Fictional Analysis of A White Heron

All good stories, be they fiction or truth, require some type of plot path to allow the reader to easily follow the direction of the story. Different types of plot structures will cause to reader to focus on specific details and apt authors can manipulate these structures to force the reader to see the story in whatever light they desire. In the story, ‘A White Heron’, Sarah Orne Jewett uses a broken plot structures to cause the reader to focus on the stories’ main character, namely Sylvia. This broken plot structure also provides insight into Sylvia’s mentality, which adds a sense of foreshadowing, and creates suspense leading up to the final dramatic moment in the story. These integral ideas that stem from the plot show how plot structure acts as the atlas stone in story telling, which is then complimented with characters and details that combine to make a strong foundation for a story.

Once the broken plot structure is established it becomes immediately apparent that the young girl, Sylvia, is to represent the focus of the story. It is seen that breaks from the natural action of the story are done by entering a character’s mind and hearing the thoughts or by the inclusion of ba

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Although this is so, the stranger is referred to as the “handsome stranger” just one paragraph later. ckground information which gives the reader an understanding of Sylvia that surpasses all the other characters that are introduced. It appreciates the value of the resolution by heightening the climax of a story until the reader can no longer be teased. In ‘A White Heron,’ Jewett uses the broken plot structure to go into the thoughts of Sylvia who is struggling between her desire for money and making the stranger happy and her desire to protect the beautiful creatures of the woods.

Suspense is an excellent tool in drawing audiences into a story. The second paragraph, in this format, contains two breaks from natural action that both regard the girl, Sylvia. The first sign of possible conflict arises with the arrival of the stranger who studies birds by hunting and stuffing them. Tilley, Sylvia’s grandmother, and information about Sylvia’s past, which helps acclimate the reader to the girl. As the third character, the ornithologist, is introduced to the story connections are immediately made between himself and Sylvia. In ‘A White Heron,’ the reader can now see how utilization of broken plot structure has aided the tale by promoting character focus, by allowing the reader to get a first hand view of the internal conflict, which turns out to be the defining drama in the story, and by providing suspense which works to further engage the reader and heighten the climax at the end. Early on in the story, the reader becomes aware of the girl’s love of nature and the country. This web of dilemma that comes together at the end of the story creates a sensational ethical culmination as the girl gives up all that would benefit her and her family to save a bird. The suspense sharpens as the girl climbs higher and higher into the tree. This conflict is drawn out until the climax is reached at end of the story.

Common topics in this essay:
Tilley Sylvias, Orne Jewett, Heron Jewett, White Heron, plot structure, broken plot, broken plot structure, Mistress Moolly, internal conflict, white heron, cause reader focus, story white heron, Sarah Orne, structures cause reader, breaks natural action, story reader, reader focus, girl sylvia, structures cause, cause reader, plot structures,

Approximate Word count = 955
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

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