Literary Elements

Motif ► a word, character, object, image, metaphor or idea that recurs in a work or several works

Motif ► For example, in Haroun and the Sea of Stories, water is a recurring image prevalent in various parts of the novel. OR In many heroic tales, the hero is a “reluctant hero”. He/She may be apprehensive to begin a journey.

Imagery ► “mental pictures” created by the author which would appeal to one or more of our 5 senses.

Imagery ► It is important to note that imagery does not just describe what someone sees….it goes deeper than that. It can appeal to ALL of the senses.

Allusion ► A brief reference to a historical or literary figure, event, or object.

Allusion ► For example, an obvious allusion appears when Rushdie references One Thousand and One Arabian Nights by naming the houseboat the same name.

Mood ► The attitude of the author toward the subject.

Tone ► The attitude of the author toward the audience.

Symbolism ► The use of one object to represent or suggest another. Generally, something concrete to represent something more abstract.

Symbolism ► Can you think of any symbols in Haroun and the Sea of Stories?

Symbolism ► Gup and Chupp symbolize the conflict between silence and storytelling.  Gup is Hindi for “gossip” or “nonsense.” The Guppees possess a strong propensity for speech. They talk so much that their talk begins to lose its meaning.  Chup is Hindi for “quiet.” In Chup, silence has been ordered. Some take it to such an extreme that they sew their lips together and sacrifice themselves by starving and thirsting to death.

Theme ► The central idea of a work.

Theme ► Themes are not one-word answers. For example, the theme of Haroun and the Sea of Stories is NOT “storytelling”.

Theme ► Equation for identifying theme:  Subject + author’s message about subject = theme  For example, “The most important theme in the novel is that in order for any society to be successful, censorship cannot exist.”

Allegory ► A form of extended metaphor in which objects, persons, and actions in a work are equated with meanings that lie outside the work itself.

Allegory ► Look at the handout on Allegory. Also consider the following quote from Rushdie. Answer the questions and come to a consensus on what kind of allegory Haroun and the Sea of Stories is.

Allegory ► “See, I did think that what happened in the case of "The Satanic Verses" is that, in the end, it was pretty much a victory. That there was this attempt to murder a writer who was not murdered. There was an attempt to suppress a work, which was not suppressed. And in the end, the people issuing those threats were forced by international opinion and by political realities to withdraw those threats. And it seems to me that's a remarkable achievement, not just of mine but of many, many people working on my behalf and with me and, indeed, of the American and British governments working together. Really a collective achievement by publishers, by booksellers, readers, politicians and just ordinary people who got very agitated about this matter. “ ► AND….

Allegory ► “Well, you know it's [Haroun] a book that was written for my son, who was 11 at the time it was written and whose middle name is Haroun. Now he's 26, and really in a way I wrote it for him at two ages. I wanted to write a book that could be read by an 11-year-old boy and from which he would get 11-year-old pleasure. And then to think that, "Well, one of these days he's going to grow up and read it again. And I want that there to be enough depth in it so that when he reads it as an adult he gets adult pleasure from it." And certainly in the case of that audience of one, it seems to have worked. Then I thought afterward, you know, many of the books that we think of as children's books were not really written as children's books. I mean, "Grimm's Fairy Tales," for instance. Those weren't children's stories. Those were very dark, in many ways, traditional folk tales.”