SOW: Literary Tracking sheet

The Sound of Waves, by Yokio Mishima

Literary Devices Tracking Sheet

HA English 9

OReilly

 

A theme is an insight on life. The hidden meaning of the book. The ideas or morality underlying the plot. They are complex statements not single word topics.

 

Here are some more themes from The Sound of Waves stated in a thesis statement:

 

The natural state of human beings is to be essentially good; therefore, the noblest characters in the text The Sound of Waves have the closest ties to nature.

 

When people are essentially good and brave, they learn from their mistakes and make amends to those they have harmed.

 

Noble characters lack ego and are not concerned with their appearance, possessions, or the opinions of others; consequently, such noble souls selflessly serve others to the benefit of society.

 

Karma is at work in people’s lives, so selfless, courageous deeds are rewarded in the end, and selfishness and cowardice is punished with regret and personal pain.

 

There are other themes related to topics of courage, honour, nature, spirituality, selflessness, beauty, and self awareness. They all are insights on life—fundamental truths about human existence.

 

The following literary devices create and support theme:

 

• Characters represent and display aspects of human nature about which the author is trying to make a point. In The Sound of Waves, Shinju embodies the values of courage, honesty, selflessness, and closeness to nature.

 

• Motifs are repeating elements that support the tone or theme. Some motifs in Sound of Waves are nature, (waves, animals, insects, seaweed etc.) spirituality, selflessness, ego, karma, courage/cowardice, honour, self awareness, pessimism, optimism, simplicity, male/female roles, gossip, city life, thought, beauty, dirtiness, education  

 

• Symbols are images used to stand for something else, much like a flag stands for a country. In the text Sound of Waves, the lighthouse may stand for education as it casts a light on the bucolic life on the island.

 

• A metaphor is a comparison such as, “Life is a dream.”

 

• A simile is a comparison using like or as. “Her life is like a dream.”

 

• Personification uses human qualities to describe non-human objects such as saying that “the ocean roars.”

 

• Imagery creates strong mental images in the mind of the reader to vividly and graphically underscore theme and tone. “The halibut had already been placed on a white enamel platter, where it lay faintly gasping, blood oozing from its gills, streaking its smooth white skin.”  This is a vivid image that creates an ominous, helpless tone.

 

• Foreshadowing hints at coming events. The above quote could be foreshadowing indicating that the characters are about to be “caught” and will soon be helpless.

 

Your mission should you choose to accept it:

1. For each approximately 50 pages assigned, you will pick 2 theme qualities of your own or from the list above.
2. You will directly quote the text. Cite the page number. Block quotes of more than three lines are indented on each line with the period before the parenthesis.
3. You will state which literary devices or characters appear in the quote.
4. Write commentary on the quote showing how the quote reveals theme and the supporting literary devices. In your commentary, integrate short quotes and include the page number at the end of the commentary before the period. The commentary is in LP
5. Use the following format, and do it twice for each approximately 50 pages:

 

Pages 1-54

Theme

The natural state of human beings is to be essentially good; therefore, the noblest characters in the text The Sound of Waves have the closest ties to nature.

Quote from text and page number:

 

…Skin can be burned no darker by the sun than [Shinju’s] were burned...His dark eyes were exceedingly clear, but their clarity was not that of intellectuality—it was a gift that the sea bestows upon those who make their livelihood upon it….(6)

Literary devices supporting theme:

Vivid imagery, character, personification

Commentary:

Shinju is a character who, as a fisherman, lives close to nature, so the sea shapes his personality. At the same time, nature itself appears to have a personality and human qualities; the ocean “bestows” gifts, imbuing those who live close to it with a wisdom beyond “intellectuality”(6).