The aim of this paper is to study emotions in literature, but specifically not the emotional response of a given actual reader, but the emotional responses connected to the authorial intention and an imagined authorial audience. Although the authorial intention can obviously not be fully grasped without consulting the author itself and without accumulating quite specific data surrounding the life of the author and the creation process of the text, this paper serves as one possible interpretation of the primary source and its emotional framework. Especially as there are none to be found so far about this particular source.
The primary source for this paper will be the short story collection "Prosperity Drive" published in 2016 by Irish writer Mary Morrissy. As an illustration of the conveyed emotions, then, the aspects of narrative mode, choice of words and texture features have been chosen because they encompass many areas in which the authorial intention of emotional conveyance can be observed and shall be analysed through a close-reading approach. Because of the above-mentioned points of subjectivity, however, this does by no means represent an exhaustive list.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. The evocation of emotions in Prosperity Drive
2.1 Narrative mode
2.2 Choice of words
2.3 Texture features
3. Conclusion
Objectives and Topics
This paper examines how literature deliberately evokes emotional responses in readers by applying the concepts of a shared human emotional framework, authorial intention, and the authorial audience. The study focuses on how literary devices and textual presentation guide the reader's emotional experience.
- Analysis of narrative modes and their role in projecting character emotions.
- Examination of word choices and semantic fields to create specific atmospheric moods.
- Investigation of "texture features" such as formatting, font usage, and typography.
- Study of the interplay between authorial intention and the perceived emotional reception.
- Exploration of how stylistic choices can bridge or distance the reader from the protagonist.
Book Excerpt
2.1 Narrative mode
The type of narrator used in this short story and throughout most of the whole book is an intradiegetic heterodiegetic narrator, meaning that the narrator is part of the narrated world (intradiegetic), but tells the story through a third-person mode of narration (heterodiegetic) (Walsh 497). This mode of narration in itself provides an essential device for the author to evoke emotions in readers, as the whole thought process of the protagonist and by extension his emotions can be described in a credible manner; because of the third-person mode of narration, the narrator can be accounted for as being reliable, as unreliable narration almost always only works by using an intradiegetic homodiegetic narrator. This, then, represents one of the easiest yet most effective ways for the author to provoke emotional responses in the authorial audience: by elaborating on the emotional reactions that the protagonist has to certain events in the story, the author tries to evoke the same emotional responses in the reader. Even if we as readers would react differently to particular events as a result of our own emotional framework, by laying out the protagonist's emotional response explicitly, we are inclined to empathise with the protagonist's emotions, even if it only happens temporarily.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: Outlines the theoretical framework of studying emotions in literature, introducing the concepts of authorial intention and the authorial audience.
2. The evocation of emotions in Prosperity Drive: Analyzes the specific literary techniques—narrative mode, word choice, and texture—used to influence reader response.
2.1 Narrative mode: Explores how the choice of narrator and perspective manages the distance between the reader and the challenging psychological states of the characters.
2.2 Choice of words: Discusses the impact of emotionally charged terminology and the creation of semantic fields to condition the reader's mindset.
2.3 Texture features: Examines how non-content elements, such as font style or paragraph layout, interrupt the reading flow to generate specific emotional effects.
3. Conclusion: Summarizes the effectiveness of these devices and asserts the necessity of studying emotional triggers in literature.
Keywords
Narrative mode, authorial audience, emotional response, formalist analysis, texture features, reader empathy, Mary Morrissy, Prosperity Drive, psychological narrative, literary devices, semantic fields, intradiegetic, heterodiegetic, authorial intention, formal elements.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research paper?
The paper explores how literature deliberately triggers emotional responses in readers through specific narrative and structural techniques, rather than relying on the subjective feelings of an individual reader.
What are the primary themes addressed in the analysis?
The central themes include authorial intention, the construction of the "authorial audience," and the use of form and style to manipulate the reader's emotional perception of complex or controversial subjects.
What is the primary research goal or central question?
The study aims to demonstrate how authors use specific formal devices like narrative mode and typography to guide the emotional experience of the reader towards a desired response.
Which scientific method is utilized in the study?
The author employs a close-reading approach to extract and analyze specific textual features from Mary Morrissy's short story collection, relating them to established literary theory on emotional evocation.
What is covered in the main section of the paper?
The main section investigates three specific areas: the impact of narrative modes, the influence of consistent word choices, and the role of "texture features" such as formatting and font variation.
Which key terms define this study?
Important terms include authorial audience, intradiegetic narrator, formal versus content analysis, semantic fields, and the emotional framework shared by humans.
Why is the intradiegetic heterodiegetic narrator significant in the analysis?
This narrator type allows the author to present a character's internal thoughts credibility while maintaining enough narrative distance to invite the reader to either empathize with or reject the protagonist's emotions.
How do "texture features" influence the reader's perception?
Texture features, such as cursive writing or spacing, create visual breaks in the text that signal a shift in perspective or importance, subconsciously conditioning the reader's cognitive and emotional engagement with the content.
In what way does the author relate sexual preference to ecclesiastical vocabulary?
The author uses religious terminology to characterize the protagonist's attempts to "cleanse" his internal conflicts, which effectively highlights the tension between his taboo desires and his search for psychological salvation.
- Citation du texte
- Christoph Zistler (Auteur), 2022, Experiencing emotions through literature. A case study of "Prosperity Drive" by Mary Morrissy, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1436736
