological analysis of his heroes and a very thoughtful attitude to the burning political and social problems of the day.
-The author starts a new tradition of bringing the language of literature
(in the author’s speech, no less than in that of the personages) close to the language of real life. He does away with the elaborate syntax of the 19th century prose and cultivates somewhat abrupt sentences, true to the rhythm and the intonation of the
spoken language and full of low colloquialisms and even slang.
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