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AS and A Level
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English Literature
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Angela Carter
How Far and in what ways, do you think that narrative variety is important to the overall effectiveness of The Bloody Chamber collection?

How Far and in what ways, do you think that narrative variety is important to the overall effectiveness of The Bloody Chamber collection?

Angela Carter uses many different narrative techniques in The Bloody Chamber collection. Her main inspiration is obviously from fairy tales and Carter adopts many techniques from the folkloric genre. Yet her stories are made more contemporary by the way in which she fuses this tradition with other styles, allowing her to satirise the society that she wrote for.

Paragraph one: Folkloric Techniques

Point- Carter uses a lot of techniques from fairy tales.

Examples- there is a lot of examples:

The simple sentence structure in the opening of the werewolf (W) for example. She often also misses out conjunctures.
The opening of the company of wolves (CW) is an amalgamation of folklore. What effect does this have on the story? To me it creates an unreal world that is dangerous. The use of all the superstition gives it a rich and gives the impression of the aural tradition of passing down generations.
Anonymous, there is no names for the majority of the characters. What is the purpose of this narrative device? Is Carter removing personality from the characters and making the lessons apply to all women? “If she deals with established stereotypes in The Bloody Chamber rather than fully-fleshed out characters, then this is because fairy tales clothe themselves in stereotypes and archetypes” http://www.themodernword.com/scriptorium/carter.html#Anchor-14210
With the exception of the Tigers Bride (TB) and BC all of the stories are in the third/2nd person similar to folklore. The third person narrator gives a omniscient and wise sense to the stories. The second person sounds authoritative and commanding. Look for examples of this on PG 111. This technique gives the narrator the aspect of experience, which was one of the original uses of fairy tales to pass on experience from one generation to the next.
Fairy Stories all work on different levels, the superficial, and then deeper psychological levels.
No speech marks- gives the impression that its not formal, blurs the line between thoughts and speech, gives a psychological analysis possible, with theses stories being representative of us expressing in our dreams what we are too repressed to say out loud

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Explanation- you can make each of the examples above into points is you want to and then form your entire essay from this. I’d suggest taking a couple of the ones you feel you can talk about most like narrative structure and making these points. Talk about how they come from folklore and what their role was in fairy tales. Then say how Carter has used them, what effect it has and what point she makes through them.

Paragraph two: New techniques that Carter has included

Point- Carter changes certain traditional values radically and adds to them to ...

This is a preview of the whole essay

Paragraph two: New techniques that Carter has included

Point- Carter changes certain traditional values radically and adds to them to update fairy stories for a more adult generation.

long descriptive sentences. I think you raised this pointing class so wont bother to explain significance. But what effect does it have on the stories?
First person technique in BC and also in TB. What effect does this have on the way you view the story. Traditionally first person technique allows you to empathise with the characters more and what they undergo, but are more biased. Are these stories less fairy stories and more tales of fantasy? (Who narrates this section? What does this imply about the narrative perspective? Is the narrative chronological? What are the effects of the narrative style adopted? (From an internet site )). In these tales we get much more of an idea about character interrelations.
Narrative technique creates tone in the stories. For example in the Erl King the lexical construction of the wood presents it as an unhealthy and dangerous place to be. Also creates the sense that she is lost through (i.e. long complex sentence structure creates the sense of disorientation echoing women’s journey through woods/live).

Explanation- Carters own narrative techniques and the slants on the traditional techniques are used by her to create and strengthen her interpretations of the stories.

Paragraph three: Gothic Techniques

Carter is highly influenced by the gothic tradition in both Wolf Alice and Lady of the house of love. What does this add to the stories? The sense of danger and also convention as associated with the wolves, was all I could come up with, if you can think of more let me know. Possibly creates the feeling of darkness and incarceration mirroring the femal characters in the novel.

Paragraph three: Commedia dell'arte (basically pantomime) from puss in boots

Its popularity in Renaissance Europe can be attributed to the talents and special skills of the actors who were acrobats, dancers, musicians, orators, quick wits, and improvisers possessing thorough insights into politics and human nature- like carter does. Her stories are a mockery taking characters we are very familiar with and having them act in an exaggerated way in order to make the points of women role, politics and sexual desire

“Commedia pokes fun at elements of society's respectable values by means of exaggerated styles and insightful character traits”

I don’t really get either of the last two points fully or partially and I’m not to bothered by them but I think if you mention them during your essay where you can will be enough to show further narrative variety, and look smart.

Paragraph five/ conclusion: the fusion of them and what points Carter makes through there usage?

Carter fuses all of these narrative techniques and is also influenced by other genres which were involved in social criticism at other points in history to create her own social commentary. Her style changes accordingly throughout the text interweaving techniques such as sentence structure, different perspectives and also anonymity. This enables her to withstand her reader’s interest and keep her work fresh and effective.

This is examined like the first peace of coursework we wrote: so remember to include: how it helps Carter criticise on patriarchal society.

Try to give different viewpoints form other readings, so what in carters narrative techniques support a feminist reading of the text compared to a Jungian or Freudian reading.

How is it effective in aiding the presentation of Carters main themes?

Other quotes from different readers “She is led to her rooms in The Beast's palazzo, where she is told by his valet that if she will only reveal herself naked to The Beast, she will be restored to her father. As she ponders this offer, she recalls the tales told to her by her nurse about the tiger-man who "if this young lady was not a good little girl...would put on his big black traveling cloak lined with fur, just like your daddy's...and ride through the night straight to the nursery and – Yes, my beauty! GOBBLE YOU UP!" The recitation of an oral tradition for the tale is a nice touch, coming as it does within the larger frame of a written version; it also advances the plot by enumerating the narrator's anxieties.”