Introduction to Literature


Introduction to literature

Genre (read żar, gatunek) - form of a literary work (forma utworu literackiego)

for example: novel, tragedy, ode

Stanza (zwrotka, strofa) - in poetic work repeatable order of verses, usually with definite order of rhymes (powtarzający się w utworze poetyckim układ wersów, zwykle o określonym układzie rymów)

Verse (wiersz) - short work written with verses (krótki utwór pisany wersami)

Literature:


poetry

fiction/prose

drama

`Introduction to the Study of Literature in English 'Andrzej Diniejko (13p-19p)

In literature, a theme is a broad idea in a story, or a message or lesson conveyed by a work. This message is usually about life, society or human nature. Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work. Themes are usually implied (ukryty) rather than explicitly (wyraźny) stated. A theme can be the idea or the main concept of the story. Many novels and/or stories contain (zawiera) more than 1 theme. To find a theme find a common issue (kwestia) that is projected throughout the story.


Literature - exploitation of words; words working hard; performance in words

Two aspects:

In logic, linguistics and semiotics, a denotation of a word or phrase is a part of its meaning; however, several parts of meaning may take this name, depending on the contrast being drawn.

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The denotation of this example is a red rose with a green stem. The connotation is that is a symbol of passion and love - this is what the rose represents.

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The denotation is a brown cross. The connotation is a symbol of religion, according to the media connotation. However, to be more specific this is a symbol of Christianity.

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The denotation is a representation of a cartoon heart. The connotation is a symbol of love and affection, not in the way of a rose, but a symbol of true love.

Diction - choose of words.

Stylistic devices

Figures of speech (metaphor, simile - comparison)

Universal appeal - moral

Active reading / active reader

Critical reader - always asks questions

Function of a literature

Plot - is the rendering and ordering of the events and actions of a story, particularly towards the achievement of some particular artistic or emotional effect.

  1. Exposition - introduction of characters, time and place (doesn't take place always)

  2. Rising action (Complication) - obstacles which the main character has to overcome it refers to the main character (doesn't take place always - especially in short stories)

  3. Turning point (Climax) - the highest point of interest of the story.

  4. Falling action - the action goes down.

  5. Resolution - the outcome; the end of the story.

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Narrator - is the entity within a story that tells the story to the reader.

Types of narration:

  1. A first-person narrator brings greater focus on the feelings, opinions, and perceptions of a particular character in a story, and on how that character views the world and the views of other characters.

  2. A third-person narrator:

For stories in which the context and the views of many characters are important, a third-person narrator is a better choice. However, a third person narrator need not be an omnipresent guide, but instead may merely the protagonist referring to themselves in the third person.

Theme in is a broad idea in a story, or a message or lesson conveyed by a work. This message is usually about life, society or human nature. Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work. Themes are usually implied rather than explicitly stated. Deep thematic content is not required in literature; however, some readers would say that all stories inherently project some kind of outlook on life that can be taken as a theme, regardless of whether or not this is the intent of the author. Analysis of changes in dynamic characters can provide insight into a particular theme.

Setting is a term in literature and drama usually referring to the time and location in which a story takes place. The term is relevant for various forms of literary expression, such as short stories, novels, dramas, and screenplays.

Stream-of-consciousness technique is the most intense use of a central consciousness in narration. The stream-of-consciousness technique takes a reader inside a character's mind to reveal perceptions, thoughts, and feelings on a conscious or unconscious level. This technique suggests the flow of thought as well as its content; hence, complete sentences may give way to fragments as the character's mind makes rapid associations free of conventional logic or transitions. James Joyce's novel Ulysses makes extensive use of this narrative technique.

Narrator

The Narrator is the entity (jednostka) within a story that tells the story to the reader:

Characterization

Characters device

Metaphor

Etymology: Middle English methaphor, from Middle French or Latin; Middle French metaphore, from Latin metaphora, from Greek, from metapherein to transfer, from meta- + pherein to bear - more at BEAR

1: a figure of speech in which a word or phrase literally denoting one kind of object or idea is used in place of another to suggest a likeness or analogy between them (as in drowning in money); broadly : figurative language -- compare SIMILE

2: an object, activity, or idea treated as a metaphor

Simile

Etymology: Middle English, from Latin, comparison, from neuter of similes

a figure of speech comparing two unlike things that is often introduced by like or as (as in cheeks like roses) - compare METAPHOR

Simile vs. Metaphor

Usually similes are marked by use of the words `like' or `as'. However, `The snow blanketed the earth' is also a simile and not a metaphor because the verb `blanketed' is a shortened form of the phrase `covered like a blanket'. Metaphors differ from similes in that the two objects are not compared, but treated as identical: The phrase `The snow was a blanket over the earth' is a metaphor. Some would argue that a simile is actually a specific type of metaphor.

However, only some similes can be contracted into metaphors, and some metaphors can be expanded into similes. It is said to blend with the 'prosaic' metaphor of comparison.

Imagery

Is any literary reference to the five senses (sight, touch, smell, hearing, and taste). Essentially, imagery is any words that create a picture in your head. Such images can be created by using figures of speech such as similes, metaphors, personification, and assonance. Imagery helps the reader picture what is going on.

Edgar Allan Poe, Ezra Pound, William Wordsworth, and John Steinbeck were masters of imagery. The Fall of the House of Usher by Poe, for example, used such pictures of a `black and lurid tarn that lay in unruffled luster by the dwelling' to create images in the mind of trepidation and gloom.

Imagery is also the term used to refer to the creation (or re-creation) of any experience in the mind - auditory, visual, tactile, olfactory, gustatory, kinesthetic, organic. It is a cognitive process employed by most, if not all, humans. When thinking about a previous or upcoming event, people commonly use imagery. For example, one may ask, `What color are your living room walls?' The answer to this question is commonly retrieved by using imagery (i.e., by a person mentally `seeing' one's living room walls).

Image

In common usage, an image (from Latin imago) or picture is an artifact that reproduces the likeness of some subject - usually a physical object or a person.

Images may be two dimensional, such as a photograph, or three dimensional such as in a statue. They are typically produced by optical devices - such as a cameras, mirrors, lenses, telescopes, microscopes, etc. and natural objects and phenomena, such as the human eye or water surfaces.

The word image is also used in the broader sense of any two-dimensional figure such as a map, a graph, a pie chart, or an abstract painting. In this wider sense, images can also be produced manually, such as by drawing, painting, carving, by computer graphics technology, or a combination of the two, especially in a pseudo-photograph.

A volatile image is one that exists only for a short period of time. This may be a reflection of an object by a mirror, a projection of a camera obscura, or a scene displayed on a cathode ray tube. A fixed image, also called a hardcopy, is one that has been recorded on a material object, such as paper or textile.

A mental image exists in someone's mind: something one remembers or imagines. The subject of an image need not be real; it may be an abstract concept, such as a graph, function, or `imaginary' entity. For example, Sigmund Freud claimed to have dreamt purely in aural-images of dialogues. The development of synthetic acoustic technologies and the creation of sound art have led to a consideration of the possibilities of a sound-image comprised of irreducible phonic substance beyond linguistic or musicological analysis.

`The Cat In The Rain'

Short story by Ernest Hemingway

1. It is a rainy day and the American woman sees a cat in the rain, which she wants to protect. When she goes out he is gone. After returning she tells her husband how much she wants it. He seems to be annoyed by that and not interested at all. Finally the maid gave her a cat.

2. Yes, it explain. It is about marriage problems. It is theme is the American marriage which life next to one another but not together.

4. The author is sympathy with the American wife. She is alone and she want to have a cat.

5. She is interested in the cat because she is alone. Her husband does not care of her. He only read. It is not important for him what want his wife. She propably does not have any children so she want to have something which she could take care of.

6. He is not worried about her (“Ok. Your choice. Go. I'll wait here for you.”); he just did not want her to smudge her's make-up and ruined her perfect hair.

7. She liked the deadly serious way he received any complaints. She liked his dignity (godność). She liked the way he felt about being a hotel-keeper. She liked his old, heavy face and big hands.

8. “Wonder where it went to”, he said but it did not bother him in the least.

9. Words: “Oh, shut up and get something to read”.

11. If not the cat the woman would not go through the turning point in her life.

13. The cat in the rain.

Summary (streszczenie)

The short story `Cat in the Rain' was written by Ernest Hemingway in the 1920´s. It is about an American couple that spends their holidays in an Italian hotel. It is a rainy day and the American woman sees a cat in the rain, which she wants to protect from the raindrops. When she goes out of the hotel, which is kept by an old Italian who really seems to do everything to please that woman, and wants to get the cat, it is gone. After returning to the hotel room, she starts a conversation with her husband George, who is reading all the time, telling him how much she wants to have a cat and other things, for instance her own silver to eat with. Her husband seems to be annoyed by that and not interested at all. At the end of the story there is a knock on the door and the maid stands there holding a cat for the American woman in her hands.

Peculiarities of the introduction (szczególne cechy wprowadzenia)

The first thing that caught my eyes was the long description at the beginning. First there is a description of the environment in good weather, which means spring or summer, then a description of the momentary situation in the rain. This description creates the atmosphere which is sad, cold and unfriendly. To create this atmosphere Hemingway uses words such as `empty' or `the motorcars were gone'. Later on, by looking at the relationship of the two Americans, you can see that this description was a foreshadowing (zapowiedź) of the state of the couple's relationship: First it was nice, the spring-time of their love, and now there is only rain, their relationship is cold and unfriendly. Another symbolic hint in this introduction is the war monument, which is mentioned three times. This maybe is done to tell us that a conflict is to be expected.

From girl to wife

The next thing I wondered about was the spontaneous reaction of the woman after she saw that cat. Usually only children want to protect cats or dogs from the rain, because a grown-up knows that rain does not do any harm to animals living on the street. From that point on you can find an interpretation which is quite complex and not that easy to explain: On the one hand the woman wants to protect that little cat, which now stands for something innocent and vulnerable, like a baby. So she wants to protect that vulnerable thing, which is more the behavior of an adult. But on the other hand she acts like a little child by having this wish for a cat. Another hint for that is that the woman is referred to as `girl' in the following paragraph, not as `wife' like before. The sequence in which we get to know that she likes the hotelkeeper a lot is next. She likes the way he wants to serve her. Why? Because it gives her the feeling to be grown up, to be treated like a lady. But the other reasons for fancying him originate from a more childish thinking, like the fact that she likes him because of his big hands. To underline this childish behavior, all sentences in this part begin with `She liked…', which is the typical way of a child to want something: `I like cats, I like chocolate, I like bubble-gum' and so on. When she talks about the cat in this situation, she does not say `cat' but `kitty', which is usually a childish expression as well. The next sentence that seems to be important to me is: `The padrone made her feel very small and at the same time very important. She had a momentary feeling of being of great importance'. At this point we can see again the two parts of her personality. The child in her feels very timid (nieśmiały) because of the presence of this tall, old, serious man, the woman in her feels flattered (pochlebiać) by the way he cares for her. She seems to be like a girl of about fourteen, still being a child and now slowly noticing the woman inside her.

Marriage problems

When she comes back to the hotel room, her husband is still reading. She tells him that she does not know why she wanted that cat so much, but we know it: She feels the need for something to care for, to be responsible for, that makes her grow up, for example having a baby. George does not need all that anymore, because he already is grown up, which is shown by his serious behavior and that he treats his wife like a child. And now we understand why they are having problems with their marriage - because they are on different levels: He already is a man, she is still a girl. They cannot find a mutual base for their relationship and that makes her bored by him and him annoyed (zdenerwowany, poirytowany) by her. But George does not understand the problem of his wife and therefore of their relationship, because when she talks about letting her hair grow, to make her become more female, he just tells her with disinterest that he likes it the way it is. But her wish for longer hair is only the beginning. She tells him that she wants her own silver to eat with and candles and that cat, standing again for something to be responsible for and new clothes. I am sure that her new clothes would be very female, because all these things stand for the world of a grown-ups. So she utters (całkowicie), without really recognizing it herself, the immense (ogromny) wish to be an adult at last - as quickly as possible. And that is why she is now referred to as `wife' again. The sentence that she wants it to be spring again stands for her huge wish for a new spring in her relationship, now that the process of her growing up has started and she might attempt to find a way to be level with her husband, which maybe will help them to finally find a mutual basis. In the end she gets a cat, brought by the maid on request of the padrone. It is not important if it is the same cat she saw on the street or not, the only thing that matters is that she finally gets something to take responsibility for and that symbolizes the first step in the direction of a grown-up life.

Conclusion (zakończenie)

Altogether I would say that the theme of the story are the problems that a relationship has, when one partner becomes dominant or repressive and the other is trying to change and improve the situation. If they are aware of their problems they might be able to save their marriage, but if they do not recognize that their relationship will become more and more like the depressive weather in this short story, until there will be winter when their love will die.

`The First Seven Years'

By Bernard Malamud in `Modern Short Stories'

Written in 1950. `The First Seven Years' was published in Bernard Malamud's first collection of short stories in 1958. The story is about Feld, a Jewish shoemaker who seeks a suitable husband for his daughter Miriam. But she is not interested in his choice of Max, a college student. Feld soon discovers that his assistant, Sobel, a Polish Jewish refugee (uchodziec), is in love with Miriam, and that she returns his affections. Miriam sees spiritual qualities in Sobel, but Feld is dismayed because he wants her to do better for herself. Feld is faced with a moral choice: will he allow Sobel to wed Miriam? Can he put his daughter's feelings above what he thinks is appropriate for her? Can he learn to see in Sobel what Miriam sees in him? In the climax (punkt kulminacyjny) of the story, Feld tells Sobel that if he works for two more years, making seven in all, he can ask Miriam for her hand in marriage. Hence (odtąd) the title of the story, which is an allusion to the Biblical story of how Jacob labored (ciężki) in the service of Laban for seven years to win the hand of Rebecca, whom he loved.

`The First Seven Years' is one of many stories Malamud wrote about Jewish immigrants living in New York. As such, it is a representative work of one of the most distinguished American writers of the second half of the twentieth century. Although Malamud often wrote about Jews, he is usually regarded not as a `Jewish' writer but as one who explored, through the Jewish experience, universal human hopes, struggles (walki), conflicts, and dilemmas.

Narration

Third-person narrator - limited omniscient

Characters

    1. Feld - he is a shoemaker and he has daughter Miriam and wife. He suffers from some kind of heart condition. He had a shop assistant called Sobel, whom he trust and treat him as his own son. He dreamt about an educated and wealthy husband for his daughter. He is an honest person, he has clear intentions although he made wrong decision.

    2. Max - he was quite well educated (he attended accounted courses). He was tall, always wearing a long coat. Max was a materialist. The narrator compared Max to a hawk (this animals attacked other animals, some kind of predator). He is greedy person.

    3. Sobel - he is refugee (uchodziec) from Poland. He's a stout (mocny, tęgi) person. Money isn't important for him. He is sensitive.

Theme

Feld wishes the best for his daughter and wants her to find a husband who can provide her with a better life, he takes account only of material values.

`A Hanging'

By George Orwell

Narration

Third-person narration - an observer

Theme

It's wrong to destroy a healthy human being

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Irony - is a literary or rhetorical device, in which there is a gap or incongruity (luka lub niedopasowanie) between what a speaker or a writer says, and what is generally understood (either at the time, or in the later context of history). Irony may also arise from a discordance between acts and results, especially if it is striking, and known to a later audience. A certain kind of irony may result from the act of pursuing a desired outcome, resulting in the opposite effect, but again, only if this is known to a third party. In this case the aesthetic (estetyczny) arises from the realization that an effort is sharply (ostro) at odds (notowania) with an outcome, and that in fact the very effort has been its own undoing.`A Rose For Emily'

By William Faulkner

As an allegory:

`A Rose for Emily' can be read as an allegory for the Civil War, and the relationship between the North and the South afterwards. Homer says he is leaving Emily. To keep him from doing so, Emily murders Homer. This describes the South's secession, and the North's military action and invasion. Like the South, Homer's reasons for leaving were not quite sound, but Emily's reaction is certainly not justified (uzasadniony). Emily keeps Homer's rotting (zgniły) corpse in her house, which represents the North keeping the South as part of the country, but the South is economically and morally devastated from the North's actions (in the story, Homer's death at Emily's hands). The main point of the allegory is Emily's necrophilia. This would represent the North's exploitation (particularly economically) of the South decades after the South had been `killed'. To understand this, one must keep in mind that in the twenties and thirties, when the story was written, the South was still significantly poorer and less stable than the North, so the effects of the Civil War could still be seen, and Southerners felt that they were still being exploited. Though the North's prosperity and stability are lessened by the Great Depression and crime during Prohibition, respectively (which could be represented by Emily's death), the South had been poor and unstable far longer, and was still poorer during the Depression, like Homer who had been dead for years.

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The title

A rose expresses filling of people's grateful (wdzięczność). During her life people consider her as strong person but after entered her bedroom they saw a weak person who had always wanted live. They changed their views about her. A rose brought on her funeral (pogrzeb).

Flashback and Foreshadowing (Powrót do przeszłości i zapowiedzi)

Flashback and foreshadowing are two often used literary devices that utilize time in order to produce a desired effect. Flashbacks are used to present action that occurs before the beginning of a story; foreshadowing creates expectation for action that has not yet happened. Faulkner uses both devices in `A Rose for Emily'. The story is told by the narrator through a series of non-sequential flashbacks. The narrator begins the story by describing the scene of Emily's funeral (pogrzeb); this description, however, is actually a flashback because the story starts and ends in this same place.

Narration

Third person narration

Characters

  1. Emily's father - she depend on him. When he died she didn't want to say anyone about it. From this time any of men wasn't enough good for her.

  2. Emily (Emily Grierson) - in the background over her father. Her freedom is very limited. Emotionally disturb.

  3. Yankee (Homer Barron) - contractor for paving (bruk) the sidewalks in town

Plot

The plot has parenthetical structure - the story begins at Emily's funeral in her home and ends in her funeral at her home in this same time.

Theme

  1. We shouldn't asses people without knowing them. We shouldn't base our judge on appearances.

  2. People shouldn't be possessive.

`A Dill Pickle'

By Katherine Mansfield

Narration

Third person narration - limited omniscient - limited to the women. At times there is used a technique Free Indirect Speech (reported speech) where the narrator identifies with the character.

Plot

There is no exposition, resolution and complication.

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The story begins as if it was a continuation.

The Irony of `A Dill Pickle':

The short story `A Dill Pickle' by Katherine Mansfield is a wonderful example of a story with an ironic twist. The story takes place at a restaurant table and right from the very beginning, the audience can see themselves as being merely (zaledwie) another patron sitting at the next table; watching and listening to everything that is happening between the two main characters. While the author never stated what either of the characters - Vera and `He' (who's name we never actually learn) - were really thinking, she portrayed their mannerisms (zwyczaj) and revealed enough of their personalities to allow the reader to come to his or her own conclusions `He must have felt that shock of recognition…' Based on their reactions and movements, the reader could derive things about the characters, their past relationship, and the places that they are at in their lives today.

The story begins with Vera as `after six years, saw him again. He was seated at one of those little bamboo tables decorated with a Japanese vase of paper daffodils (żonkile)'. She recognized him immediately by the “`special' way he was peeling his orange”. She was disappointed by his frown (zmarszczenie brwi) when he looked up at her; she believed that `He didn't know her!' From the presented observation.

Some common words found in the essay `The Irony of The Dill Pickle' are:
reader, things, suddenly, characters, looked, special, followed, gardens, mockery (kpiny), himself, disappointed, everything, seemed, perhaps, actually, ironic, beginning, sensed, russia, rattles (brzęk), appeared.

`The Hills Like White Elephants'

By Ernest Hemingway

Indulging (pobłażliwość) the reader with his masterful literary techniques, Ernest Hemingway produces the story of a young couple in his short story, `Hills Like White Elephants'. Waiting to catch a train the young couple stops for a short rest in the shade of the station building. Everything seems normal, they order drinks a have normal conversation until the man brings up the topic of the girls operation; things quickly become uneasy. It is quite obvious that this is a sensitive subject of the young woman and becomes clear that it is not something that she is readily doing, more that the man has pushed her into it. Throughout the story the reader is never told what the operation is but, when dissected the reader can assume that the operation is going to be the abortion of the girl's baby. Hemingway utilizes this bold topic to convey the idea of couples with lustful relationships and their inabilities to talk with each other and to deal with large problems.

Throughout, `Hills Like White Elephants,' Hemingway utilizes the element of characterization to describe the young woman's distraught situation. Jig is described to be a young woman that is having some sort of a relationship and has become pregnant with an American man.

Some common words found in the essay `Hill Like White Elephants' are:
Hemingway, operation, please, reader, relationship, elephants, everything, elephant, having, really, things, couple, together, station, symbolizes, setting, looked, without, abortion, situation, become.

Narration

Kind of conversation

Plot

A short exposition.

The climax is when the girl realized that she cant couth on man.

No resolution, we don't know the end of the story.

The symbolic meaning of WHITE ELEPHANT is the present, gift with witch sb don't know what to do. The present is variable but problematic. According to this symbolic meaning, the title refers the baby, with whom they don't know what to do. THE WHITE ELEPHANT has also meaning of missing opportunity. According to this, if they made abortion they wouldn't be happy.

Setting (sceneria)

They are on desert at the station. On the one side if the station there are mountains and on the other is the river and desert, These two sides represent life and death. They stand on the side of the desert, The setting refers to relationship between these people. It is one of the role of setting.

Another roles of setting:

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'The Eagle'

By Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809-1892)

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clasp

objąć

crag

urwisko

crooked

koślawy

azure

lazurowy

ringe

zaobrączkować

wrinkle

pofałdowany

beneath

poniżej

crawl

pełzać

thunderbolt

piorun

collocation - związek frazeologiczny

hit the mark - say that sb/sth is perfect

`Valentine'

By Carol Ann Duff

wrapped

obłożony

wobbling

przechodzić

grief

zmartwienie, żal

cute

bystry

kissogram

Posłaniec z miłością i pocałunkiem

fierce

okrutny

loop

pętla

shrink

kurczyć się

lethal

zabójczy

scent

woń

cling

przywierać, lgnąć

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Cliché - usual, ever used, used to often, habitual

A=B implicit (suggested) comparison - metaphor

A like B explicit (obvious) comparison

Moon - onion

promises - happy, optimistic

Love isn't only walking under the moon, holding hands, hugging. Its more. Pain.

DEFAMILARIZATION - make sth unfamiliar; presses, the way of showing sth on new perspective

Russian Formalism 1914 - 1925

use of literary conventions (methodical use)

`Mirror'

reconceptions

an idea or opinion that is formed before you have enough information or experience

opinia

immidiately

without delay

bezpośrednio

unmisted

niezamglony

four-cornered

quadrangular

czworokątny

speckle

a small coloured mark or spot on a background of a different colour

cętka

bend over

to lean, or make sth lean, in a particular direction

przychylać się

reach

zasięg

liar

a person who tells lies

kłamca

reward

to give sth to sb because they have done sth good, worked hard, etc.

wynagradzać

agitation

worry and anxiety that you show by behaving in a nervous way

trząść się, telepać

rise

excite

pobudzać,

toward

especially

nadchodzący, bliski

exact

correct in every detail

dokładny

to swallow

to accept insults, criticisms, etc. without complaining or protesting

akceptować

flicker

to keep going on and off as it shines or burns

migotać, przebłyskiwać

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By Sylvia Plath (1932-1963)'Incendiary'

By Vernon Scannell

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incendiary

designed to cause fires

podpalacz

pallid

very pale, in a way that looks unattractive and unhealthy

blady

blaze

to burn brightly and strongly

płomień

brazen

obvious, without any attempt to be hidden

bezczelny

fierce

physically violent and frightening

okrutny

zany

strange, surprising or uncontrolled in an amusing way

głupek

spoil

earth, stones, etc. dug out from a hole in the ground

grabić

guinea

an old British gold coin worth £1.05

property

an object or objects that belong to someone

własność

misuse

to use something in an unsuitable way or in a way that was not intended

niewłaściwe użycie

menagerie

a collection of wild animals which are kept privately or to show to the public

menażeria

flame-fanged

hungrily

having a strong wish or desire for something:

chciwie

chocke

If you choke, or if something chokes you, you stop breathing because something is blocking your throat

dusić

skinny

very thin

chuderlawy

limbs

an arm or leg of a person or animal, or a large branch of a tree

kończyna

content

pleased with your situation and not hoping for change or improvement

zadowalać się

`Children's Song'

By R. S. Thomas

stoop

to bend the top half of the body forward and down

nachylić się

subterfuge

a trick or a dishonest way of achieving something

podstęp

pry

to try to obtain private facts about a person

podejrzeć

eavesdrop

to listen to someone's private conversation without them knowing

podsłuchiwać

amuse

to entertain someone, especially by humorous speech or action or by making someone laugh or smile, or to keep someone happy, especially for a short time

bawić

smooth shell

równa skorupka

cupped

in the shape of cup

kubkowaty

mock

to laugh at someone, often by copying them in an amusing but unkind way

naśladujący

faded

to (cause to) lose colour, brightness or strength gradually

wypłowieć

remoter

far away in distance, time or relation

odległy

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`Dead Dog'

By Vernon Scannell

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grin

a wide smile

szeroki uśmiech

spiked with blood

with drops of blood on the ends

inch

a unit used for measuring length, which is approximately equal to 2.54 centimetres, sometimes shown by the symbol

cal

spade out

dug out

wykopać

squeale

to make a long very high sound or cry

kwiczeć, piszczeć

tuck in

to make someone comfortable in their bed, especially a child, by arranging the covers round them

położyć kogoś spać

mongrel

a dog whose parents are of different breeds

kundel

mud

earth that has become wet and sticky

muł

moderate

powściągliwy

swollen

larger than usual

opuchniety

lump

a piece of a solid substance, usually with no particular shape

bryłka

recollection

a memory of something

wspomnienie

FIGURE OF SPEECH

A figure of speech, sometimes termed a rhetoral, or elocution, is a word or phrase that departs from straightforward, literal language. Figures of speech are often used and crafted for emphasis, freshness of expression, or clarity. However, clarity may also suffer from their use. Note that all theories of meaning necessarily have a concept of `literal language' (see literal and figurative language). Under theories that do not, figure of speech is not an entirely coherent concept.

As an example of the figurative use of a word, consider the sentence, I am going to crown you. It may mean:

Scholars of classical Western rhetoric have divided figures of speech into two main categories: schemes and tropes. Schemes (from the Greek schēma, form or shape) are figures of speech in which there is a deviation from the ordinary or expected pattern of words. For example, the phrase, `John, my best friend' uses the scheme known as apposition. Tropes (from the Greek tropein, to turn) involve changing or modifying the general meaning of a term. An example of a trope is the use of irony, which is the use of word in a way that conveys a meaning opposite to its usual meaning (`For Brutus is an honorable man; / So, are they all, honorable men').

During the Renaissance, a time when scholars in every discipline had a passion for classifying all things, writers expended a great deal of energy in devising all manner of classes and sub-classes of figures of speech. Henry Peacham, for example, in his The Garden of Eloquence (1577) enumerated 184 different figures of speech.

For the sake of simplicity, this article divides the figures between schemes and tropes, but does not attempt further sub-classification (e.g., "Figures of Disorder"). Within each category, words are listed alphabetically. Each figure links to a page that provides greater detail and relevant examples, but a short definition is placed here for convenience. Some of those listed may be considered rhetorical devices, which are similar in many ways.

Schemes (plany, projekty)

Tropes (gromady)

SYMBOL

Symbol is something what suggests other meaning. It can be allegory or icon. Symbols are divided in three groups:

  1. Conventional - which is based on signs ex. cross-roads lights, letters in alphabet, flags that represent countries. This symbols have not so strong metaphorical meaning, they are established and nobody should discuss it's meaning.

  2. Universal - which are archetypes for people (generally). They have meaning similar for people no matter which culture they are from. (fire, watcher, darkness). But there are some symbols known only for same culture, like white color in African people; red color - passion and love, animals - cats in Europe and cats in Egypt.

  3. Accidental - it depends on our personal experience and interpretation. They are symbols use in literature by authors and they have added meaning only in certain context (an onion from Valentine)


Archetypes:

Black - regret, darkness

White - innocence, death

Red - passion, love, war

Egypt - holly symbol

England - good luck

Poland - bad luck

Eagle - freedom

Lion - wisdom, power, strength

Ball - world

Tears - ocean, sea


Symbol and metaphor:

Symbolism

Symbolism is the applied use of symbols: iconic representations that carry particular conventional meanings. The term `symbolism' is often limited to use in contrast to `representationalism'; defining the general directions of a linear spectrum wherein all symbolic concepts can be viewed in relation, and where changes in context may imply systemic changes to individual and collective definitions of symbols. `Symbolism' may refer to a way of choosing representative symbols in line with abstract rather than literal properties, allowing for the broader interpretation of a carried meaning than more literal concept-representations allow. A religion can be described as a language of concepts related to human spirituality. Symbolism hence is an important aspect of most religions. All forms of language are innately symbolic, and any system of symbols can form a `language'; at the binary system. Human oral language is based in the use of written forms are typically deferential to the phoneme. The written word is therefore symbolically representative of both the symbolic phoneme and directly to the cognitive concept which it represents. The field of cognitive linguistics explores the cognitive process and relationships between different systems of phonetic symbols to indicate deeper processes of symbolic cognition. Many cultures have developed complex symbolic systems, often referred to as a symbolic system which assign certain attributes to specific things, such as types of animals, plants or weather. In literature, `symbolism' may refer to the use of abstract concepts, as a way to obfuscate any literal interpretation, or to allow for the broader applicability of the prose to meanings beyond what may be literally described. Many writers - in fact, most or all authors of fiction - make the symbolic use of concepts and objects as rhetorical devices central to the meaning of their works. Brielle Gibson and James Joyce, for example, used symbolism extensively, to represent themes that applied to greater contexts in their contemporary politics and society.

Irony

Irony is a literary or rhetorical device, in which there is a gap or incongruity between what a speaker or a writer says and what is generally understood (either at the time, or in the later context of history). Irony may also arise from a discordance between acts and results, especially if it is striking, and seen by an outside audience.

More generally, irony is understood as an aesthetic valuation by an audience, which relies on a sharp discordance between the real and the ideal, and which is variously applied to texts, speech, events, acts, and even fashion. All the different senses of irony revolve around the perceived notion of an incongruity, or a gap, between an understanding of reality, or expectation of a reality, and what actually happens.

There are different kinds of irony. For example:

Irony has some of its foundation in the onlooker's perception of paradox which arises from insoluble problems. For example, in June 2005, the State of Virginia Employment Agency, which handles unemployment compensation, announced that they would lay off 400 employees for lack of work, because unemployment was so low in the state. Although this outcome could have been logically anticipated (solving the problem would be expected to re-created a minor version of it again, as a result), the reader's perception of a disconnection between common expectation, and the application of logic in an unexpected outcome, both contain an element of irony.

The connection between irony and humor is somewhat revealed, when the surprise at what should have expected, startles us into laughter. However, not all irony is humorous: `grim irony' and `stark irony' are familiar.

Satire

Satire (is an artistic form, chiefly literary and dramatic, in which human or individual vices, follies, abuses, or shortcomings are held up to censure by means of ridicule, derision, burlesque, irony, or other methods, sometimes with an intent to bring about improvement.[1] It is used in graphic arts and performing arts as well. Although satire is usually witty, and often very funny, the purpose of satire is not primarily humour but criticism of an event, an individual or a group in a clever manner.

Satire usually has a definite target, which may be a person or group of people, an idea or attitude, an institution or a social practice. It is found in many artistic forms of expression, including literature, plays, commentary, and media such as song lyrics. Often the target is examined by being held up for ridicule, typically in the hope of shaming it into reform. A very common, almost defining feature of satire is a strong vein of irony or sarcasm. Also, parody, burlesque, exaggeration, juxtaposition, comparison, analogy, and double entendre are devices frequently used in satirical speech and writing - but it is strictly a misuse of the word to describe as `satire' works without an ironic (or sarcastic) undercurrent of mock-approval, and an element at least of anger. Satirical writing or drama often professes to approve values that are the diametric opposite of what the satirist actually wishes to promote.