lesson_7_invisible_man(看不见的人)

Setting-time & location



Place Time Weather Social conditions Mood
Plot-sequence of connected events
introduction, rising action, crisis, climax, falling action and resolution (untying of the knot, conclusion).
History of New York (1809) The Sketch Book (1820) Bracebridge Hall (1822) Best known stories: “Rip Van Winkle” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow”.
O’ Henry (1862-1910) (popular writer)
Unit 7 Invisible Man Chapter I (Battle Royal)
By Ralph Ellison
What is novel?
1. Fictional prose narrative 2. Considerable length and some complexity 3. Deals imaginatively with human experience through a connected sequence of events 4. Involving a group of persons in a specific setting
climax
crisis falling action rising action
introduction
resolution
Modern novels

less stereotyped
usually with no formal introduction.

character

Person — protagonist & antagonist Characteristics of a person Physical appearance Words and deeds Other people‘s reaction Basic principle to create a character: consistent, motivated, and life-like
Preview Questions
1. 2. 3.
4.
What is the multiple meanings of the title? What can we learn from the opening paragraph? Where is the setting (Place/Time/Weather/Social conditions/Mood) of the Battle Royal? Why do you think the author sets the story like that particularly? What is the point-of-view of the novel? Why do you think the author adopt such writing style?



Point of view: the angle from which the story is told
1. 2. 3. 4. Innocent Eye Stream of Consciousness First Person Omniscient普遍存在 a) Omniscient Limited b) Omniscient Objective

What is novel?

The genre encompasses 围绕a wide range of types and styles:
1. picaresque (adventure), 2. epistolary (correspondence), 3. gothic (mystery and ghost-like), 4. romantic, 5. realistic, 6. historical novels


Please collect the ideas of the group and make a 2minute coherent and complete speech. You may take a note but no book!
The Title




The Invisible Man is the narrator and protagonist Novel chronicles his path to realizing his invisibility Invisibility is figurative, metaphorical, societal; not recognized by society People see him as a stereotype
Setting of the Battle Royal


In a leading hotel in the town. A gathering of the leading white men of the town Battle Royal – a kind of entertainment Personal feeling of the author?
1. 2. 3.

Conflict -any form of opposition that faces the main character

External & internal conflict
Man vs. man (physical) Man vs. circumstances (classical) Man vs. society (social) Man vs. himself (psychological)
one of the most prolific modern American short story writers (writing 300 titles)
Stereotypical stories: self-sacrificing family member who is undergoing hardship to help a close relative plot full of coincidence surprise ending best known stories: Cabbages and Kings (1904) The Gift of the Magi (1905 ) The Four Million(1906) The Trimmed Lam (1907) Heart of the West (1907) The Gentle Grafter (1908) … etc.
Point of View

First person narrator
The invisible man The story is his perception Narrator‘s treatment of other characters mirrors the way he himself has been treatedeveryone except the narrator is onedimensional character type
Comments on Battle Royal


This episode is the high point of the excellent novel. ―Take the ‗Battle Royal‘ passage in my novel, where the boys are blindfolded and forced to fight each other for the amusement of the white observers. This is a vital part of behavior pattern in the South, which both Negroes and whites thoughtlessly accept…‖ (Ralph Ellison)
Selected Well-known Story Writers
Washington Irving (1783-1859)
“Father of American Literature” the first prose stylist of American romanticism making wide use of legends and folktales dominant theme of change works including:
The opening paragraph:



The very first sentence-- a flashback. ―the end is in the beginning‖ -- Prologue ―I‖ – the narrator/ the main character/ the protagonist closely as if just before your eyes get into the mind of the narrator Expressions like ―I was naive‖ ―I am nobody but myself‖ – central theme of the novel – searching for self-identity.



Plot-sequence





Biblioteka Baidu
Introduction (1-3): introducing his historical background, his grandfather and his grandfather‘s last words. Rising action (4-9): the main body of the battle royal incident. Crisis (10-28): the second subsection of the battle royal incident. Climax (29-46): how the white men further humiliated the black boys even after the battle royal was over. Falling action (47-90): the narrator finally got his chance to deliver his well-prepared speech. Resolution (91-94): the narrator was overjoyed with his triumph, and that night he dreamed of his grandfather.
Theme – controlling idea
Some simple examples of common themes from literature, TV, and film are: - things are not always as they appear to be - Love is blind - Believe in yourself - People are afraid of change - Don't judge a book by its cover
Elements of Short Stories

Setting (time/place/mood) Plot (introduction/rising/climax/falling/resolution) Character Conflict (internal/external) Point of view Theme