Module C

Question 1

techniques used by Nam Le’s diasporic story “Love and Honour and Pity and Pride and Compassion and Sacrifice”

Answer 1

• Onomatopoeia
• Subtle plot, underlying themes/motifs and ideas that are never directly explicitly addressed
• Lots of dialogue between the characters in order to construct their personalities, contexts and perspectives
• Metafiction – writing about writing
  o Use of writing to explore tropes and stereotypes
  o The author sees writing as a way of forming one’s identity - cathartic
• The use of (unreliable) first person narrative to increase the tension and curiosity of what his father is thinking
  o Constructs the father to be elusive – especially in the eyes of Nam Le
• Explores many different aspects such as culture and family
• Motif of nature, vivid natural imagery to describe his feelings, emotions or state f mind
• Time jumps/flashbacks (non-linear narrative) to almost give a sense of a pieces of a timeline that slowly begins to form as the story goes on, shows the fragmentation of the persona’s mind, abrupt paragraph or scene endings brings a source of tension
  o the reader is allowed to explore and piece together the sequence of events (engaging)
• intimate, raw, remorseful, nostalgic tone – due to hindsight
  o raw and intimate
  o narrative voice – characteristic, some of the piece, characters that show similarities and differences
  o life experience, something only he can tell.

Question 2

normal techniques which characterise an imaginative

Answer 2

realistic scenarios that reflect… human behaviour

Question 3

things to describe nam le’s story Love and honour and pity and pride and compassion and sacrifice

Answer 3

• diasporic
• metafiction
• criticises the growing consumerism surrounding ethnic literature
• details an author’s battle between writing about his own Eastern ethnicity whilst attempt to adhere to the western aesthetics of literature

Question 4

techniques used by Geraldine Brookes in her discursive

Answer 4

• Anaphora, truncated sentences which give impact
• Vivid sensory imagery
• Provoking/thought provoking
• Rhetorical questioning and metaphors
• A slightly humorous tone, entertaining through displaying her personality in the snapshots of her
• Cyclic structure – her text ends and starts with same topic, full circle
• Personification of language – it is powerful
• States some facts and conclusions she has drawn but mostly a questioning tone
• Antithesis – contrasts but in the same sentence (juxtaposition) e.g. modern is ancient.
• Began with a personal anecdote – see her thoughts, begin thinking about the main discursive topic, she expresses what happened to her and then her response (which is reflecting on it)
• Mixes a combination of her thoughts/expectations with realism – giving the readers a taste of ideas, mixing it with reality. Backing claims up with evidence/personal experiences
• A recount of her expression “learn it from me”. Talking in hindsight as she moves between the past to present tense
• Motif of the building of a toolbox and wall – uses symbolism to refer to her journey and the completed wall indicates her concept of completion, connecting the whole thing from start to finish
• References (esteemed) people or other famous books that provide a corroboration or a enw talking point/perspective/way to lead to other things
• Often ends on a slightly incomplete note, it’s an exploration therefore you can always find out more

Question 5

general features of a discursive

Answer 5

• Personal experiences and anecdotes – address a tension in their world, understand etc. (something that can be talked about or debated)
• Use of language to explore and address an idea –> audience can be taken on a reflective journey?
• Loosely structured and generally flowing from idea to idea or structured using quotes or other thought-provoking things
• First person perspective (intimate and personal)
• Types of discursive writing styles
  o Anecdotal
  o Reflective
  o Conversational/personal
  o Emotive
  o Spiritual
  o Referential – historical allusions
  o Historical development

Question 6

Techniques used by George Orwell in his persuasive

Answer 6

• Very critical (negative) but also recognises that he is prone to do the same things ⟶ “we’re all in this together” vibe – doesn’t ostracise the reader with a harsh tone
• After each sub-argument or supporting paragraph, summing up and concluding what the paragraph says and how it contributes to the argument
  o E.g. Orwell labels the misuses of language as “swindles and perversions”
• Ideas, organisation, word choice, sentence fluency, connections
  o Voice: diction, detail, imagery, syntax, tone
  o Solid evidence, elaboration to explain and show point (be clear and concise)
  o Links back to the question repeatedly ⟶ also is not afraid to go into the interesting things.
• Begins with an introduction which increases a thesis
  o Lures the audience into a sense of guilt, incriminates us (gaining our attention) and implores us to think further
• Accumulative listing, gives overwhelming and empowers the argument
• Uses hyperbole to emphasise importance and exaggerate the impact
• Evidence was listed to be easily referenced – very logical with reasoning (lots of SPECIFIC examples)

Question 7

General features of a persuasive

Answer 7

• High modality, critical, strong
• Rhetoric tone – pathos, logos, ethos
• Assertive, certain, patronising (shows or gives the impression that the writer is quite knowledgeable – establishes credibility in name or action)
• Aphoristic – matter of fact writing/language
• Use of language ⟶ directed towards the reader in order to command attention
• Questioning the reader through rhetorical questioning as a form of exploration and asking the reader to consider
• Analogies
• Uses metaphors and similes in order to depict negative/positive connotations