Literary Analysis Essay on "And of Clay we are Created"

Introduction

"And of Clay we are Created" is a short story written by Isabel Allende. The story appeared in Allende's 1989 collection entitled, "The Stories of Eva Luna". The narration of the story takes the view of Eva Luna, who was one of the characters in Allende's novel. The writing is based on a real event of Omayra being one of the victims of the Colombian Earthquake of 1985. Allende employed the use of different literary devices in building up tension in the story. The paper seeks to analyze the literary techniques used by Allende in bringing out the tension in the text.

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One of the literary devices used by Allende in showing tension in the story is the use of imagery. Using imagery which involves the use of the visually described and figurative language showed tension in the story in various ways. For example, the author begins the story by describing to the reader the discovery of the main character. Allende wrote that the girl's head was protruding from her wide open, mud pit eyes. The description raises the notion of tension in the text by showing the terrifying moment in which Azucena was in (Allende & Peden, 2011). The other imagery used by the writer is the use of similes. For instance, the narrator describes that the victims were as helpless as a dying flower in the scorching sun. Such a description builds up the tension by showing the extent at which the victims were under risk.

The other literary style used by the author is narration. The story itself is the narration of a real-life event of the Colombian earthquake that occurred in 1985. The narrator begins the story by telling how the Azucena was stuck in the mud as one of the victims of the volcanic eruption. The detailed narration of Azuneka's condition led to the creation of tension to readers. The reader is under tension to because of how the narrator describes the scenario. Tension is build because the storyteller is detailing every bit of the event. For example, the storyteller tells how the rescuers were trying to save the lives of victims as well as how media and the government got involved in the rescue activities (Allende & Peden, 2011). Through narration, the readers get every bit of event from the eye-witness, a situation that causes one to tense.

Allende also used mood to bring out the tension in her "And of Clay we are created". The mood which refers to the use of an emotional set of activities in the story led to tension build up in the text. Attempts by Rolf in freeing a girl trapped in mud leads to tension. The rescuer is using a lot of energy. In the process, her plight demanded his solicitude that triggered his childhood experiences of pain and suffering (Allende & Peden, 2011). There tension in the process of rescue as seen in the struggle of saving Azucena's life and memories of childhood suffering that Rolf went through.

Lastly, the author uses the writing style of setting in building up tension in the text. Allende chose the setting of a volcanic eruption in Chile to build some tension to readers. Individualization of Azucena and her helpless condition embodies the need of wanting to know of what really happened (Allende & Peden, 2011). The reporter is as well frustrated and desperate because of the struggle to get a pump for draining water. The reader becomes tensed on the fate of Azucena and the ultimate amputation of her limbs without pain relievers and antibiotics (Allende & Peden, 2011). As the story unfolds, the pain and the suffering that Azucena underwent cause the reader to tense.

References

Allende, I., & Peden, M. (2011). The stories of Eva Luna. New York: Scribner Paperback Fiction.