Family Ties that bind The Outlaws Selma Lagerlof
Family Ties that bind
The Outlaws • Selma Lagerlof (1858 -1940) • First woman to win Nobel Prize for Literature • Grew up in southern Sweden • Contemporaries considered her writing subject matter and style unusual • Depicted life of peasants in rural Sweden • Work characterized by love of Swedish legends and folktales, her personal Christian morality, her psychological insight, and her interest in literary style • Conflict between ancient rural traditions & modern religion inspired tales such as “The Outlaws”
Literary Terms - Style • Style - literary element that describes the ways that the author uses words — the author's word choice, sentence structure, figurative language, and sentence arrangement all work together to establish mood, images, and meaning in the text. Style describes how the author describes events, objects, and ideas. (from http: //www. readwritethink. org/files/ resources/lesson_images/lesson 209/definition_style. pdf) • One easy way to understand literary style is to think about fashion styles. Clothes can be formal and dressy, informal and casual, preppy, athletic, and so forth. Literary style is like the clothes that a text puts on. By analogy, the information underneath is like the person's body, and the specific words, structures, and arrangements that are used are like the clothes. Just as we can dress one person in several different fashions, we can dress a single message in several different literary styles:
One example of style • Original • "No sich uh thing!" Tea Cake retorted. (Zora Neale Hurston. Their Eyes Were Watching God. Urbana: U of Illinois P, 1978, p. 205. ) • Informal • "Nothing like that ever happened, " Tea Cake replied. • Formal • "With great fortune, that happenstance did not become a reality, " Tea Cake stated. • Journalistic, after Ernest Hemingway • "It did not happen, " Tea Cake said. • Archaic, after Nathaniel Hawthorne • "Verily, it was a circumstance, to be noted, that appeared not to so much have been a reality as to have evolved as a thing that had not yet come to be, " Tea Cake impelled.
Style • Just like you are capable of saying things in different ways, authors will write things in different ways. • The language may change throughout time, but a writer/speaker may just be saying the same thing in a different way. • Here are some ways to identify and study an author’s style • http: //teachers. lakesideschool. org/us/english/Erik. Christensen /WRITING%20 STRATEGIES/Literary. Styles. htm
Other terms • Foreshadowing (this one will continue to pop up throughout literature) • Tone – Specific atmosphere or mood of a work, determined by the writer’s attitude toward the subject and created by literary techniques such as use of setting and language. (STYLE plays a major role in setting tone as well). • Situational Irony – Also known as dramatic irony. A character, seeing only appearances, speaks or acts in ignorance of the reality of which the audience is aware. Important in comedy, tragedy, and in stories of any length. In other words, you know something that the character does not know!
The Outlaws • Christian morality immediately present • Peasant (Berg) murders a monk, fleeing to the forest where he meets a fisherman (Tord), who was accused of stealing • Is one crime more severe than the other? • How does society view each of these peasants differently? • Berg stays in the woods; Tord brings game to the town to exchange for items they need • How does Lagerlof establish tone? • Description of the setting/description of the characters • Possible empathy toward characters – Lagerlof appears to be sympathetic toward Berg and Tord • Contrast between man and nature/criminals and other peasants • “At first they were hunted like wild beasts. The peasants gathered as if for a chase of a bear or wolf. The wood was surrounded by men with bows and arrows. ” (p. 206)
The Outlaws • Not a lot of character development because it is a short story • Tord only 16 years old --- just a boy • Experience has made him older, stronger • Berg Rese --- ideal person (except for killing the monk) • Strong, tall, handsome, broad-shouldered, handsome • Shows changes to two individuals during time in woods • Tord admires/looks up to Berg • “He had never before seen anything so beautiful and so powerful. In his imagination he stood high as the forest, strong as the sea. He served him as a master and worshipped him as a god” (p. 207) • Berg despised Tord because he was a thief • Dynamic develops between characters
The Outlaws • Lagerlof’s Christian morality • “If Berg Rese had not murdered a holy man, the peasants would soon have ceased to pursue him and have left him in peace in the mountains. But they feared great disaster to the district, because he who had raised his hand against the servant of God was still unpunished. ” (p. 207) • Village peasants offered Tord riches and pardons to turn in Berg Rese, but he refused --- remained loyal • • Made sure to elude anyone that followed him to the mountains Berg tells Tord he’s foolish for not accepting their offers Tord tells Berg of his unwavering support/loyalty This caused Berg to pay him more attention
The Outlaws • Because he sleeps outside, Tord becomes deathly ill • Berg Rese tends to him and does all of the work • This makes Tord admire him even more • Berg does not appreciate the fact that a thief admires him • “He was both touched and provoked. ” (p. 209) • Lagerlof introduces legend/folktale • Tord’s father is a wrecker, his mother a witch • Perspective – the things his mother does is awful to some, but important to witches --- important lesson! • “Berg Rese found that he had here come upon a new way of regarding the world and things. ” (p. 209) • “Everyone has to do what he is destined to do. ” (p. 209) • Simile – “It’s like speaking of birds who do not fly, to talk of thieves who do not steal” (p. 209)
The Outlaws • Purpose of the description of the tarn? (p. 210) • Berg and Tord had come under nature’s rule as much as they relied on nature to survive --- they had become like animals • How does this reveal the author’s attitudes? set tone? • Were their “crimes” just a matter of survival if they’re just animals at their base? What does instinct have to do with living in the forest? being human? committing crimes? • More folktale/legend • The girl in the boat – she reappears in Tord’s dreams • Unn – Berg’s cousin and the reason he wanders through the forest • Monk insulted Unn’s father; Berg retaliates by killing the monk for Unn to preserve her name/reputation • “Your deed had been to honor. ” (p. 213)
The Outlaws • Different ideas of what is right and wrong • SYMBOLISM --- Christian morality (Berg) vs. fate/destiny (Tord) • “He was like a heathen, worse than a heathen; he never condemned what was wrong. He felt no responsibility. That which must be, was. He knew of God and Christ and the saints, but only by name, as one knows the gods of foreign lands. The ghosts of the rocks were his gods. His mother, wise in witchcraft, had taught him to believe in the spirits of the dead. ” (p. 213) • Tord, walking through the forest, is spooked by noises • God is telling him to turn in Berg to deliver vengeance for the murder of the monk (p. 215) • Tord tells God that he wishes to speak to Berg to beg him to ask forgiveness and turn himself in • Unn and the monk then appear --- Foreshadowing what will happen
The Outlaws • Tord and peasants plot to turn in Berg (p. 215) • Tord has finally reached his breaking point • “I killed the monk with a couple of knife-thrusts” (p. 216) • Berg had told Tord of the just God --- before he had been blind to divine justice and forgiveness • Tord becomes a murderer --- just cause to defend oneself? • “Say to Unn, who made Berg Rese a murderer, that he was killed by Tord the fisherman, whose father is a wrecker and whose mother is a witch, because he taught him that the foundation of the world is justice. ” (p. 218)
African literature • Adelaide Casely-Hayford (1868 -1959) • Grew up in educated, well-known literary family in Ghana • One of first Africans to write in English • Observant evaluator of the life around her • Focused on reaction of her people, with their own heritage, to British colonial rule • Found admirable customs among English & Africans, blending best of both
Mista Courifer • Set in Sierra Leone, which was also a British colony until 1961 • Pay attention to: • Theme – the main idea expressed or implied • Humor – expressions of amusement, incongruity, or absurdity • Irony – hidden meaning, especially the contrast between appearance and reality (both words and situations) • In this case verbal irony – when a character makes a comment with different meaning to a listening character or the audience (ie something gets lost in translation)
Mista Courifer • What is Dialect? • Differences in language based on geographical, cultural, or social background. The spoken version of a language always involves variations from the formal written standard. Although dialect is often associated with a lack of education, everyone speaks a dialect. • Literary Dialect - the presentation of dialect in literature (Literary dialect may include phonological, grammatical, and lexical features, as well as eye dialect. • Listen closely to this: • You’ll notice that Casely-Hayford utilizes dialect in Mista Courifer, including spelling words differently in order to accurately portray the dialect/accent of the speakers
Mista Courifer • Coffinmaker – He accepts the cultural changes taking place because he finds it more distinguished to behave like the British • He also feels this will help his business … he’s happy to embrace change and wants his son, Tomas, to do the same • Why? • Mista Courifer feels that it will set up Tomas for a successful future He wants the best for his son • Is Mista Courifer a static or dynamic character? Why? • Mista Courifer is static – he does not change based on the actions of other characters (mainly his son, Tomas)
Mista Courifer • Tomas • Works in government service • He does not embrace the English culture; he actually fights back against it and against his father’s good intentions for him after initially being reliable • He shows up late for work • He smokes at work • Why? • This is not the life he wants • This also represents factions of any society that push back against cultural impingement by a colonizing society
Mista Courifer • Is Tomas completely against English cultural ideals • Tomas even fights back against his own culture, symbolizing his embrace of certain English traditions working wife instead of one that cooks/cleans/stays at home • This demonstrates the mingling of culture as well as what will make Tomas happy • Where do we see IRONY in this story? • Mista Courifer only wants the best and an easy life for his son, Tomas, but Tomas fights back against it • Culture is being impinged upon, and there is certain pushback, but there is also an acceptance of certain parts (ie – dress, business practices, ideals of marriage) • The older Mista Courifer is quicker to embrace the changes than his son, Tomas
Marriage is a Private Affair • Chinua Achebe (1930 -2013) • Nigerian – one of the most famous African writers • Best known for Things Fall Apart, Arrow of God, No Longer at Ease and A Man of the People – Series of novels that depicts 75 years in the life of the Ibo people • Born into Ibo people, father converted to Christianity
Marriage is a Private Affair • Believed education key to the future well-being of the African people • Africans must know & value their heritage, understand their history, and possess a strong ethical code that condemns injustice & corruption • Stories depict the changing nature of Nigerian society, with conflicts between African tradition and modern European society • Especially true of “Marriage is a Private Affair” • Similar in the way “Mista Courifer” does the same
Marriage is a Private Affair • In what ways are the characters in Mista Courifer different from Marriage is a Private Affair? • Are the differences ironic? • Would you consider Okeke’s change at the end of the story a reversal? • Achebe sets a tone of opposition in the story, presenting a theme of old traditions vs. new ways of thinking • Another theme includes ideas about marriage • Which is better? Or is it neutral? • Do we have to accept old ways/traditions or should we always pursue new/better ways of thinking and acting? • What’s the moral to the story?
The Rain Came • Grace Ogot (1930 - ) • Kenyan – first African writer to be published in English & founding member of the Writer’s Association of Kenya • Used high-profile political life to fight poverty & sexual discrimination in Kenya and to improve education • Tales usually deal with life of the Luo people before the introduction of European ways
The Rain Came • What to watch for: • Function of IRONY in the story and how the story would be different without it • Third-person omniscient narrator – What does Ogot achieve by using this narrative perspective? • CHARACTERIZATION of the chief
The Fly • Katherine Mansfield (1888 -1923) • Used Chekhov as model for her writing • Immediately immersed reader in action of story • Reveals characters through multiple perspectives • Seemingly trivial details and actions • Interested in complexity of human personality • Deeds and actions reveal the private person rather than their spoken words • Objects become SYMBOLS
The Fly • Narrative perspective PSYCHOLOGICAL REALISM • Uses multiple perspectives (different characters) • Mr. Woodifield, the Boss • Symbols • • • Photograph – His son who died in WWI Whisky – What Mr. Woodifield used to do Pot of Jam – Distraction, unimportant Grave – Pain of loss; out of sight, out of mind Everything in the office represents the boss’s son Fly – represents the boss moving on, then coming back to the past; fragility of life; numbness of loss
The New Year’s Sacrifice • Lu Hsun (1881 -1936) • Considered founder of modern Chinese literature • Wrote to inspire social change • Incorporated aspects of foreign culture into Chinese literature • Supported Communist Party • This story addresses issues of women’s rights
The New Year’s Sacrifice • Literary Terms • Flashback – Break in the chronology of a story during which past events are related; vehicle for flashbacks may be a dream or the telling of a story • Satire – Ridiculing individuals or society for having lower standard of values, attitudes, and behavior • Irony is a major component of satire
The New Year’s Sacrifice • Why tell this story as a flashback? • Hsun shows Hsiang Lin’s Wife first as a woman with gray streaks in her hair, then as a completely gray-haired woman that does not speak • This makes readers question what happened that caused her hair to turn completely gray in such a short time • How can this story be considered satire? • The story can be viewed as a commentary on the way traditional Chinese views the role of women in society • She had little value as a person, yet could purchase her salvation • She was forced to marry another man after husband died because of the typhoid fever • Her son was taken away by wolves while shelling beans • Was her son actually taken by wolves or is this an allegory because her husband died? Is he more useful somewhere else than being raised by a single mother in a small Chinese village
The New Year’s Sacrifice • What is the function of irony, particularly related to the final paragraph? • The people of Luchen were going to receive “boundless good fortune” • Hsiang Lin’s Wife had a life full of misfortune • She was now calm because the New Year promised to turn her life around and the gods had accepted her sacrifice as evidenced by the celebration and fireworks outside • From what did Hsiang Lin’s Wife have to be forgiven so that a sacrifice had to be made? • Does she really need to be forgiven? Will anything truly change among the people of Luchen, their attitude toward Hsiang Lin’s Wife, or for Hsiang Lin’s Wife herself?
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