SIFT A Literary Analysis Method

SIFT Method Symbol: examine the text and title for symbolism Images: identify images and sensory details Figures of Speech: analyze figurative language and other devices Tone and Theme: discuss how all devices reveal tone and theme

Symbols: Signs of Something More Our everyday lives are heaped with symbols: These commonly accepted symbols are called public symbols

Symbols in Literature Writers create new, personal symbols in their work. In literature, a symbol is an object, a setting, an event, an animal, or even a person that functions in the story the way you’d expect it to, but also stands for something more than itself, usually for something abstract.

Moby Dick The white whale in Moby Dick is a very real white whale in the novel, and Captain Ahab spends the whole book chasing it. BUT- certain passages let the readers know that the whale is ASSOCIATED with the mystery of evil in the world. Symbols work by ASSOCIATION!

Is it a symbol? Guidelines to follow… Symbols are often visual. When some event or object or setting is used as a symbol in the story, you will usually find that the writer has given it a great deal of emphasis. Often it reappears throughout the story. A symbol in literature is a form of figurative language. Like a metaphor, a symbol is something that is identified with something else that is very different from it, but that shares some quality. A symbol usually has something to do with a story’s theme.

(SIFT) Images Identify images and sensory details. Imagery helps to promote mood and tone. What do I see, hear, taste, smell or feel? What effect is the author trying to convey with these images? Writers use language to create sensory impressions and to create specific responses to characters, events, object, or situations in their works. The writer “shows” rather than “tells”

Tone & Mood Tone: The attitude that an AUTHOR takes toward the audience, subject, or the character. Tone is conveyed through the author’s word and details. angry-challenging-sarcastic-outraged-humorous Mood: The emotions that the READER feels while reading; the atmosphere of the story. Mood is conveyed through character emotions, setting and other elements. romantic-gloomy-optimistic-sad-hopeful

(SIFT) Figures of Speech Analyze figurative language and other devices. Writers form images by using figures of speech such as simile, metaphors, hyperbole, and personification. Other devices can include: irony, allusion

(SIFT) Theme and Tone Theme: central, underlying, and controlling idea of a literary work. Abstract concept represented by a character, by actions, or by images in the literary work. A generalization about human conduct. Ordinarily expressed in a full sentence and it may even require a full paragraph.

Theme= What it is NOT Cannot be expressed in a single word. Not the purpose of the work (entertainment or instruction) Man versus nature is not a theme, it is a conflict. Unlike a moral or fable, the theme is seldom, if ever, stated. It is never a cliché.

How Do I Figure Out the Theme? You must first understand the plot, the characterization and conflict, the imagery, and the author’s tone. Identify the subject in one word… Then, explain in one or two sentences what the author says about the subject. NOTE: Many stories/novels have more than one theme and there is seldom just one “right” answer!

For Example… Literature: To Kill A Mockingbird Subject: Racism Possible Theme: Justice is often withheld from economically deprived racial minorities.

Shift in Tone Good authors rarely use only one tone! A speaker’s attitude may be complex… An author might have one attitude toward the audience and another attitude toward the subject.

How to analyze tone: Diction: the connotation of word choice S D I L S Diction: the connotation of word choice Images: Imagery that appeals to the senses Details: Facts and details that the author has included (does not appeal to the senses) Language: Formal? Cliché? Jargon? Figurative Language? Sentence Structure: Long or short sentences?