And of Clay We Are Created free essay sample

The weeping of orphans and wails of the injured filled the air, the little girl obstinately clinging to life became the symbol of the tragedy. † In the short story, â€Å"And of Clay Are We Created† Isabel Allende creates a story about a young girl who is trapped beneath gravel and mud. The author uses many different strategies to create this story. Allende utilizes imagery and tone to convey a better understanding of the story and its characters. One literary device Allende uses to enhance the story is imagery. Allende states, â€Å".. She was also held by the bodies of her brothers and sisters clinging to her legs. †(987). This quote tells the reader why Azucena, the young girl, was in pain while they tried freeing her from the mud. This quote is a good example of imagery because it makes the reader imagine younger siblings holding on for their lives, hoping that their older sister can save them. We will write a custom essay sample on And of Clay We Are Created or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page This quote helps the story create sympathy in the reader because losing a sibling can be one of the hardest things to do, but knowing that you were the one responsible to save them, but couldn’t and have them still there holding on, is an unimaginable feeling that Azucena dealt with. Isabel Allende uses imagery in the story many times. One of the many examples that stood out was when Allende states, â€Å" Amputating arms without anesthesia. †(989). This informs the reader how people that were injured had to be treated without any anesthesia, which made it extremely painful. This quote demonstrates the use of imagery because it creates a very vivid gruesome picture in the readers mind by letting them know the extreme pain the people had to go through to be cured. This quote affects the story by emphasizing pain into the readers thinking. The author also uses good diction to establish a melancholy tone in the story. Allende mentions, â€Å"The sky is weeping. This tells the reader that it is raining, in a more dramatic way. This quote creates a melancholy tone because it instills a depressing feeling for the reader by showing that Azucena’s situation is so sad, even the skies were crying for her. Another quote that Allende uses to establish a melancholy tone is, â€Å"†¦I felt his frustration, his impotence. †(989). In this quote Allende is stating that the character, Rolf, was so frustrated that she too, felt it. This extends the melancholy tone because it makes the reader feel sorry for Rolf since he feels weak and powerless due to the fact he cannot do anything to help Azucena. Using the good quotes, Isabel Allende makes the melancholy tone able to be seen clearly. In the story the author demonstrates imagery and tone to develop a better understanding of the story. Isabel Allende uses good examples of imagery to help the reader imagine the setting and what is happening in the story. She also uses diction to help set a tone for the story, to make the reader feel melancholy. Using imagery and tone makes a story more interesting and easier to understand, without them a story can be empty and plain losing the reader’s interest. And of Clay We Are Created free essay sample The Miseries of Misfortune In Isabel Allende’s short story, â€Å"And of Clay Are We Created†, Azucena, a young Latino girl, endures a number of hardships after an avalanche traps her in the mud, while in Gabriel Gracia Marquez’s short story, â€Å"A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings†, an angel man, who brings good fortune to a family, struggles with mockery. Both characters deal with misfortune throughout each of the short stories, and unlike the angel, who has no one, Azucena, has Rolf, a caring reporter, to comfort her through her experience. Over the course of both short stories each character suffers in some way. As soon as the angel arrives, Pelayo, the owner of the property â€Å"drag[s] him out of the mud and lock[s] him up with the hens in the wire chicken coop† (588). The angel withstands physical discomfort, even as he brings good fortune to the family that he stumbles upon. We will write a custom essay sample on And of Clay We Are Created or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Azucena suffers as well, when â€Å"they [discover] [her] head protruding from a mud pit† (258). Azucena, like the angel, undergoes physical pain because of her dreadful and horrific situation. Azucena and the angel endure moments of suffering, as well as experiencing the burden of exploitation by the people surrounding them. At the scene of the mud pit, â€Å"[the reporter’s] camera zoom[s] in on the girl† (289). Azucena, growing in popularity, soon develops into the top news story, deprived and stripped of her privacy as she lies in the mud. In addition, the angel, turns into the town attraction, and people â€Å"without the slightest reverence, [toss] him things to eat through the openings†¦as if he weren’t a supernatural creature but a circus animal† (588). The people of the town treat the angel poorly instead of treating him with the respect and seeing him as a gift from God. Not only do the angel and Azucena have commonality as characters, but they also share differences as well. In â€Å"And of Clay Are We Created† Azucena begs Rolf and says, â€Å"don’t leave me alone† and Rolf stays for her (261). When Azucena begs Rolf, she simply makes a plea for comfort; and he abides never leaving her side. Where as, in â€Å"A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings†, â€Å"the angel was the only one† without anyone to care and comfort him (591). Unlike Azucena, the angel appears all alone. Through all his suffering and mocking, people continue to disrespect him and not honor him in the way he so deserves. Together, Azucena and the angel endure misfortune and disrespect at the hands of humans and Mother Nature. Ultimately, both share the burden of suffering, one consoled and one not. This, therefore, brings upon change to people’s lives. The angel brings about materialistic gain, while Azucena’s changes a person’s heart. Works Cited Allende, Isabel. â€Å"And of Clay Are We Created. † Elements of Literature. Ed. Laura Wood. 3rd ed. Austin: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2005. 257-265. Print. Marquez, Garcia Gabriel. â€Å"A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings. † Elements of Literature. Ed. Laura Wood. 3rd ed. Austin: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2005. 587-595. Print.