A+Mountain+Journey

Short Stories - Literary Devises Title: A Mountain Journey

Point of View: Third Person.

Protagonist: Dave Conroy.

What type of character is the Protagonist? Flat.

Antagonist: Himself and the environment.

Describe the setting: Jasper National Park, Alberta. At the end of Winter. Lonely, cold and nature.

Type of Conflict: Man Vs. Environment.

Describe the main conflict: He was confused about what kind of decisions he had to make. For example, when he fell through the ice he didn’t know if he should warm up or just keep on moving.

Describe the Climax of the Story: “He came up from the river through the timber into the cabin clearing.” I think this is where the climax of the story starts because this is where everything starts to go down hill.

How does the Protagonist change over the course of the story? He goes from in good shape, and warm in all his furs, the further into the story you go he gets colder and more desperate for warmth and shelter.

Describe the relationship between the title and the theme. I think the theme is about Survival and Power. The title, “A Mountain Journey”, could relate to the theme in many different ways. The title relates to the theme because you could think of it like a journey that progresses and develops, although it does not develop into something good.

How does the main conflict help to illustrate the theme? The main conflict illustrates the theme because it shows survival. Quick decisions aren’t always the answer.

How does the climax help to illustrate the theme? It shows a gamble of survival.

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

Simile: “That tree, like a strong and lonely woman.”

<span style="font: normal normal normal 14px/normal Tahoma; letter-spacing: 0px; line-height: 20px; margin: 0px;">Metaphor: “The cold was an old man’s fingers feeling craftily through his clothes.”

<span style="font: normal normal normal 14px/normal Tahoma; letter-spacing: 0px; line-height: 20px; margin: 0px;">Personification: “Whose breath had hung stubby icicles.”

<span style="font: normal normal normal 14px/normal Tahoma; letter-spacing: 0px; line-height: 20px; margin: 0px;">Symbol: I think that the cabin was a symbol for Dave Conroy because it pushed him to go on and gave him hope.

<span style="font: normal normal normal 14px/normal Tahoma; letter-spacing: 0px; line-height: 20px; margin: 0px;">Foreshadowing (give both elements): When he falls in the river and decides to go on, you can predict that it won’t end well.

<span style="font: normal normal normal 14px/normal Tahoma; letter-spacing: 0px; line-height: 20px; margin: 0px;">Irony: The trapper who was trapping animals got trapped by the environment. Situational Irony.

<span style="font: normal normal normal 14px/normal Tahoma; letter-spacing: 0px; line-height: 20px; margin: 0px;">Imagery: “Mist, like the shadow of universal darkness on the treeless summit, moved about him, searched every crevice of the mountain land, roamed in great billows, formed in the blindness and suffering of eternal homelessness.” This quote puts a very vidid image into my mind, it is like I am there in the story experiencing his situation.

<span style="font: normal normal normal 14px/normal Tahoma; letter-spacing: 0px; line-height: 20px; margin: 0px;">Describe the relationships between the class theme and the story.

<span style="font: normal normal normal 14px/normal Tahoma; letter-spacing: 0px; line-height: 20px; margin: 0px;">I think that the theme of this story was Survival. This relates to our class theme (Power) very well because you need to have power in yourself in able to survive. Dave gave all his hope and power in himself to try to survive. Unfortunately, that was not enough. He spent days in the cold trying to get to the cabin, although it was no longer in usable condition. He used up every bit of power left in his body.

<span style="display: block; font: normal normal normal 14px/normal Tahoma; line-height: 19px; margin: 0px; text-align: center;"> Character Sketch

<span style="display: block; font: normal normal normal 14px/normal Tahoma; line-height: 19px; margin: 0px; text-align: justify;"> Dave Conroy possesses a few different character tra <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 14px/normal Tahoma; letter-spacing: 0px; line-height: 19px; margin: 0px;">its, hi s character traits are what shapes the story and what makes the story end the way it does. Three important characters traits are that he is determined, adventurous, and brave. One of Dave’s leading character traits is that he is very determined. He was determined to get to the cabin and be able to rest with shelter. He had his heart set on getting into the cabin and <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 14px/normal Tahoma; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px;">gave it his all(too informal) to get there. This quote, "His legs moving back and forth beneath him seemed tireless. They could go on forever and he no longer knew whether or not he could stop them.", shows that he <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 14px/normal Tahoma; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px;">doesn't give up easily. <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 14px/normal Tahoma; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px;"> Although, through his expedition his level of determination decreased. In this story, Dave came across as a very adventurous character. Through out the story he was risking his life, like when he fell through the river and decided to just keep going. Dave was traveling all by himself on a high mountain with extreme weather conditions. Dave chose to ski over a river, instead of on the mountain because it would be fa <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 14px/normal Tahoma; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px;">ster, skiin g on a river is quite adventurous because there are risks of it breaking, which it did. He was definitely experiencing a mountain journey. His character trait that over powers the others has to be how brave he is. Dave traveled all by himself through the mountains of Alberta. He had no shelter and was facing the cold, harsh wilderness. "Anyways, a man with was a fool to travel alone in the mountains, especially with a heavy pack, bucking a free fall of snow." Only someone who truly believed in them self would be able to take the risk of being alone on a expedition. <span style="color: #ff0000; font: normal normal normal 14px/normal Tahoma; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px;">Dave Conroy possesses more character traits than just these three, but these three were excellent examples of a few of his character trait s. These characters traits suit him very well and the decisions he made in the story. Watch out for comma splice problems! Good use of quotes and support of your ideas. The second to last sentence just seems unnecessary. 5/6