5. Yolen takes readers through holocaust Gemma mystery , Yolen uses techniques of a fairy-tale analogy and flashbacks to show Gemma as “a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma”.…
Using first-person point of view is one of the typical traits in Jewett’s short stories. “The White Rose Road” and “Going to Shrewsbury” are just two examples of her first-person accounts. One of her stories, “Looking Back on Girlhood,” is written in first-person, but is also told from Jewett’s point of view instead of a character’s. In all of her writing, the use of first-person offers a unique view for the reader.…
“Roselily”, written by Alice Walker, is a story about an African American woman that is getting married to a Muslim. As the preacher was going through the normal wedding rituals she reflected back on her past and the past of African Americans in general. Roselily thought about how her new life would be with her new man and wondered if her children would like him and get along with him. Roselily was also worried about moving and uprooting her family to a new, strange place. Roselily knew that she and her soon to husband would definitely have conflicting religious ideas, and she is not too happy about having to sit with a covered face in his place of worship. My favorite part though is when the preacher says, “to join this man and this woman”. The way Roselily thought of it as being bound and tied like a slave as her ancestors had been is just great, vivid description, and I can just picture Roselily and her man tied and bound together for the rest of their lives. I feel Roselily referred to her husband as nothing more than a ball and chain when she thought this.…
Jane Yolen, in her novel Briar Rose, has used an allegory of Briar Rose or Sleeping Beauty as a metaphor to hide the real experiences and emotions suffered from the Holocaust during World War Two. The development and techniques employed within the story are extremely effective for the use of the allegory.…
Many stories have underlying and unsolved mysteries that are intertwined into minute details of the plot line. “Gretel in Darkness” is Louise Glück’s poetic interpretation of the Gretel’s emotional aftermath in the Brothers Grimm classic tale, Hansel and Gretel. Although Glück’s poem strongly relates to Hansel and Gretel, she only vaguely mentions the major events that have harnessed such strong emotional consequences in “Gretel in Darkness.” Omitting these critical events and leaving only the outcome begins to unravel an underlying mystery of the classic children’s tale; that the stepmother and the witch are the same person. With a new vantage point on the story, a common theme of betrayal is encountered in Gretel’s lifelong quest for affection.…
The book Bread and Roses gives us a vivid look into the world of the labor union in the early 1900's. It takes us through the times of the strike in Lawrence, Massachusetts portraying the struggles and hardships of those involved. This strike of the mill workers shows a dramatic and changing time in America's history and it is something that we should take a closer look at.…
ESSAY: How has Jane Yolen made use of the features of a fairytale to explore the themes in Briar Rose?…
Jane Yolen uses many forms and techniques to convey distinctive ideas about the Holocaust, humanity and the power of storytelling. This novel is one that needs to be clearly understood to grasp the true meaning of the story. Yolen uses what could be called a radical structure to get the reader involved with the quest to find out the real history of Briar Rose.…
With many variations of fantasies, "Happily ever after" is reoccurring in every fairy tale. "Cinderella" by Anne Sexton is a different variation of the classic tale. The author sets up her version of Cinderella with four anecdotes sharing how others can go from poverty to riches or gritty reality to fantasy. Sexton changes her happily ever after ending by satirizing the message the story gives. By doing so, Sexton would like the reader to know the difference between a fairy tale and reality. Anne Sexton deconstructs the ending of her retold fairy tale by using sarcasm to change the reader's expectations of the story and myth.…
The opening chapter of the book, “Peasants Tell Tales: The Meaning of Mother Goose”, provides a historical reading of the many fairy tales we were told as young innocent children. These fairy tales had everything but happy endings and sweet morals. The gruesome truth is revealed for each fairy tale including Hansel and Gretel, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty,…
Plot-The book is divided into two parts, the "home", and the "castle". The ending is part of the "home" section, returning after the castle. The story is based around the German fairy tale of Briar Rose (Sleeping Beauty) which is told by "Gemma", an elderly woman, to her three granddaughters. She tells this to the children almost all the time and it is the only bedtime story she ever tells. The times when "Gemma" tells the story are flashbacks and alternate between the present-day story.…
Jane Yolen's use of structure in the novel Briar Rose is very clever. Her use of allegory and the technique of parallel narrative is very effective in conveying her story which she delivers in a superb fashion. Elements of the story are reveled at specific times to tie in with the theme of growth and development both personal and historical.…
Anne Sexton’s poem Cinderella is an analysis of the falsehood of fairytales and their inapplicable meanings to real, everyday life. Sexton’s poem, as a whole, mocks the classic tale of Cinderella by retelling the story with an analysis intertwined. This big message of fairytales being fake is reiterated throughout the poem through repetition, similes through imagery, and diction.…
Everyone at some point in their life has or will experience love, whether they were loved or have loved. Love seems to be the underlying goal that Americans strive to have in their lifetime. In the short story “A Rose for Emily,” by William Faulkner presents the reader with a woman named Emily Grierson, who was sheltered and protected by her father her whole life. Not only that, Miss Emily dealt with mental abuse that also came with a domineering personality. Miss Emily has never felt loved or wanted. Faulkner’s use of symbolism profoundly develops the theme of the story, addressing the issues of morality that arises from a young women’s struggle to find love.…
Jane Yolen , the composer of the novel Briar Rose uses distinctive qualities to explore the concept that although stories may include elements of fantasy, it is within it that the truth is expressed. This idea of stories is portrayed through using the personal pronoun in “Gemma, tell your story again” which shows that the story Gemma is telling is personal. The fact that this is at the beginning of the novel, and is retold more than once by Gemma shows the significance of the fairy tale to the grandchildren and Gemma herself. Additionally, this quote acts as an indication to the theme of the novel, showing the importance of stories in seeking truth. This idea is also shown through the allegory in the line “I curse you Briar Rose….all the people in your village, and all the people who bear your name”. The allegory in Gemma’s version of Briar Rose refers back to the curse of the holocaust and is compared with the destruction in the extermination camps revealing the horror of the holocaust. This idea is reinforced by the alternating chapters used throughout the novel. The alternating chapters shift between Gemma and Becca’s stories. For example chapter one of the novel introduces Gemma as telling the story of Briar Rose to her grandchildren. The second chapter however starts Becca’s story, and this structure is continued throughout the novel. This exposes the truth gradually creating a feeling of suspense, and conveying through stories, individual will come to a better understanding of themselves and others. Consequently, Yolen has used the fairytale allegory, and alternating…