Hey guys, I have my second English paper test tomorrow for my HSC and I need help with finding techniques for three quotes I have.
They are:
"This wasn't the place I remembered. Empty bottles and cans of beer littered the table..."
"It just got... complicated."
"... tears streaming down his face as he hugged the bottle to his chest."
I know this is a wierd question to ask, but I have looked all over the internet for literature technique definitions... but unfortunately none of them match these quotes, or they are not exactly what I am looking for hehe.
Thanks in advance for any helpful techniques.
PS: In terms of techniques I mean thinks like: metaphor, simile, assonance, symbolism, descriptive language, etc...
I don't know that there are any cliche's or catchy phrases we have (at least in the US) for these but I would rewrite them as (2 or 3 examples each)...
"This wasn't the place I remembered. Empty bottles and cans of beer littered the table..."
It looked like a tornado hit the place, beer cans and bottles were strewn all over the table.
The table looked like it got hit by a hurricane by the time I got back.
When I got back the table looked like the beer cans and bottles had gotten into a fight and neither side had won.
"It just got... complicated."
There were no easy choices left
All the simple solutions are gone and I'm batting zero.
The shit just hit the fan (or put cleanly) The fecal matter just hit the air disturbance device.
"... tears streaming down his face as he hugged the bottle to his chest."
All broken up and his last friend was in the bottle
Crying his eyes out he held the bottle like it was his only friend
Lost in his tears, he clung tight to the bottle.
Not sure if that helps but it's the best I could come up with
I don't know that there are any cliche's or catchy phrases we have (at least in the US) for these but I would rewrite them as (2 examples each)...
"This wasn't the place I remembered. Empty bottles and cans of beer littered the table..."
It looked like a tornado hit the place, beer cans and bottles were strewn all over the table.
The table looked like it got hit by a hurricane by the time I got back.
"It just got... complicated."
There were no easy choices left
All the simple solutions are gone and I'm batting zero.
"... tears streaming down his face as he hugged the bottle to his chest."
All broken up and his last friend was in the bottle
Crying his eyes out he held the bottle like it was his only friend
Not sure if that helps but it's the best I could come up with
Thanks for the reply, but not quiet exactly what I am looking for.
What you gave me was more of a meaning behind the quotes. What I need is sort of a technical word or phrase (english jargon --- jargon is also a technique: professional words use in specific professions. i.e, cookies, BTW, FYI, OMG, black-eye, etc...) that identifies what technique that specific quote used. Some basic examples are:
"She was as high as a kite" - simile
"There will be 10 billion players in Diablo 3" - hyperbole
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times" - paradox
Yeah I understood what you were after, I'm just drawing blanks on all fronts for each of those, descriptive words is the best i can come up with off the cuff.
Yeah I understood what you were after, I'm just drawing blanks on all fronts for each of those, descriptive words is the best i can come up with off the cuff.
Yeah thanks, I already used that for one of them lol... But that's exactly what I mean =)
I'm trying to look for techniques that will impress the markers though... I mean things like metaphor and such are pretty common and boring. But if you say something like 'incluing', 'theriomorphism' and other such words. It just sounds far more intelligent lol.
Sorry it's pushing midnight here, I'm heading to bed. The best I can come up with is. The table was so littered with empty bottles and cans that you had to play hopscotch to get around.
Call it depressive language. A technique used to portray feelings of sadness etc.
The use of the term 'wasn't' implies that the individual had fonder memories of the 'place', which where not met on return, which comes across as a feeling of disappointment. Further, the phrase 'empty bottles and cans of beer littered the table' uses descriptive words and imagery to create an environment of unpleasantness and dirtiness which further adds to the depressive tone of the quote. Hope this helps. Remember, the idea with English is that every answer is correct as long as you can support and argue it.
On another less helpful note, I can't believe they teach this useless shit at high school.
They are:
"This wasn't the place I remembered. Empty bottles and cans of beer littered the table..."
"It just got... complicated."
"... tears streaming down his face as he hugged the bottle to his chest."
I know this is a wierd question to ask, but I have looked all over the internet for literature technique definitions... but unfortunately none of them match these quotes, or they are not exactly what I am looking for hehe.
Thanks in advance for any helpful techniques.
PS: In terms of techniques I mean thinks like: metaphor, simile, assonance, symbolism, descriptive language, etc...
"This wasn't the place I remembered. Empty bottles and cans of beer littered the table..."
"It just got... complicated."
"... tears streaming down his face as he hugged the bottle to his chest."
Not sure if that helps but it's the best I could come up with
Thanks for the reply, but not quiet exactly what I am looking for.
What you gave me was more of a meaning behind the quotes. What I need is sort of a technical word or phrase (english jargon --- jargon is also a technique: professional words use in specific professions. i.e, cookies, BTW, FYI, OMG, black-eye, etc...) that identifies what technique that specific quote used. Some basic examples are:
"She was as high as a kite" - simile
"There will be 10 billion players in Diablo 3" - hyperbole
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times" - paradox
"Fight Night" - assonance
Do you get what I mean? - colloquial language
Yeah thanks, I already used that for one of them lol... But that's exactly what I mean =)
I'm trying to look for techniques that will impress the markers though... I mean things like metaphor and such are pretty common and boring. But if you say something like 'incluing', 'theriomorphism' and other such words. It just sounds far more intelligent lol.
tears streaming down his face as he hugged the bottle to his chest."
Crying in his beer
I already have:
"It just got... complicated." - emotive language
"... tears streaming down his face as he hugged the bottle to his chest." - descriptive language
I just need:
"This wasn't the place I remembered. Empty bottles and cans of beer littered the table..."
I was thinking of colloquialism but this technique is only used in the word "wasn't"...
Unsophisticated just got complicated
(Sorry saw your post after I posted)
This to me reeks of reflectivism with a bit of descriptive language thrown in on the side.
Please note I am not an english teacher and I took my HSC well over 10 years ago now.
The use of the term 'wasn't' implies that the individual had fonder memories of the 'place', which where not met on return, which comes across as a feeling of disappointment. Further, the phrase 'empty bottles and cans of beer littered the table' uses descriptive words and imagery to create an environment of unpleasantness and dirtiness which further adds to the depressive tone of the quote. Hope this helps. Remember, the idea with English is that every answer is correct as long as you can support and argue it.
On another less helpful note, I can't believe they teach this useless shit at high school.
I finished english, now I have engineering tomorrow. =(