The Interlopers Literary Devices
Fermina Enge
In "The Interlopers," Saki employs several literary devices, includingirony, foreshadowing, and imagery. The situational irony is evident when thecharacters' expectations clash with reality, especially in the story'sconclusion. Foreshadowing hints at the impending disaster, while vivid imageryvividly describes the forest setting, enhancing the story's tension andatmosphere.
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"The Interlopers" takes place during a storm, and the ferocity of the stormreflects the ferocity of the feud between the two main characters, Ulrich andGeorg. When the weather is used like this, to reflect some aspect of the story,this is a literary device known as pathetic fallacy. At the beginning of thestory, the narrator describes a "wind-scourged winter night." Later hedescribes this same night as "this wild night," and we are told that the windis "whistling and skirling." The ferocity of this storm reflects the feudbetween Ulrich and Georg; they have, since they were boys, "thirsted for oneanother's blood."
The ferocity of the storm is also emphasized by describing the storm as ifit were a person. This is a literary device known as personification. Forexample, the storm emits a "fierce shriek" and later a "weary screeching." Thebranches of the tree are also personified, being described collectively as "themass of wood that held them down." By personifying the storm and the tree, thenarrator suggests that even nature itself is willfully hostile to these twomen. By personifying nature like this, and thus giving nature a will of itsown, the author makes these elements of nature all the more menacing.
There is also a significant simile in the story, when Ulrich says to Georg,"We have quarrelled like devils all our lives." This simile, comparing Georgand Ulrich to devils, emphasizes just how malicious and vindictive the feudbetween the two men has been. They have both behaved like a devil to the other,each wishing the other nothing but injury and misfortune.
The short story "The Interlopers" uses many basic literary devices. It setsup characterization, motive, allusion, all taking place in a symbolic setting.However, the central most literary device that is used would have to be that ofirony.
Irony is the most important literary device being used because that is whatthe ending is all about. The two characters move through an incredibleemotional journey as they lay physically trapped under the tree. The start outwanting nothing more than to kill each other. However, after being trapped,they end their feud and become friends. The ironic ending where they see"figures" running down the hill toward them elicits excitement for theirrescue, then the last word "wolves" leaves you with dark humorous irony thatlingers after the story is finished.
Idioms are the peculiarities of speech that are distinctive to a speaker orthe characters of a region. Georg and Ulrich both talk in a rather formalmanner, without a lot of contractions or abbreviated words which are theeasiest idioms to find; however, they do use some terminology which could beconsidered colloquial (specific to their region). I have highlighted them inbold below. George says:
"How the whole region would stare andgabble if we rode into the market-squaretogether. No one living can remember seeing a Znaeym and a von Gradwitz talkingto one another in friendship. And what peace there would be among theforester folk if we ended our feud to-night. And if we chooseto make peace among our people there is none other to interfere, no interlopersfrom outside ... You would come and keep the Sylvester nightbeneath my roof, and I would come and feast on some high dayat your castle...."
Imagery is the use of descriptive language to create an impression for thereader. In terms of imagery in this story, the author draws a vivid picture,though again the emphasis is more on plot than consistent artful description.Here are a few examples of imagery:
Most of the examples of personification in this story center around thetrees of the forest, which is not surprising since that is where most of theaction in the story takes place. Consider the following (bold print ismine):
Briefly, the plot or action of "The Interlopers" revolves around along-standing feud between Ulrich von Gradwitz and Georg Znaeym over a strip ofwild land. Searching for each other with bad intentions, they both get trappedunder a fallen tree. Trapped together, they realize the absurdity of theirfeud, but it's too late: as they are becoming friends, a pack of wolvesdescends on them.
The theme of the story is that no human "owns" nature, which is symbolizedby the wolves, the storm, and the fallen tree. Nature does not respect thelegal "rights" of men. Fighting over land is pointless.
Irony is when events happen in a way that is unexpected. It is ironic thatUlrich and Georg become friends after hating each other for so long, and evenmore ironic when they do so at the point of being eaten by wolves, when thefriendship can do them no good. The story satirizes or pokes fun at humankind'sinflated sense of its own importance: Ulrich and Georg, in reality, are no morethan prey in the winter forest. Ulrich uses a simile, a form of metaphor thatemploys the words like or as, when he says the two of themhave been fighting "like devils." The story is rich in imagery, such as in thefollowing:
The roebuck, which usually kept in the sheltered hollows during astorm-wind, were running like driven things to-night, and there was movementand unrest among the creatures that were wont to sleep through the darkhours.
Some super sentences supply stunning samples of alliteration, such as this one. In other words, an alliteration is a literary device that features a series of successive phrases, all starting with the same letter.
Take a metaphor, put it on steroids, throw in a dash of realism, and you have yourself an allegory: a figure of speech used to represent a large, complex (and often moral) message about real-world (i.e. nonfiction) events or issues.
But since Beatrice is fictional (as is, in a sense, the author himself), and these darkly funny quotes set the tone for the Unfortunate Events quite well, one could make the case that these are, in fact, epigraphs.
Irony is using a word or phrase that usually signifies the opposite of what the speaker intends to say, for comedic or emphatic purposes. Irony can also be an event that works out contrary to the expected, and can often be funny.
Isocolon refers to a piece of writing that uses a series of clauses, phrases, or sentences that are grammatically equal in length, creating a parallel structure that gives it a sort of pleasant rhythm.
A malapropism is when a character (unintentionally and hilariously) mistakes a word in place of a similar-sounding word. The abstract concept comes from a character (Mrs. Malaprop) who liked to use big words incorrectly in a comedic play by English playwright Richard Sheridan.
The funny-offensive show South Park is packed to the brim with biting satire examples that riff on loads of sensitive topics in a politically incorrect fashion, from politics to religion to Hollywood.
A synecdoche is a literary device where a part stands in for the whole, or vice versa. It is not to be confused with metonymy, which is when something represents a related term. (See the earlier example for metonymy.)
Fantasy stories are the best fodder for finding verisimilitude. For example, prolific fantasy writer Brandon Sanderson often creates convoluted magic systems based on things like color, strict rules, constraints, and consequences that almost makes them seem possible.
Literary devices are strategies writers use to strengthen ideas, add personality to prose, and ultimately communicate more effectively. Just as chefs use unique ingredients or techniques to create culinary masterpieces (flambed crpes, anyone?), skilled writers use literary devices to create life-changing works of art.
Your knowledge and skillful use of common literary techniques will catapult you above the hordes of wannabe writers, increasing your self-confidence, and endowing you with the kind of influence that will keep your audience salivating to consume your work.
A literary device is a narrative technique. A rhetorical device, also known as a persuasive device or stylistic device, is a persuasion technique. You see (or hear) rhetorical devices in famous speeches from Winston Churchill, Ronald Reagan, and the like.
This lesson is the 2nd part in a 3-part series on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech "I've Been to the Mountaintop." This lesson focuses on some of the figures of speech and rhetorical devices used by Dr. King in his speech. The speech has been divided into eight sections. As students read through each section they will analyze some of the figures of speech and rhetorical devices King used, record their answers on a graphic organizer, and analyze how use of the figure of speech or rhetorical device impacted the meaning of that section of the speech. Students will write an extended paragraph for the lesson.
This is the first lesson in a three-part series on Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech "I've Been to the Mountaintop." In this lesson, the speech has been divided into eight sections with text-dependent questions that are specific to each section. Throughout the course of the lesson students will determine a central idea for each section and examine King's ideas and claims and how they are developed and supported. At the end of the lesson, students will determine an overarching central idea of the speech and write an extended paragraph to explain the central idea and how it is developed and supported with specific evidence throughout the text.
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