Identities

Short Stories - Literary DevisesTitle: __Identities__ By: Maddie G.

Point of View:

It’s in the “third person”- centers in on __one__ character’s thoughts and actions.

Protagonist:

The upperclass man.

What type of character is the Protagonist?

The protagonist is a “Dynamic” and "Round" character. He changes as a result of the story’s events, and has a bunch of personality.

Antagonist:

The man who drives himself into this neighborhood and situation. Also thanks to the society, the policeman got the assumption and pegged this man as a criminal who stole the Mercedes Benz.

Describe the setting:

The story starts off in a suburban middle class neighborhood in the day, and progresses to the “hood”, in the evening. The atmosphere is content and exciting in the beginning, then tuns more anxious in the end, as the man becomes aware of where he is visiting.

Type of Conflict:

Man vs. Himself (realizes he should have left a message for his wife) Man vs. Society(the way he was stereotyped by the police officer as a result of what he was wearing, how he looked, and where he was visiting)

Describe the main conflict:

Man vs. Society (explanation above), but also if our society wasn't so full of criminals, then he would never have been mistaken as a criminal in the first place.

Describe the Climax of the Story:

I think that the climax is at the end of the story just before the man is killed, when the police officer is judging this man on his appearance and the man is making an assumption that the police officer is there for safety. Just at the moment before the trigger is pulled, when the man is searching for his "identity".

How does the Protagonist change over the course of the story?

He becomes more aware of his surroundings, more anxious and nervous, thinking about his family, who will be worried, and the consequences that will follow. Just as the bullet is flying, I'm sure the man would realize that this police officer is making the same mistake he did, by stereotyping.

Describe the relationship between the title and the theme.

The title “Identities” really explains the whole theme, which is, if you judge people on how they appear (ie. their identity), you could potentially be neglecting to really understand just who that person is on the inside.

How does the main conflict help to illustrate the theme?

The main conflict is how this innocent man was stereotyped to be a gang member, judging solely on his appearance, and how he had been driving such an upper class car. He did not appear clean-shaven and was wearing jeans. The officer assumed that this man was a criminal and that he was jeopardizing his life. That is also the theme, how we should never make assumptions about the inner quality of this person, because if we do we could possibly be making a terrible mistake.

How does the climax help to illustrate the theme?

The climax is the best example of the theme because the cop has assumed that just because this un-shaven man is in this bad part of town, and supposedly owns a Mercedes Benz, he has to be a criminal. The man reaches for his "identity" to prove that he is not a "bad guy" but it was to late, the officer already had made a misconception.

Give examples of each of the following literary terms in the story (use quotes):

Simile:

“Paper clogs the fence like drifted snow...”, “the grubby children who dart back and forth like startled fish...”, “Darkness has quietly been settling like soot...”, “the store window illuminates the sidewalk like a stage...”.

Metaphor:

“The young men stand and lean in tired, __watchful knots__ close to phone booths...” " Eagles, tigers, wolves and serpents ride their backs."

Personification:

“Eagles, tigers, wolves and serpents ride their backs.”

Symbol:

Gang symbols- Eagles, Tigers, Wolves and Serpents, they are tough and are meant as gang symbols but they also represent animals.

Mercedes Benz- The car is a symbol of wealth and status, but also used as a vehicle to drive.

Foreshadowing (give both elements):

“When the officer, who is __inexperienced__...”, in the end the officer ends up making a mistake, by killing the man, who is not really a gang member. In order to protect his own life, the officer made this assumption quickly, based on his ‘gut reaction’ and this man’s appearance; he mistakenly assumed that this man was “bad”.

Irony:

The police man was expected to save the good man, instead he killed the man. “he does not feel fear but relief...” “certain of his safety...”. The man did not expect this; he felt safe.

Dramatic Irony- We know that a police car is following the man, but he does not realize that himself.

Imagery:

One example that stood out for me was “beyond the light, everything is obscured by darkness...”

Describe the relationships between the class theme and the story.

Just because a person is not very well-groomed or well-dressed, others may assume that he or she is somewhat less human and less valuable to the society. In the same way, one may assume that a stunning, well-dressed person is more capable and more intelligent. In the story, the police and the man both made the assumption that the way we appear reflects what we are, when in fact that’s not true at all. The story’s theme of making incorrect assumptions based solely on one’s appearance or “identity”, is a theme that many of us, as humans, struggle with as well. One can never understand another’s inner “identity”, judging only from the ‘outer shell’. Everybody makes these assumptions; it’s a part of our life, but we can learn from our mistakes and try not to stereotype as often.

Complete 5/5

Effort 5/5

Content 5/5

Paragraph 5/5

total 20/20