BRITISH LITERATURE

HISTORY( Typical features, famous authors, unique contribution)

PERIOD HISTORICAL SPECIAL Major author &
BACKGROUND FEATURES( DOMINAN important works
T FORMS+
WRINGTING STYLES)
OLD Surviving works Epic poetry, hagiography, Beowulf_ most
ENGLISH(450- from Anglo-Saxo sermons, bible translations, famous work( an
1066) England, after legal works, epic poem,
settlement of the chronicles,riddles and anonymus anglo-
Saxons and other others. saxon poet)
Germanic tribes in Oral tradition+ epic poetry Nowell Codex
England, as the Jutes very popular. ( only surviving
and Angles, after the 2 styles: the heroic manucript
withdrawal of the Germanic and the Christian Caedmon’s Hymp
Romans and “ending Most popular-well known (Caedmon is the
soon after the of old english poetry is earliest poet who
Norman Conquest” alliterature verse(use name is known,
accent, quantity of the Caemond’s
vowel,alliteration..) Hymn is earliest
surviving work)
Ruthwel Cross&
Franks Casket are
3 candidates for
the earliest
attested example
for the old english
poetry in germanic
language.
MIDDLE AGE After the norman Religious literature Most popular-
ENGLISH( 1066- conquest in 1066, popular, hagiographies influence written
1485) under the influence of were written, adapted & was Geoffrey
the new aristocracy, translated ( the Life of Chaucer, the fisrt
law French became Saint Audrey, Eadmer’s, great English poet
the standard language contemporary biography of with many
of courts,parliament Anselm of Canterbury& tones,styles and
& polite society. the south English genres. 1 of most
Language&literature Legendary) famous works is
 mingled with that of End of 12th Century The Canterbury
natives & Norman Layamond’s Brut adapted Tales (an epic
dialects of ruling Wace to make the first story of Pilgrims..)
classes -> Anglo- English to discuss The with structure is
Norman. legend of Author and Frame Narrative,
Political no longer in Knights of the round table.( then become 1 of
England hands. -> the first historiography most popular
west Saxon literary written in E since The story-telling
no influence. Anglo-Saxon Chronicle) techniques in the
Middle English was New form of English history.
written in many envolved. Most popular
dialects... In the middle of 12th alliterature works
century, revival in are: Pearl, Purity
alliterature poetry. & Patience.
group of poems
written by
unknown poet.
The fourth work
found in the same
manucript and
seems like the
same author.
Sir Gawain& the
Green
Knight_finest
Authorian roman
in this period.
- Popular
poets
William Langland
Sir Thomas
Melory
Jonh Gower
THE The renaissance The content of this period William
ELIZABETHAN period marks the true mainly cover: world view Shakepearl- the
(1485-1603) start of the major shifts from religion & most famous
+(1603- 1660) THE artistic movement afterlife to one stressing writer( both poet
RENAISSANCE throughout Europe. the human life on earth; &playwright with
This period attribute popular themes, 30 plays &150
is the printing press, development of human sonnets) many of
 which took the potential & many aspects this have read in
written to the new of love explored such as books, seen on
mass-produced unrequited love, constant stage or watch in
territory. love, timeless love, courtly movie.
The written words love& love subject to Romeo&Juliet,
became King. change. King Lear &
Some history context: Sytle: Poetry(sonet), Hamlet
-Wars of Roses ends Drama supported by Key about
in 1485 & political royal(tragedies, literature&author
stability comedies,histories), - William
- Printing press helps metaphysical Shakespeare
stabilize English as a poetry(elaborate& - John Dones
language& allows unexpected metaphors - Cavaliers
more people to read called conceits) Poets
-Economy changes Commoner welcomed at - Metaphysic
from farm-based to some play productions. al Poets
one of international Conservative tries to close
trade the theater on the
ground(promote brazen
behaviors)
Not all the middle class
embrace the metaphysical
poets& abstract conceits.

Figure of Speech:
Metaphor( ẩn dụ): implied comparison (is,are)
Simile( so sánh): like,as
Personification( nhân hóa): give human feelings/character to nonhuman things
(Personification is when you describe something inanimate or not human as if it were
a person or had human-like qualities.)
Hyperbole( nói quá): exaggerations of sth not real
Repetition(từ láy): alliteration( láy đầu)/ assonance( láy đuôi)
Climax: arrangement of order( học, học nữa,học mãi)
Paradox: self contradictory statement to express the truth( chân lý)
Euphemism( nói giảm nói tránh): pleasant or indirect phrase( uyển ngữ)
Oxymoron: contracdictory terms in conjuntion( kết hợp 2 từ trái ngược, ít dùng lại
vs nhau)_happy loneliness
Synecdoche( hoán dụ): 1 bộ phận nói toàn thể và ngược lại.

WORKS:
 Sonnet 18/ William Shakepeare
William Shakepeare (1564-1616) (Hamlet, Romeo&Juliet, Macbeth, The
Tempest..) 38works, 154 sonnets
Influence on writing style
Influence on English language and literature
Inspiration to others
Wrapping up: Shakespeare is and will always be accredited for creating new
ideas, inventing, familiarising and repurposing the English language. His
words, phrases and exceptional style of expression made him one of the best
writers in the world. The stories, novels and plays that he wrote break
barriers of time and culture and are equally relevant today.
Shakespeare is a name that is not just known to people who love literature.
While Shakespeare is no longer among today’s playwrights, his writings and
efforts to promote the English language will uphold his name for years to
come. English literature might not see such an extraordinary author ever
again
Type of the poem: Love poem(Petrarchan sonnet)
The theme: The stability of love and its power to immortalize someone
Language:
Compositon: 3 quatrains and a couplet
The rhyme scheme: ababcdcdefefgg
- FIGURE OF SPEECH:

Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? => Metaphor (the speaker

compares his loved one to a summer day)
He states that she is much more "temperate" than summer which has
"rough winds." He also says she has a better complexion than the sun,
which is "dimm'd away" or fades at times. => hyperbole
The eyes of heaven( the sun) . This figurative language emphasizes the
beauty or radiance of the sun. => metaphor
Eternal summer( line 12) His underlying point lies in the fact that even
the sun (the eye of heaven) will get dim from time to time, but the beauty
of his beloved will never fade. Again, this metaphor reiterates the
fundamental comparison of this woman to a summer's day. => metaphor
Winds do shake (line 3) "Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May"
is a personification where the act of shaking is done by "Rough winds",
so a human action is referred to as a without life thing.
 Summer’s lease(line 4)/ eyes of heaven(line 5)/ his gold complexion(line
6)/Death brag(line 11) => Personification
(Repetition of the same sound at the beginning of several words in a
sequence): “(E)very fair from fair declines” (l.7) means every beauty of
everything beautiful fades away. The effect is giving emphasis on the
word “beauty.” => Alliteration
Lines (line 12) ( the part present for a whole) => Synecdoche

Sonnet 29:

Type of the poem: Love poem(Petrarchan sonnet)

The theme: talked about the power of love that has positively influenced one's
thinking
Compositon: 3 quatrains and a couplet
The rhyme scheme: ababcdcdefefgg
 - FIGURE OF SPEECH:
“like him” & “man's” => Repetition
=> Shakespeare emphasizes the speaker's obsession with what others
have and what he lacks. The speaker reveals his insecurities. The desires
unfortunately are qualities and possessions the speaker may never have.
He acknowledges that he is not "rich in hope", handsome, popular,
talented, or wise, and these feelings or inadequancy lead him to despise
himself.
“Like to the lark...” => Simile
 compare himself to a happy bird at the start of a new day leaving
behind the gloomy of the land to enjoy all the freshness and
opportunities in a new day
Alliteration /repetition
“Featured like him, like him with friends possessed.” line6
Simile
“…my state / Like to the lark at break of day arising / From sullen earth sings
hymns at heaven’s gate,” line 9,10
Personification
“Heaven deaf” line 3, “sullen earth” line 12, “lark sings the hymn”
Metaphor
“wealth” : the love he recieve line 11

 Red Red Rose:

ROBERT BURNS (1759-1796-Scotland)
(Auld Lang Syne)
One of Robert Burns’s best-known poems is the mock-heroic “Tam o'
Shanter,” published in 1791. He is also well known for his contribution to
over three hundred songs that celebrate love, friendship, work, and drink
with often hilarious and tender sympathy, such as “Auld Lang Syne.”
 Robert Burns, as a pre-Romantic poet, had a significant influence on the
later Romantic poets, such as William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor
Coleridge.

Type of the poem: Ballad Poem

The theme: Permanent, deep genuine love. Undying love/ Youth/ Aging
Composition: 4 stanzas
The rhyme scheme: abcbabcbabababab
- FIGURE OF SPEECH:
“luve like a red red rose” => Simile/ Alliteration
"Till a' the seas gang dry"
"And the rocks melt wi' the sun“ => Hyperbole
“the seas – the rocks” => Metaphor
“While the sands o’ life shall run?”
( the flow of time Personification: the sands – run) => Metaphor and
Personification
And I will love thee still, my dear => Assonance
Ten thousand mile – a long distance => Metaphor

DAFFODIL:
 William Wordsworth (1770 –1850) (lyrical ballad)
William Wordsworth was an English romantic poet who, along with Samuel
Taylor Coleridge, initiated the Romantic movement in English literature
with his Lyric Poetry. In the English poetic village, he was arranged to sit on
the mat, along with William Shakespeare and John Milton
William Wordsworth was one of the founders of English Romanticism and
one its most central figures and important intellects.
“I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud”

Type of the poem: Lyric poem

The theme: the beauty of nature
Language: simple and straightforward
Compositon: 4 stanzas ( each staza: 6 lines)
The rhyme scheme: “ABABCC”
- FIGURE OF SPEECH:
“I WANDER’D lonely as a cloud” => compare himself as a cloud => Simile
“When all at once I saw a crowd
A host, of golden daffodils” => Personification is to attribute human
characteristics to lifeless objects. The poet has personified “daffodils” in the third
line of the poem such as, “When all at once I saw a crowd.” The crowd shows the
number of daffodils
“Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze” => Personification
“Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the Milky Way,” => Simile comparing the continuity, or
endlessness, of the daffodils to the continuity of stars in the Milky Way.
“… They stretched in never - ending line …”. => Hyperbole
“Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.” => Personification ( The flower can
dancing and tossing their heads)
“The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:” => Comparison : the waves <> daffodils/
Personification: "dance")
“In such a jocund company:
I gazed -- and gazed -- but little thought” => Repetition
“I gazed -- and gazed -- but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:” => Metaphor: (Wealth - happiness
with sight of daffodils)

“They flash upon that inward eye

Which is the bliss of solitude;” => Metaphor (The poem speaks of finding a field
of daffodils beside a lake, “which is the bliss of solitude” and the thought of this
memory makes him eternally happy. The reverse personification of the speaker
creates a metaphor of comparing himself to a cloud, which creates a fundamental
unity between nature and man.)
“And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.” => Personification (heart can not dance with the
daffodils)
Oliver Twist - Chapter IV
Charles Dickens (1812 – 1870)
History: The Criticism (1832 – 1901) (3 literary forms: Prose : Novel, Poetry and
Drama)
Writing styles: The Critical socialism – trend to criticize the society and social
evils.
Major author: Charles Dickens: sense of humor, keen observation and human
sympathy (Oliver Twist, David Copperfield).
Summary:
The story of a boy who lives in an orphanage and then moves to a workhouse
where he experiences brutality.
1. Oliver is born at the workhouse, and his mother dies.
2. Oliver gets sent to live at Mrs. Mann’s baby farm.
3. He asks for more food, so they decide to send him off as an apprentice as
punishment.
4. Mrs. Sowerberry and Noah Claypole (the other apprentice) are cruel to him.
5. Oliver runs away to London.
 6. On his way, he gets picked up by the Artful Dodger, who promises to take
Oliver to a "gentleman" who will give him a place to stay.
7. Oliver finally realizes that his new companions are thieves, and runs away in
the street – but then everyone thinks he’s the pickpocket.
8. Mr. Brownlow, the man who was robbed, takes pity on Oliver and takes him
back to his house.
9. Nancy and Sikes (two members of Fagin’s gang) are on the watch for him,
and kidnap him.
10.The family of the house takes him in and they all love each other.
11.Oliver is reunited with his first friend, Mr. Brownlow.
12. Oliver inherits his share of the money, and is legally adopted by Mr.
Brownlow.
Characters:
Oliver Twist - Oliver Twist, an abused orphan, is the protagonist of the novel
(curious, observant, good-hearted)
Fagin - Fagin is a fence who trains children to be criminals (sneaky, greedy,
vindictive)
Mr. Bumble - Mr. Bumble is a parish official, a beadle who deals with the poor
being "cared for“ by the parish. (foolishness, pompous)
Mr. Sowerberry - Mr. Sowerberry is the parish undertaker who takes Oliver as an
apprentice. (tall, gaunt, hen-pecked)
Summary Chapter 4 – Oliver Twist:
1. The workhouse board decides that they will try to send Oliver out to sea
(because they want him to die quickly).
2. Oliver becomes apprenticed to Mr. Sowerberry, the local undertaker.
3. Mrs. Sowerberry remarks that Oliver is rather small (When Mrs. Sowerberry
first sees Oliver, she doesn’t like him because too small to do much work)
4. Mrs. Sowerberry feeds Oliver the leftovers that the dog has refused to eat.
5. Mrs. Sowerberry requires him to sleep among the empty coffins.
Major themes:
The ineffectiveness of charitable institutions.
The folly of individualism.
The incorruptibility of goodness. ‘
The superiority of country life.
Motif: Motifs are recurring structures, contrasts, or literary devices that can help to
develop and inform the text’s major themes.
- Disguised or Mistaken Identities: The plot of Oliver Twist revolves around
the various false identities that other characters impose upon Oliver, often
for the sake of advancing their own interests.
- Hidden Family Relationships: The revelation of Oliver’s familial ties is
among the novel’s most unlikely plot turns. The coincidences involved in
these facts are quite unbelievable and represent the novel’s rejection of
realism in favor of fantasy.
- Oliver’s Face: Oliver’s face is singled out for special attention at multiple
points in the novel. The power of Oliver’s physiognomy, combined with the
facts that Fagin is hideous and Rose is beautiful, suggests that in the world
of the novel, external appearance usually gives a fair impression of a
person’s inner character.
Major symbols:
Character’s names: The names of characters (Twist, Fagin, Mr. Bumble, etc.)
meant to represent , sometimes quite subtly, their personal qualities.
Bull’s-eye: Bill Sike’s dog, Bull’s-eye, has “faults of temper in common with his
owner” and is a symbolic emblem of his owner’s character. The dog’s viciousness
reflects and represents Sikes’s own animal-like brutality.
London Bridge: The meeting on London Bridge represents the collision of two
worlds unlikely ever to come into contact – the idyllic world of Brownlow and
Rose, and the atmostphere of degradation in which Nancy lives.
Figure of Speech:

Analysis:
1. How were Oliver, Mr.bumble and Mrs. Sowerberry described in the
story?
- Oliver is between nine and twelve years old when the main action of the
novel occurs. Though treated with cruelty and surrounded by coarseness for
most of his life, he is a pious, innocent child, and his charms draw the
 attention of several wealthy benefactors. Mrs. Sowerberry remarks that
Oliver is very small and thin.
- Mr. Bumble is the cruel, pompous beadle of the poorhouse where the
orphaned Oliver is raised. Bumbledom, named after him, characterizes the
meddlesome self-importance of the petty bureaucrat. Mr Bumble’s
appearance is invariably described in terms of his dress the official
magnificent coat with its giltedged lapel and gold laced cuff, and beautiful
buttons in which Mr Bumble takes inordinate pride.
- Sowerberry is a mean, judgmental woman who henpecks her husband. (She
offers Oliver small bits of meat that their dog wouldn't eat, and Oliver eats
them down in the basement. Mrs. Sowerberry then shows Oliver upstairs, to
the attic containing the coffins, where Oliver is to sleep.)
London Bridge represents Nancy’s opportunities to ‘ cross over to be a better way
of life.
(Twist – tại sao lại chọn từ này? Vì cái khuỷu tay linh hoạt, quay được 360 đô ̣ =>
phải uyển chuyển để dược sống trong cái xã hô ̣i này).
A twofold mood purpose:
- Exhibit the evil working of the poor Law Act with the hypocrisy, greed, self-
righteousness and folly of the authorities of the society.
- Show a faithful picture of the poor with their own stories and suffering from
hunger, cold and lack of decent living conditions.
 Themes: How the poorest people in society were treated the worst, Good
could triumph over evil.

Fight
Doris Lessing (1919-2013)
The Flight Story was in Habit of Loving collection of author Doris Lessing.
History: The modernism (1901 – present) (Literary forms: all genres
represented).
Writing styles: The modernism – psychological and anthropological works.
Major authors: Doris Lessing – The female writer who won the Nobel prize for
English Literature in 2007 (The Flight) (Hồ Xuân Hương)
Summary:
"Flight" is a 1957 short story by Doris Lessing. The story is about a grandfather,
who is having a hard time accepting his granddaughter Alice becoming a young
adult. In the beginning of the story, the old man plays with his favorite pigeons and
these little birds are seemingly his only pleasure in life. His youngest
granddaughter - Alice is about to get married with her boyfriend Steve. But, the old
man feels that she is still too young to be married and not willing to let go of her.
His daughter – Lucy tries to comfort him that Alice has grown up enough and can
start a family of her own. At the end of the story, He lets his favourite pigeon go,
almost as if he feels this is symbolic of having to let his final granddaughter go.

Analysis:
 “A late afternoon” : ẩn dụ cho tuổi tác của ông già đã ở tuổi xế chiều, đã già.
Figure of speech:
 Metaphor : + The cage: represents the old man
+ The bird: represents Alice
=> just keep the bird in the cage and doesn’t let others live to their will = the same
as the old man just keep Alice by his side and don’t want to let her go.
 The gift: A pigeon => so why? Because pigeon is a kind of bird that know
how to come back => A promise that they will come back, they won’t bỏ rơi
ông, don’t worry.
- Why does Steve give the old man a pigeon? Because a pigeon represents
Alice has already stayed in the cage and the new one that represents Steven.
 The new bird represents Steven that means the old man accepts a new
person in his life.
 Sự biến chuyển tâm trạng của the old man: Keeping (“Now you stay there”)
>< Releasing (“Now you can go”)
 At the end, “he lifted his eyes to smile proudly => a very tough decision in
his life – he realise he need to accept to let her go, he accept her have a new
life, to flight away. (Ông tự hào rằng đã làm được 1 điều rất khó khăn).
  He saw the tears run shivering off her face (Why does she cry? -> happy and
sad Her grandfather finally accepted their love. The argument between
grandfather and Alice were resolved. But the tears were a little bit sad
because her childhood was over, left the house and flew away like the birds)
=> an open plot (kết mở)
 Tại sao Alice và Steven tại sao lại hẹn hò tại gate & garden? => Đó là con
đường mới, không biết con đường phía trước ra sao (Alice khóc, phải xa gia
đình).
Themes: We must let go of what we can not change and how to accept the reality
in order to move on with life.

Romeo and Juliet - William Shakespeare

Literary devices:
1. Genre: : Shakespearean tragedy (Bi kịch)
2. Setting: Verona, Italy
The play is set in the thirteenth or fourteenth century in Italy in Verona and
Mantua. Much of the action takes place in Juliet’s house. Two cities of Venice are
also mentioned in the play. The Capulets and the Montagues, the main families of
the play, are from noble lineage and wealth; they dress well, live in fancy
surroundings, and are served by many attendants. The play’s basic setting,
therefore, is rich and elegant.
3. Summary
An age-old vendetta between two powerful families erupts into bloodshed. A
group of masked Montagues risk further conflict by gatecrashing a Capulet party.
A young lovesick Romeo Montague falls instantly in love with Juliet Capulet, who
is due to marry her father’s choice, the County Paris. With the help of Juliet’s
nurse, the women arrange for the couple to marry the next day, but Romeo’s
attempt to halt a street fight leads to the death of Juliet’s own cousin, Tybalt, for
which Romeo is banished. In a desperate attempt to be reunited with Romeo, Juliet
follows the Friar’s plot and fakes her own death. The message fails to reach
Romeo, and believing Juliet dead, he takes his life in her tomb. Juliet wakes to find
Romeo’s corpse beside her and kills herself. The grieving family agree to end their
feud.

4. Climax: Mistakenly believing that Juliet is dead, Romeo kills himself on her

funeral bier by drinking poison. Juliet wakes up, finds Romeo dead, and
fatally stabs herself with his dagger.
5. Characters:
Major Characters
Romeo: The hero and one of the protagonists of Romeo and Juliet. The son of Old
Montague, he is at first in love with Lord Capulet’s niece, Rosaline. When he goes
to a feast given by Capulet, he attends the feast in a mask, meets Capulet’s
daughter Juliet, falls in love with her, and becomes passionate and impulsive.
Juliet: The heroine and one of the protagonists of the play. She is the thirteen-
year-old daughter of Capulet. She is a happy, romantic, and an innocent girl who
falls in love with Romeo.
Friar Lawrence: The person who is responsible for helping Romeo and Juliet. He
is a good man with good intentions.
Nurse: A friend, guide, confidante, and educator of Juliet. She has raised Juliet and
is truly fond of her. She is a realist, who is fond of talking and joking. She often
provides comic relief to the play
6. Themes:
The Abiding Quality of Romantic Love: Although presented as a short-term
expression of youthful passion, Romeo and Juliet’s love for each other ultimately
wins over every form of social constraints. The abiding quality of their selfless
love is an essential theme of the play. It serves to reinforce the claim that if
authentic lovers cannot be united in this world, they can certainly be together in the
life hereafter.
Individual vs. Society: The conflict between individual desires and social
institutions is a recurrent theme in “Romeo and Juliet”. The young lovers’ struggle
against their respective families is the most important theme. By opting for
individual fulfillment as opposed to social traditions, both Romeo and Juliet refuse
to follow the commands of their families. They illustrate the triumph of an
individual’s will over social customs. On a metaphorical level, this courage
highlights the threat that young love poses to the absurd social traditions.

7. Irony
 Verbal Irony
This Shakespeare play is full of irony. One example of verbal irony is when Juliet
tells her mother, "I will not marry yet; and, when I do, I swear it shall be Romeo,
whom you know I hate, rather than Paris." But readers know that Juliet is planning
to marry Romeo that very night. She’s throwing shade at her mom.
 Dramatic Irony
“pair of star-cross’d lovers take their life… “(Prologue 6)
The aforementioned verse, taken from the prologue, highlights the first instance of
dramatic irony in the play. In this line, the chorus asserts that the play about is
going to revolve around two lovers who commit suicide.
The irony resides in the fact that this tragic end is revealed to the audience but not
to the characters involved in it. Thus, from the outset, the audience becomes aware
that Romeo and Juliet’s love is destined to fail whereas the main characters remain
oblivious to this fact.
“Whose misadventur’d piteous overthrows
Doth, with their death, bury their parents’ strife.” (Prologue 7-8)
The above revelation is made by the chorus in the prologue of the play. Referring
to the deaths of the two passionate lovers, the chorus emphasizes that the legacy of
rivalry between the Capulets and Montagues will only end after the tragic deaths of
their children, Romeo and Juliet.
The irony is inherent in the fact that the unfortunate deaths of two lovers will bring
about a peaceful resolution to an otherwise long-standing conflict between their
families. The irony is further intensified by the fact that while the audience is
aware of it, the two rival families remain obstinately unaware of the consequences
of their animosity.
“This holy shrine, the gentle fine is this:
My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand
To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss.” (I.v. 105-107)
These heartfelt lines are uttered by a love-struck Romeo who regards himself as an
ardent pilgrim and Juliet as his scared shrine. As a self-professed and devoted
pilgrim, Romeo pleads that he be allowed to kiss his holy shrine. The ironic fact
about the entire wooing incident is that at this stage Romeo is not aware that Juliet
is the daughter of the Capulets, his family’s archrivals. Thus, he unknowingly falls
in love with his nemesis.
 Situational irony
Romeo and Juliet plan to spend eternity together – just as the stars in the heavens.
They do spend eternity together. It's just not the way the audience hoped. They will
be together forever, but because they are dead.

8. Metaphors
Romeo begins by using the sun as a metaphor for his beloved Juliet:
“It is the east, and Juliet is the sun.
Arise fair sun and kill the envious moon
Who is already sick and pale with grief
That thou her maid art far more fair than she.” (2.2.3–6)
In these same lines Romeo has furthered his metaphor by using personification. He
creates for us the idea that the moon is a woman who is “sick and pale with grief,”
seemingly jealous of Juliet’s beauty.
“My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand
To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss.” (I. v. 106-107)
This heartfelt and sentimental metaphorical expression is delivered by Romeo and
compares Romeo’s trembling lips to two devoted pilgrims eager to kiss their holy
object of worship. Hence, this graphic comparison implies that Romeo perceives
Juliet as a demi-goddess and regards himself as her blind follower – a follower
whose lips are desperate to plant a passionately reverential kiss on their holy
shrine.
“But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?
It is the East, and Juliet is the sun.” (II. ii. 2-3)
This verse is another beautiful exchange that takes place between Romeo and Juliet
during the famous balcony scene. In these beautiful and vivid verses, Romeo
compares Juliet to the sun. This metaphor implies that Romeo perceives Juliet as
being incredibly bright, radiant and glorious. Moreover, the sun is regarded as the
life-giving element of the universe. The comparison between the sun and Juliet
illustrates that Romeo sees Juliet as the quintessential life-giving being.

QUITE AMERICAN - Graham Greene

Literary devices
1. Genre: Political fiction; anti-war novel; satire
2. Setting
Greene wrote the book during stays in Saigon’s Hotel Continental between March
1952 and June 1955.
3. Characters
- British journalist Thomas Fowler is the narrator and protagonist of The
Quiet American. Blunt, charming, and intelligent, Fowler is a man who gets
straight to the point. He has a wife named Helen in England from whom he
is estranged, but during his time in Vietnam he engages in a serious affair
with a young woman named Phuong.
- Phuong is a young Vietnamese woman who has relationships with both
Fowler and Pyle over the course of The Quiet American. She is quiet and
reserved by nature, and maintains a stoic facade even in the most trying
circumstances. Frequently mistaken as a prostitute, Phuong's secondary role
 in the novel alludes to the position of Vietnamese women at this point in
time.
- Vigot: The French policeman who interrogates Fowler about Pyle's death.
He represents the overtaxed French police and the complexity of the war as
he tries to figure out what happened to Alden Pyle.
- Alden Pyle, the titular Quiet American, is an ardent believer in the power
and virtue of American foreign policy. Fowler frequently criticizes Pyle for
being blind to what is actually happening around him. This is most evident
when Pyle supplies bomb materials to General Thé in hopes that he is the
"Third Force" that the Americans will be able to back to secure democracy
in French Indochina. Pyle is also involved in a love triangle with Fowler and
Phuong, and manages to woo Phuong away from her relationship with
Fowler with promises of marriage and a fresh start in America.
4. Plot (Conflict)
The major conflict in The Quiet American plays out between the cynical and
ironic Englishman, Thomas Fowler, and the sincere and serious American, Alden
Pyle.
Rising Action: As Pyle threatens to take Phuong away from Fowler, and as his
involvement in the politics of the region become clear, the American’s
interventionist goals increasingly come into conflict with Fowler and his
commitment to impartiality.
Climax: When Fowler stands at his window and gives the signal that sets the plan
to kill Pyle in motion, he can no longer pretend to be a disengaged or neutral
observer e has made a direct intervention in the political landscape.
Falling Action After giving the signal, Fowler deeply questions what he has done,
but he is unable to confess his involvement to Phuong or to the French inspector
Vigot.
5. Theme: The danger of “innocence”; The impossibility of remaining
neutral; The insufficiency of abstract thinking.
The injustice of so many innocent deaths: The fate of innocent people is a
frequent point of contention in The Quiet American. When Fowler travels north to
report on the war, he experiences the reality for most normal Vietnamese civilians
who are simply trying to survive. He observes men, women, and children from all
faiths and beliefs crowding together in a cathedral because it is the only place they
will be safe - political ideology and religion are only distant concepts here, and yet
- it is these lofty ideals that have driven these people from their homes to suffer in
the cold.
The violence during the war: Greene explores the theme of violence through
Fowler's reflections on his time in Vietnam. Fowler often goes back and forth
about the concept of guilt in the act of committing violence, allowing violence, or
failing to stop violence from occurring. He later realizes that in remaining neutral,
he does not stop violence, either, which also makes him guilty.
6. Irony
 Fowler's Guilt (Verbal Irony)
After finding out about Pyle's death, Phuong spends the night with Fowler, and
Fowler wakes in the middle of the night to find his hand between her legs. He
wonders, "Am I the only one who really cared for Pyle?" (19). This line is ironic
because Fowler is the one who caused Pyle's death and has also benefited from it
because he now has Phuong back. Here, Greene uses verbal irony to hint at
Fowler's guilt about helping to arrange Pyle's murder.
 Non-Linear Narrative (Dramatic Irony)
Like many mysteries, The Quiet American often relies on dramatic irony to create
suspense. Because of the non-linear narrative, the characters in the novel often
know less than the reader at any given point. For example, the reader learns in the
first chapter of the novel that Pyle is dead and that Vigot suspects Fowler in his
murder. This knowledge propels the reader's interest throughout the flashbacks, as
we search the earlier interactions between Pyle and Fowler for possible
motivations or clues.