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Literary Terms

Terms related to the eighth grade SkillProgression Chart are in bold faceprint. Additional terms and definitionsare included for the sake of verticalteam continuity and so that studentswho wish to go beyond their gradelevel standards may advance theirknowledge of literary terminology attheir own pace. Most definitions con-tain an example from A Wrinkle inTime and an explanation of how theuse of the device links to meaning.

Literary ElementsArchetype is a character, action, or situationthat is a prototype, or pattern, of human lifegenerally; a situation that occurs over andover again in literature, such as a quest, aninitiation, or an attempt to overcome evil.Many myths contain archetypes. Two com-mon types of archetypes involve setting andcharacter. A common archetypal setting isthe desert, which is associated with spiritualsterility and barrenness because it is devoidof many amenities and personal comforts.Archetypal characters are those who embodya certain kind of universal human experience.For example, a femme fatale, siren, ortemptress figure is a character who purpose-fully lures men to disaster through her beauty.Other examples of archetypal figures includethe “damsel in distress,” the “mentor,” the“old crone,” the “hag” or witch, and the“naïve young man from the country.” Thesecharacters are recognizable human “types”and their stories recreate “typical” or recur-rent human experiences. For example, Mrs.Whatsit, Mrs. Who, and Mrs. Which in A Wrinkle in Time function as archetypalmentors or guides to Charles Wallace, Meg,

and Calvin, guiding and directing their questto find Meg’s father and save the world fromthe “Dark thing” or shadow that threatens theplanet Earth. Their journey itself is an arche-typal one: it requires a call to adventure,painful ordeals, tests of courage, a confronta-tion of “the shadow” (a manifestation of evil),magic talismans (Mrs. Who’s spectacles), anda successful completion of the task. Calvin,Meg, and Charles Wallace act out the classicplot elements of an archetypal quest as do thecharacters in Star Wars, The Wizard of Oz,and many other books, short stories, poems,and films.

Characters are people or animals who takepart in the action of a literary work. Readerslearn about characters from• what they say (dialogue),• what they do (actions),• what they think (interior monologue),• what others say about them, and• through the author’s direct statement.

The protagonist is the central character of adrama, novel, short story, or narrative poem.The adversary of this character is then theantagonist. To be believable, a character mustreflect universal human characteristics thatare the same despite geographical differencesand time periods. The emotions and concernsof real people of all times are expressed inconcrete terms through the traits of literarycharacters. An author may choose to empha-size a single important trait, creating what iscalled a flat character; or the author maypresent a complex, fully-rounded personality(a three-dimensional or round character). Acharacter that changes little over the course ofa narrative is called a static character. Thingshappen to these characters, but little happens

Terms Associated with Close Reading

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in them. A character that changes in responseto the actions through which he or she passesis called a dynamic character. One of theobjectives of the work is to reveal the conse-quences of the action upon her or him. MegMurry, the protagonist of A Wrinkle in Time,is an example of a dynamic, round character.The reader gets to know many aspects ofMeg’s character: she is angry, a loner, isgrieving over the loss of her “perfect” father,adores but envies her mother and brothers,and has a low opinion of her own intelligenceand physical attractiveness. During the courseof the novel, she finds out that her father ishuman, gains friends and allies in her quest,and comes to an understanding of her owngifts through the events in the plot andbecause of Calvin’s interest in her. Shechanges dramatically, losing her angry resent-ment and focusing on her ability to love oth-ers. Her brothers Sandy and Dennys are goodexamples of flat, static characters. They aresomewhat one-dimensional (the reader gets toknow only that they are popular and good atsports), and they do not change at all fromthe first pages of the book to the last.

Epiphany – an event in which the essentialnature of something – a person, a situation,an object – is suddenly perceived; it is anintuitive grasp of reality in a quick flash ofrecognition in which something usuallysimple and commonplace is seen in a newlight. Meg’s epiphany occurs when shesuddenly realizes that anger and resentmentwill not help her free Charles Wallace fromthe grip of evil, but love will.

Foil – a character, usually minor, designedto highlight qualities of a major character;e.g., The Man with Red Eyes contrastsvividly with Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Who, andMrs. Which. His evil makes their goodnessall the more striking.

Motivation – a reason that explains acharacter’s thoughts, feelings, actions, orbehavior. Meg and Charles Wallace seektheir father who has been absent from their family for two years. They miss himterribly. Later, Meg must rescue CharlesWallace from the grip of the evil forcebecause she loves her brother deeply.

Stock – a flat character in a standard role a flat character in a standard role withstandard traits; e.g., Mr. Jenkins, the schoolprincipal, stereotypically does not toleratenonconformity well and delivers standard“if you’d just apply yourself” lectures to Meg.

Details are the facts, revealed by the authoror speaker, that support the attitude or tonein a piece of poetry or prose. In A Wrinkle inTime, Meg discovers her father trapped in atransparent column. The details of her father’sappearance reinforce her increasing despairover their situation and her disappointment inher father: “He had grown a beard, and thesilky brown was shot with gray. His hair, too,had not been cut. It wasn’t just the overlonghair of the man in the snapshot at CapeCanaveral; it was pushed back from his highforehead and fell softly almost to his shoulders,so that he looked like someone in anothercentury, or a shipwrecked sailor” (145).

Diction is word choice intended to convey acertain effect. In A Wrinkle in Time, no oneon the planet of Camazotz “suffers.” WhenMeg’s little brother, Charles Wallace, fallsunder the spell of the evil force on theplanet, he tells Meg and Calvin, “ ‘We let no one suffer. It is much kinder simply toannihilate anyone who is ill. Nobody hasweeks and weeks of runny noses and sorethroats. Rather than endure such discomfort,they are simply put to sleep’ ” (139).

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Arguing with Charles’ use of these words –kinder, simply, annihilate, simply, put to sleep –Calvin points out that this practice is murder.

The denotative and connotative meanings ofwords must also be considered. Denotationrefers to the dictionary definition of a word,whereas connotation refers to the feelings andattitudes associated with a word. In A Wrinklein Time, the author writes that, in the Murry’shouse, “the furnace purred like a great, sleepyanimal; the lights glowed with steady radi-ance; outside, alone in the dark, the wind stillbattered against the house…” (11). The word“purred” refers denotatively to a guttural,wordless noise, but its connotation is one ofcomfort, contentment, satisfaction – it is awarm word that the reader associates withcats and with pleasure. The emotional impactof the word highlights the contrast betweenthe people in the house – surrounded bywarmth, safety, light, and companionship – and the wind, which is “battering” the housebut which is “alone in the dark,” lonely andineffectual against the safe walls of the house.

Dialect is the speech of a particular regionor group as it differs from those of a real orimaginary standard speech. To emphasizethe authority of Mrs. Which and todistinguish her from the other “witches,”L’Engle creates a strange dialect for her:“‘Yyouu hhave ssaidd itt!’ Mrs. Which’svoice rang out, ‘Itt iss Eevill. Itt iss theePpowers of Ddarrkknesss!’” (88). Therepeated letters cause her speech to be readslowly and emphatically.

Euphemism is the use of a word or phrase that is less expressive or direct butconsidered less distasteful or offensive thananother; e.g., Charles Wallace, under thespell of evil, says, “‘Nobody has weeks andweeks of runny noses and sore throats.

Rather than endure such discomfort, theyare simply put to sleep’” (139). Of course,“put to sleep” is a euphemism for murder,but makes the evil force seem reasonable inits explanation.

Idiom is an accepted phrase or expressionhaving a meaning different from the literal;e.g., Calvin says about himself, “ ‘I’mblessed with more brains and opportunitiesthan many people, but there’s nothing aboutme that breaks out of the ordinary mold’”(47). He means that he is an ordinaryperson, not that he literally would break amold that shaped him. He also says aboutMeg that “ ‘…you’re supposed to be dumbin school, always being called up on thecarpet’” (42). Meg gets in trouble at school;she isn’t literally forced to stand on a rugwhen she is reprimanded.

Imagery consists of the words or phrases awriter uses to represent persons, objects,actions, feelings, and ideas descriptively byappealing to the senses. In A Wrinkle in Time,the author incorporates appeals to all fivesenses. Through these appeals we experiencewhat the main character, Meg, experiencesboth physically and emotionally.

• Sight and smell – “They were standing in a sunlit field, and the air about themwas moving with the delicious fragrancethat comes only on the rarest of springdays when the sun’s touch is gentle andthe apple blossoms are just beginning tounfold” (59).

• Sound – “‘Oh, my dears,’ came the newvoice, a rich voice with the warmth of awoodwind, the clarity of a trumpet, themystery of an English horn” (65).

• Sight – “And though it was warmer than ithad been when they so precipitously leftthe apple orchard, there was a faintly

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autumnal touch to the air; near them wereseveral small trees with reddened leavesvery like sumac, and a big patch of gold-enrod-like flowers” (99).

• Taste – “The table was set up in front ofthem, and the dark smocked men heapedtheir plates with turkey and dressing andmashed potatoes and gravy and little greenpeas with big yellow blobs of butter melt-ing in them and cranberries and sweetpotatoes topped with gooey brownedmarshmallows and olives and celery androsebud radishes and –” (129).

• Touch and smell – “But with the tentaclecame the same delicate fragrance thatmoved across her with the breeze, and shefelt a soft tingling warmth go all throughher that momentarily assuaged her pain”(174-175).

Mood is the atmosphere or predominantemotion in a literary work. In other words,mood is the emotional response of the readerto the text. In A Wrinkle in Time, the descrip-tion of the house where the three “witches”live establishes an ominous mood: “The elmswere almost bare, now, and the groundaround the house was yellow with dampleaves. The late afternoon light had a greenishcast which the blank windows reflected in asinister way. An unhinged shutter thumped.Something else creaked” (34).

Plot is the sequence of events or actions in ashort story, novel, play, or narrative poem.Freytag’s Pyramid is a convenient diagramthat describes the typical pattern of a dramaticor fictional work. The structure of the workbegins with exposition, in which the authorlays the groundwork for the reader by reveal-ing the setting, the relationships between thecharacters, and the situation as it exists beforeconflict begins. The inciting incident interruptsthe harmony and balance of the situation and

one or more of the characters comes intoconflict with an outside force, with his or herown nature, or with another character. Duringthe plot events that constitute the risingaction, the things that happen in the workbuild toward an irreversible climax, or pivotalpoint, after which the falling action leadsinevitably toward a revelation of meaning thatoccurs at the denouement, or unraveling, of theproblem set up by the inciting incident. A plotmay be sequenced chronologically, or inter-rupted by flashback or flash forward. In A Wrinkle in Time, the plot outline mightread this way:

• Exposition: The reader is introduced toMeg Murry and her family and gets toknow their situation and personalities.

• Inciting Incident: A “tramp,” who turnsout to be Mrs. Whatsit, comes to theMurry house for a late-night snack. In the process she mentions a mysterious word,“tesseract,” what is somehow connected to Meg’s missing father and his highlysecret government work.

• Rising Action: During the rising action ofthe story, Meg and Charles Wallace inves-tigate the three “witches,” meet Calvin,and set off on their journey, finally arriv-ing at Camazotz, the “shadowed” planetwhere Meg’s father is being held captive.

• Climax: In a dramatic confrontation withthe hideous disembodied brain “IT,” Megbattles for her freedom and that of herfamily and friends, using emotion (angerand impatience) as a weapon to counter her antagonist’s monstrous insistence onisolated reason and restrictive order. She is able to resist, but Charles Wallace fallsinto the antagonist’s trap because of hisoverconfidence in his own intelligence.

• Falling Action: The falling action takesplace as Meg, Calvin, and Meg’s fatherescape from Camazotz, leaving Charles

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Wallace held captive by “IT.” They againencounter the three witches, and Meg issent back to the shadowed planet to try torelease Charles Wallace from the spell that holds him.

• Denouement: In the denouement, or reso-lution of the plot, Meg counters the antag-onist’s logical order with the power of herlove, forgives her father for not being all-powerful, accepts her own strengths andweaknesses, and triumphs over “IT.” Thechildren and Mr. Murry are returned to theirhome and reunited with their loved ones.

Conflict is a term that describes the ten-sion between opposing forces in a work ofliterature. Some of the more common con-flicts involve the following forces: • a person in opposition to another person• a person opposing fate• an internal battle involving contra-

dictory forces within a character• a person fighting against the forces

of nature• a person in opposition to some aspect

of his or her society

In A Wrinkle in Time, Meg, CharlesWallace, and Calvin oppose the forces ofdarkness in order to save both Meg andCharles’s father and the world as we knowit. The children fight particularly againstthat aspect of society that seeks conformityand uniformity of all its members; theyfight for individuality and free will. Inaddition to this conflict, Meg herself isinternally conflicted, fighting against herown insecurity and fear.

Flashback is a scene that interrupts theaction of a work to show a previous event.Near the beginning of A Wrinkle in Time,the author shows the reader Meg Murryremembering an incident in which her

absent father had reassured her about herown intelligence and that of her littlebrother. The scene is presented as thoughtaking place now, with dialogue anddescription, even though it is really amemory that Meg is recalling.

Foreshadowing is the use of hints or cluesin a narrative to suggest future action. Theauthor of A Wrinkle in Time uses foreshad-owing in the beginning paragraph of thenovel. Even though the main characterMeg Murry is safe in her bed in her familyhome, the author foreshadows the fearsomenature of the task that is about to confronther by describing the storm that is batteringthe house, personifying its natural phenom-ena when she shows the clouds “scuddingfrantically” across the sky and the moon“ripping” through the clouds, making“wraithlike shadows” that “race” acrossthe ground. The use of these frighteningimages and scary diction portends theominous events that lie in store for Meg.

Suspense is the quality of a short story,novel, play, or narrative poem that makesthe reader or audience uncertain or tenseabout the outcome of events. In A Wrinklein Time, Madeleine L’Engle creates sus-pense by withholding certain informationabout the three witches and about Meg’sfather, thus making the reader question thewitches’ motives and wonder about Mr.Murry’s actions and whereabouts.

Point of view is the perspective from which anarrative is told. Some technical terms fordifferent points of view include omniscientand limited; however, point of view can also refer to the bias of the person or thingthrough whose eyes the reader experiencesthe action. In A Wrinkle in Time, L’Engle usesthe third-person limited point of view. The

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story focuses on Meg Murry and her perspec-tive. We know how she thinks and feels, butwe do not know how the other charactersthink and feel. For example: “Meg hadalmost forgotten the flowers, and was gratefulto realize that she was still clasping them,that she hadn’t let them fall from her fingers.”Calvin and Charles also hold their flowers,but we do not know their thoughts or feelingsabout the experience (70).

Point of view shift – when an author shiftsthe focus of attention to another character;there are, however, no real shifts in point ofview in A Wrinkle in Time. Meg’s fathergives a summary of what has happened tohim, but the focus is still on Meg’s reactionsto what he has to say.

Rhetorical Shift or turn refers to a change or movement in a piece resulting from anepiphany, realization, or insight gained by the speaker, a character, or the reader. In A Wrinkle in Time, Meg realizes she must takeon the responsibility of rescuing her brother:“She felt tired and unexpectedly peaceful.Now the coldness that, under Aunt Beast’sministrations, had left her body had also lefther mind. She looked toward her father andher confused anger was gone and she feltonly love and pride….’ It has to be me. Itcan’t be anyone else. I don’t understandCharles, but he understands me’ ” (195).

Setting is the time and place in which eventsin a short story, novel, play, or narrative poemtake place. In A Wrinkle in Time, the initialsetting is a small New England town, withMeg Murry’s safe, loving home and boringrural high school. The action takes placeduring the latter half of the twentieth century.Later, the setting changes to wild interplane-tary landscapes, most notably the rigidtotalitarian planet of Camazotz.

Style is the writer’s characteristic manner ofemploying language.

Theme is the central message of a literarywork. It is not the same as a subject, whichcan be expressed in a word or two: courage,survival, war, pride, etc. The theme is theidea the author wishes to convey about thatsubject. It is expressed as a sentence or gen-eral statement about life or human nature. Aliterary work can have more than one theme,and most themes are not directly stated butare implied. The reader must think about all the elements of the work and use them tomake inferences, or reasonable guesses, as to which themes seem to be implied. In A Wrinkle in Time, Meg rescues her brotherthrough the power of love. Therefore, a majortheme in the novel is “Love can conquer thegreatest evil.” Or “Expressing anger and hateonly make situations worse.”

Tone is the writer’s or speaker’s attitudetoward a subject, character, or audience, andit is conveyed primarily through the author’schoice of diction, imagery, figurative lan-guage, details, and syntax. Tone can be seri-ous, humorous, sarcastic, indignant, objec-tive, etc. L’Engle in A Wrinkle in Time clearlyestablishes a tone of horror when Meg con-fronts IT on the planet Camazotz: “A disem-bodied brain. An oversized brain, just enoughlarger than normal to be completely revoltingand terrifying. A living brain. A brain thatpulsed and quivered, that seized and com-manded. No wonder the brain was called IT.IT was the most horrible, the most repellentthing she had ever seen, far more nauseatingthan anything she had ever imagined with herconscious mind, or that had ever tormentedher in her most terrible nightmares” (158).

Tone shifts, multiple tones reveal changes inattitude or create new attitudes;

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e.g., Meg’s tone changes from anger toexhilaration when she realizes what she has to do to save Charles Wallace,reflecting her change in attitude fromfrustrated to controlled.

Figures of SpeechFigures of speech are words or phrases thatdescribe one thing in terms of something else.They always involve some sort of imagina-tive comparison between seemingly unlikethings. Not meant to be taken literally, figura-tive language is used to produce images in areader’s mind and to express ideas in fresh,vivid, and imaginative ways. The most com-mon examples of figurative language, or fig-ures of speech, used in both prose and poetryare simile, metaphor, and personification.

Apostrophe is a form of personification inwhich the absent, or dead, are spoken to as ifpresent, and the inanimate, as if animate.These are all addressed directly: e.g.,“Milton! Thou shoulds’t be living at thishour.” In A Wrinkle in Time, when Meg andCalvin try to rescue Charles Wallace from theman with the red eyes, Meg wishes desper-ately for the help of the absent Mrs. Whatsit:“ ‘Mrs. Whatsit!’ Meg called despairingly.‘Oh, Mrs. Whatsit!’ ” (135).

Metaphor is a comparison of two unlikethings not using like or as: e.g., “Time ismoney.” In A Wrinkle in Time, Meg sees whatMrs. Whatsit really is, a beautiful creaturewith wings: “From the shoulders slowly apair of wings unfolded, wings made of rain-bows, of light upon water, of poetry” (64).L’Engle implies that the wings are special,rare, ephemeral things, blessings.

extended/controlling metaphor – differsfrom a regular metaphor in that it issustained for several lines or sentences orthroughout a work; e.g. in A Wrinkle in

Time, the “Black Thing” stands for the evilforce trying to conquer the universe and isreferred to throughout the novel.

Metonymy is a form of metaphor. Inmetonymy, the name of one thing is appliedto another thing with which it is closelyassociated: e.g., “I love Shakespeare.” In A Wrinkle in Time, the “shadow” stands for an evil power (the “Black Thing”) trying toconquer the universe.

Oxymoron is a form of paradox that com-bines a pair of opposite terms into a singleunusual expression: e.g., “sweet sorrow” or “cold fire.” There are no examples ofoxymoron in A Wrinkle in Time.

Paradox occurs when the elements of a state-ment contradict each other. Although thestatement may appear illogical, impossible, or absurd, it turns out to have a coherentmeaning that reveals a hidden truth: e.g.,“Much madness is divinest sense” (EmilyDickinson). In A Wrinkle in Time, Megexpresses her vast relief after experiencingbeing “flattened” on a two-dimensionalplanet: “She was whizzed into nothingnessagain, and nothingness was wonderful” (80).

Personification is a kind of metaphor thatgives inanimate objects or abstract ideashuman characteristics. For example, inA Wrinkle in Time: “Directly ahead of herwas the circular building, its walls glowingwith violet flame, its silvery roof pulsing witha light that seemed to Meg to be insane”(205). Meg enters the CENTRAL CentralIntelligence building, fearful and doubtingwhether she can rescue her brother Charles.The “insane” light reflects her state of mindand the insanity going on inside the building.

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Pun is a play on words that are either identicalor similar in sound but have sharply diversemeanings. Puns can have serious as well ashumorous uses. Early in A Wrinkle in Time,Mrs. Murry and Meg’s brothers tell her sheneeds to find a “happy medium” in her life –meaning to practice moderation in herbehavior and reactions to trouble. Later, shemeets an actual “Happy Medium,” a cheerful“seer,” who shows the children their homeplanet and significant celestial events in hercrystal ball to help them understand theimportance of their mission.

Simile is a comparison of two different thingsor ideas through the use of the words like oras. It is a definitely stated comparison inwhich the author says one thing is like another.In A Wrinkle in Time, L’Engle captures Meg’sexperience of being two-dimensional whenthe three “witches” accidentally stop on thewrong planet: “Without warning, coming as acomplete and unexpected shock, she felt apressure she had never imagined, as thoughshe were being completely flattened out by anenormous steam roller” (79). Another simileshows Meg’s true emotional state when shetries to pose as brave and confident: “She was completely unaware that her voice wastrembling like an aspen leaf” (102). Thesecomparisons of strange, unknown situationsto known objects help us to picture what ishappening to the characters in the story.

An epic/Homeric simile is more involved,more ornate than the typical simile. Whentrying to make something new and strangeunderstandable to their audience, authorscompare it to something familiar. Forexample, at the beginning of the Pequod’svoyage in Moby-Dick, Captain Ahab is in afoul mood, but as they journey south to awarmer climate, his mood vastly improves.

Melville compares Ahab’s moods to theweather and, also, the weather to dancinggirls:

“…[T]here was little or nothing…toemploy or excite Ahab, now; and thus chaseaway, for that one interval, the clouds thatlayer upon layer were piled upon his brow,as ever all clouds choose the loftiest peaksto pile themselves upon.

Nevertheless, ere long, the warm,warbling persuasiveness of the pleasantholiday weather we came to, seemedgradually to charm him from his mood. For,as when the red-cheeked dancing girls, Apriland May, trip home to the wintry,misanthropic woods, even the barest,ruggedest, most thunder-clovenold oak will at least send forth some fewgreen sprouts, to welcome such glad-hearted visitants; so Ahab did, in the end, alittle respond to the playful allurings of thatgirlish air. More than once did he put forththe faint blossom of a look which, in anyother man, would have soon flowered out ina smile” (123-124).

Synecdoche is a form of metaphor. Insynecdoche, a part of something is used tosignify the whole: e.g., “All hands on deck.”Also, the reverse, whereby the whole canrepresent a part, is synecdoche: e.g., “Canadaplayed the United States in the Olympichockey finals.” Another form of synecdocheinvolves the container representing the thingbeing contained: e.g., “The pot is boiling.” In one last form of synecdoche, the materialfrom which an object is made stands for the object itself: e.g., “The quarterback tossedthe pigskin.” In A Wrinkle in Time, Mrs.Whatsit suggests to the children after a longjourney: “ ‘We don’t have far to go, and wemight as well walk. It will do you good tostretch your legs a little’ ” (83). Of course, it

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is the whole body that needs to move andstretch, not just the legs, after they havetraveled such a great distance.

Sound DevicesSound devices are stylistic techniques thatconvey meaning through sound. Someexamples of sound devices are rhyme (twowords having the same sound), assonance(repetition of similar vowel sounds),consonance (repetition of consonant soundsin the middle or at the end of words),alliteration (words beginning with the sameconsonant sound), and onomatopoeia (wordsthat sound like their meaning).

Alliteration is the practice of beginning severalconsecutive or neighboring words with thesame sound. For example, in A Wrinkle inTime: “Over a Bunsen burner bubbled a bigearthenware dish of stew” (39). The repetitionof the “b” sound reproduces the motion of thestew simmering in its pot. It is a humorousmoment, too, because Mrs. Murry cooks inthe lab where she does her scientific experi-ments, worrying her children that a chemicalmight get mixed up with the food.

Assonance is the repetition of vowel soundsin a series of words: e.g., the words “cry” and “side” have the same vowel sound and soare said to be in assonance. In the followingsentence from A Wrinkle in Time, the long“a” captures the unpleasant effects the stormhas upon the clouds; it is almost a cry ormoan of pain: “Every few moments the moonripped through them, creating wraithlikeshadows that raced along the ground” (3).

Consonance is the repetition of a consonantsound within a series of words to produce aharmonious effect. In A Wrinkle in Time, theauthor describes the storm: “Behind the treesclouds scudded frantically across the sky”

(3). The repeated hard “c” sound recreates thechaotic harsh movement in the stormy sky.

Meter is the measured, patterned arrangementof syllables according to stress and length in a poem. In A Wrinkle in Time, CharlesWallace shouts out lines of nursery rhymes totry to keep the Man with Red Eyes fromtaking over his mind: “‘And everywhere thatMary went the lamb was sure to go!’…‘Peter,Peter, pumpkin eater, had a wife and couldn’tkeep her –’ (122). The first sentence “andeverywhere…go” is written in iambic meter.The second sentence “Peter, Peter…her”reverses this sentence pattern. The meter ofeach individual line of these verses is tetra-meter – four accented syllables per line. Therhythm of each line is trochaic.

Onomatopoeia (imitative harmony) is the useof words that mimic the sounds they describe:e.g., “hiss,” “buzz,” “bang.” When onomato-poeia is used on an extended scale in a poem, it is called imitative harmony. A goodexample occurs in A Wrinkle in Time whenthe Happy Medium falls asleep: “‘Good-by,everyb –’ and her word got lost in thegeneral b-b-bz-z of a snore” (98).

Rhyme is the repetition of sounds in two ormore words or phrases that appear close toeach other in a poem. End rhyme occurs atthe end of lines; internal rhyme, within a line.A rhyme scheme is the pattern of end rhymes.In A Wrinkle in Time, Charles Wallace recitesnursery rhymes, trying to save himself frommind control:

Mary had a little lamb.Its fleece was white as snow.And everywhere that Mary wentThe lamb was sure to go.

The second and fourth lines rhyme and helpto connect the lines of the poem. The rhymescheme is ABCB, showing the rhyme pattern.

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Rhythm is the varying speed, intensity, eleva-tion, pitch, loudness, and expressiveness ofspeech, especially poetry. In A Wrinkle inTime when “IT” tries to control Meg’s mind,she resists the force through concentration onordinary thoughts. She starts reciting thePeriodic Table (“hydrogen, helium, lithium,beryllium, boron, carbon, etc.”), but thewords become too rhythmical, allowing “IT”to perceive the pattern and try to gain controlagain. She switches to working out mathproblems instead (161-162).

Literary TechniquesAllusion is a reference to a mythological,literary, or historical person, place, or thing.L’Engle employs numerous allusions in A Wrinkle in Time, especially references toAlice in Wonderland. These allusions add tothe feeling that the settings in the novel areturned upside down, that natural laws do notapply in this world. When Mrs. Who disap-pears before her glasses do, “it reminded Megof the Cheshire Cat.” In Carroll’s Alice, theCheshire disappears before his smile does.Again, on the planet Camazotz, the childrensee a man running into a main buildingsaying, “Oh, dear, I shall be late,” and Megresponds, “He’s like the white rabbit” (112).Alice encounters a white rabbit nervouslyconsulting his watch and proclaiming, “I’mlate! I’m late!” L’Engle also incorporatesBiblical and Shakespearean allusionsthroughout the story. These more seriousallusions underscore the importance of thechildren’s mission.

Antithesis is a contrast of thoughts, situations,or ideas. In A Wrinkle in Time, the thoughts of the people of Earth are antithetical to thethoughts of the people on Camazotz, whohave willingly surrendered their freedom inorder to eliminate conflict in their society

while the people of Earth continue to resistthe forces trying to control them.

Argumentation functions by convincing orpersuading an audience, or by proving orrefuting a point of view or an issue.Argumentation uses induction, moving fromobservations about particular things togeneralizations, or deduction, moving fromgeneralizations to valid inferences aboutparticulars – or some combination of the two –as its pattern of development. Composers ofarguments will also use a combination oflogical (logos), emotional (pathos), andethical (ethos) evidence to establish both theircredibility as writers or speakers. Though notwritten as formal persuasive essays, passagesin A Wrinkle in Time include examples ofarguments between characters illustrating the different types of appeals:

Ethical – The man with red eyes tries to convince Charles Wallace that he istrustworthy by promising that Charles canleave if he chooses to and also by feedingCalvin and Meg a decent meal. He flattersCharles Wallace’s intelligence and speaks tohim in a calm, soothing manner.

Emotional – When Meg decides near theend of the story to rescue Charles Wallacealone, her father and Calvin express theirfears and insist on going with her. First,Meg responds angrily that she can do italone and then reminds them tearfully thatshe must go alone to save her brother.

Logical – The three “witches” give Meg,Calvin, and Charles Wallace a clear, detailedexplanation of the “tessering” concept topersuade them that they would survive theexperience of traveling through space in adifferent dimension.

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Cause/effect is one of the traditionalrhetorical strategies; it consists of arguingfrom the presence (or absence) of the causeto the existence (or nonexistence) of theeffect or result. Conversely, it can alsoinvolve arguing from an effect to itsprobable causes.

Classification, one of the traditional waysof thinking about a subject, identifies thesubject as a part of a larger group withshared features.

Comparison is a traditional rhetoricalstrategy based on the assumption that a sub-ject may be shown more clearly by pointingout ways it is similar to something else. The two subjects may each be explainedseparately and then their similarities arenoted. In A Wrinkle in Time, Mrs. Whatsitcompares the lives of the characters to thesonnet: “‘You mean you’re comparing ourlives to a sonnet? A strict form, but freedomwithin it?’ “‘Yes.’ Mrs. Whatsit said.‘You’re given the form, but you have towrite the sonnet yourself. What you say iscompletely up to you’” (199).

Contrast is a traditional rhetorical strategybased on the assumption that a subject may beshown more clearly by pointing out ways inwhich it is unlike another subject.

Characterization is the act of creating ordeveloping a character. In direct characteri-zation, the author directly states a character’straits. In A Wrinkle in Time, L’Engle describesMeg’s twin brothers: “The twins didn’t haveany problems. They weren’t great students,but they weren’t bad ones either. They wereperfectly content with a succession of Bs andan occasional A or C. They were strong andfast runners and good at games, and whencracks were made about anybody in the Murry

family, they weren’t made about Sandy andDennys” (7). A writer uses indirect characteri-zation when showing a character’s personalitythrough his or her actions, thoughts, feelings,words, and appearance, or through anothercharacter’s observations and reactions. L’Engleshows that Mrs. Whatsit has a sense of humorwhen she falls backward in her chair andsays, “‘If you have some liniment, I’ll put iton my dignity…I think it’s sprained’” (20).

Hyperbole is a deliberate, extravagant, andoften outrageous exaggeration. It may beused for either serious or comic effect: e.g.,“The shot heard ‘round the world.” In A Wrinkle in Time, Meg lacks self-confidenceand self-esteem. She exaggerates thingsbecause she feels inept in her life right now:“On top of Meg Murry doing everythingwrong” (4); “A delinquent, that’s what Iam…” (4); “Why do I always have to showeverything [on my face]?” (5).

Irony occurs in three types.Dramatic irony occurs when a character orspeaker says or does something that has adifferent meaning from what he thinks itmeans, though the audience and othercharacters understand the full implicationsof the speech or action. In A Wrinkle inTime, though Meg holds a low opinion ofherself through most of the story, L’Engleprepares us well for the ending of the novelwhen Meg is the only one, among manyknowledgeable and seemingly more power-ful and capable beings, who can rescue herbrother. Her ineptitude in school and herrelations with others matter little in compar-ison to the love and understanding she hasfor her brother.

Situational irony occurs when a situationturns out differently from what one wouldnormally expect – though often the twist isoddly appropriate: e.g., a deep sea diver

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drowning in a bathtub is ironic. In A Wrinkle in Time, when Meg, her father,and Calvin land on a strange planet, theyfind creatures there like none they have everseen. They have no face, four arms, andtentacles on their hands. At first, theyfrighten Meg, Calvin, and Mr. Murry, butthese creatures turn out to be highlysophisticated, caring, intellectual beings.They save Meg’s life and help in the rescueof Charles Wallace from the evil forceholding him captive.

Verbal irony occurs when a speaker ornarrator says one thing while meaning theopposite. Meg and her mother and brotherin A Wrinkle in Time, have this exchangeabout a so-called “tramp” in the area:“‘They were saying at the post office thisafternoon that a tramp stole all Mrs.Buncombe’s sheets.’ ‘We’d better sit on thepillow cases, then,’ Mrs. Murry said lightly.”Mrs. Murry employs irony to lighten Meg’sfears and Charles’ concerns.

Sarcasm is the use of verbal irony in whicha person appears to be praising somethingbut is actually insulting it: e.g., “As I felldown the stairs headfirst, I heard her say,‘Look at that coordination’.” In A Wrinkle inTime, to defuse the tension when Charlesand Meg encounter Calvin for the first time,Calvin wryly comments about Charles’supposed lack of intelligence: “‘What isthis? The third degree? Aren’t you the onewho’s supposed to be the moron?’ Megflushed with rage, but Charles Wallaceanswered placidly, ‘That’s right. If you wantme to call my dog off, you’d better give!’‘Most peculiar moron I’ve ever met,’ Calvinsaid” (31).

Motif is a term that describes a pattern orstrand of imagery or symbolism in a work of literature. Light and dark throughout A Wrinkle in Time indicate the level of safetyfor the characters.

Satire refers to the use of humorous deviceslike irony, understatement, and exaggerationto highlight a human folly or a societalproblem. The purpose of satire is to bring the flaw to the attention of the reader in order that it may be addressed, remedied, or eradicated.L’Engle’s description of the robotic-likeinhabitants of Camazotz portrays herdisapproval of the tendency people have towant everyone to conform. This particularplanet imposes sameness on everyone and oneverything they do with dangerous, deadlyconsequences for deviations. Through thisdescription, L’Engle intends for her readers toshare her feelings and to value differences asMeg learns to do by the end of the story.

Symbolism is the use of any object, person,place, or action that has a meaning in itselfwhile standing for something larger thanitself, such as a quality, attitude, belief, orvalue. There are two basic types, universal (asymbol that is common to all mankind) andcontextual (a symbol used in a particular wayby an individual author). Symbols are elasticand multifaceted, not static or concrete. It isimportant to remember that symbols have noone-on-one correspondence, but are likeprisms through which the reader may viewmany colors, many shades of meaning. A Wrinkle in Time contains many symbols.For example, light and dark act as symbols.Light can be positive or negative dependingupon its color and its context. Dark usuallysymbolizes danger and evil, but sometimesMeg finds comfort in the darkness. Colors,too, play a symbolic role in the novel. Thered light coming from the man’s eyes suggests

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the danger the children (and the universe)face. Black is the color of the “thing” seekingto blanket the universe with evil. On theplanet where the “beasts” save Meg fromdeath, the trees and plants are brown andgray. At first, Meg finds these colors depress-ing, but she learns later that colors do notmatter on their planet because the “beasts”cannot see. Silver and gold add richness todescriptions of the light of day and night.And when Mrs. Whatsit reveals her trueform, she turns out to be all white, resemblingsomething like a centaur and symbolizing a force of goodness. Also, dimensionssymbolize the complexities in the story. The fifth dimension allows the characters tomove through space quickly though they only vaguely understand the concept.

Understatement is the opposite of hyperbole.It is a kind of irony that deliberately representssomething as being much less than it reallyis: e.g., “I could probably manage to surviveon a salary of two million dollars per year.”In A Wrinkle in Time, when Calvin, Meg, andMr. Murry escape from “IT” but land on anunknown planet, Meg lies near death. Mr.Murry matter-of-factly relates to Calvin hisharrowing experience being captured andimprisoned for two years on Camazotz:“ ‘Yes. It’s frightening as well as an excitingthing to discover that matter and energy arethe same thing, that size is an illusion, and thattime is a material substance. We can knowthis, but it’s far more than we can understandwith our puny little brains’ ” (167).

Literary FormsAristotle’s Rules for Tragedy

Catharsis is the release of emotion (pity andfear) from the audience’s perspective. e.g.After watching Antigone, the audience willfeel pity for the tragic deaths and fear forthemselves because if even the “best” insociety fall, what future awaits the commonman?

Dramatic Unities– Time: The play has to take place within a

24-hour period. e.g. Antigone takes placein “real” time; the audience experiencesthe action as it unfolds.– Place: The action of the play is set in

one place. Antigone is set in front of theroyal palace in Thebes.

– Action: There is one hero and one plot.The action in Antigone focuses onAntigone’s determination to bury herbrother Polyneices and the resultingconsequences.

Hamartia is the tragic flaw that leads to thetragic hero’s downfall. e.g. Creon’s tragicflaw of holding himself above the prophetsand the laws of the gods dooms him.

Hubris is arrogance before the gods. e.g. Creon’s pride and arrogance cause his downfall.

Recognition occurs as the hero meets hiscatastrophe, at which point he recognizeshis flaw and why he must die. e.g. Creonacknowledges his responsibility for thedeaths of his family and confesses he wastoo proud.

Reversal occurs when the opposite of what the hero intends is what happens. e.g. Creon thinks he is doing the right thingby imprisoning Antigone, but this actionleads to the suicides of his son and his wife.

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