Northanger Abbey Reading Logs
You will complete five reading log entries on Northanger Abbey. You will address each of the following
topics/categories once:
Style
Setting
Close Reading
Theme/Important Ideas
Free Response
(You may do these in any order. For example, your first reading log can be a free response.)
Style
When writing about style, you may wish to think about/answer one or several of the following
questions/suggestions:
1. Sentence Structure
2. Pace
3. Expansive/Economical
Diction
4. Vocabulary
5. Figures of speech
6. Use of Dialogue
7. Point of View
8. Character development
9. Tone
10. Word Color, Word
Sound
11. Paragraph / Chapter
Structure
Are the sentences long or short? Why do they change?
Do they contain many subordinate clauses, or are they often fragments?
Are there any digressions or interruptions?
Is the word-order straightforward or unconventionally crafted?
Is the writing heavily descriptive, with emphasis on setting and atmosphere, or
does it focus on action and plot movement?
Is the writing tight and efficient, or elaborate and long-winded?
When does the author use one or the other mode, and why?
Are the words simple or fancy? Are they technical, flowery, colloquial,
cerebral, punning, obscure (and so on...)?
Are there any metaphors, similes, or symbols?
Are there any other uses of figurative language (personification, metonymy,
and so on)?
How often does dialogue tell the story?
Do we see whole conversations or just fragments?
Does the conversation use slang or is it formal? Does it appear natural or
contrived?
Does the dialogue give a sense of pacing, of pauses, of the unsaid?
How much does it substitute for narration?
Possibilities: first, second, third, omniscient, limited omniscient, multiple,
inanimate, free indirect discourse.
How does the author introduce characters, and how do we see their evolution
in the story? What is their function and motivation?
What kinds of characters are they? Full/round? Stock characters?
Stereotypes? Caricatures?
What is the author’s attitude? What is the mood of the story?
Does the author seem sarcastic? Aggressive? Wistful? Pessimistic? In love?
Philosophically detached? Hopeful? Ironic? Bitter? (And so on...)
Whatever the tone, where is it visible in the narrative?
How much does the language call attention to or depend on the quality of its
sound, e.g. through alliteration, assonance, consonance, dissonance, rhythm,
unusual word choice, and so on?
Are paragraphs very short, or are they enormous blocks running across many
pages?
Are the chapters short or long? How many are there, how are they organized,
and why is this important?
12. Time Sequencing /
Chronology
13. Allusions
How has the author organized the chronology of events? To what effect?
What is the work’s structural “rhythm”?
How and how often does the author refer to other texts, myths, symbols,
famous figures, historical events, quotations, and so on?
14. Experimentation in
Are there any unusual techniques, such as stream-of-consciousness, mixing
Language
styles and genres, unusual layout on the page, breaking rules of grammar and
form, odd or unstable narrative perspectives, onomatopoeia, and so on?
15. Metafictional techniques Does the author call attention to his or her own process of narration?
Are the narrator’s position, role, and thoughts as a storyteller mentioned
explicitly in the text? What function does this serve?
(Adapted from
http://teachers.lakesideschool.org/us/english/ErikChristensen/WRITING%20STRATEGIES/LiteraryStyles.
htm)
Setting
When writing about setting, some ideas to think about/questions to answer could include:
Types of setting:
·
Neutral setting: the setting is not important, just a place where the action takes place.
·
Spiritual setting: the values embodied in the physical setting; there is no easy relationship between physical
setting and moral values.
·
Dynamic setting: the setting may take on the role of a character.
Elements of a setting:
·
Geography (topography, scenery, interiors, etc.)
·
Occupation and lifestyle of characters
·
Time
·
Religious, intellectual, and moral environment
Functions of a setting:
·
Setting as metaphor: the setting projects the internal state of the characters or a pervasive spiritual atmosphere.
·
Atmosphere: a mood or emotional aura suggested by the setting and helping to establish the reader's
expectations
Setting as the dominant element:
·
Time, especially in historical novels
·
Place: regionalist or local color novels (spiritual as well as geographical)
(Adapted from http://www.ci.maryville.tn.us/mhs/studyskills/compguide/LitAnaSetting.htm)
You also may address how setting reflects the time period in which the author was writing.
Close Reading
To do a close reading, you choose a specific passage and analyze it in fine detail, as if with a magnifying
glass. You then comment on points of style and on your reactions as a reader. Close reading is important
because it is the building block for larger analysis. Your thoughts evolve not from someone else's truth
about the reading, but from your own observations. The more closely you can observe, the more original
and exact your ideas will be. To begin your close reading, ask yourself several specific questions about the
passage. The following questions are not a formula, but a starting point for your own thoughts. When you
arrive at some answers, you are ready to organize and write. You can organize your close reading any way
you like.
I. First Impressions:
What is the first thing you notice about the passage?
What is the second thing?
Do the two things you noticed complement each other? Or contradict each other?
What mood does the passage create in you? Why?
II. Vocabulary and Diction:
Which words do you notice first? Why? What is noteworthy about this diction?
How do the important words relate to one another?
Do any words seem oddly used to you? Why?
Do any words have double meanings? Do they have extra connotations?
Look up any unfamiliar words. For a pre-20th century text, look in the Oxford English Dictionary for
possible outdated meanings. (The OED can only be accessed in the school library.)
III. Discerning Patterns:
Does an image here remind you of an image elsewhere in the book? Where? What's the connection?
How might this image fit into the pattern of the book as a whole?
Could this passage symbolize the entire work? Could this passage serve as a microcosm--a little picture--of
what's taking place in the whole work?
What is the sentence rhythm like? Short and choppy? Long and flowing? Does it build on itself or stay at
an even pace? What is the style like?
Look at the punctuation. Is there anything unusual about it?
Is there any repetition within the passage? What is the effect of that repetition?
How many types of writing are in the passage? (For example, narration, description, argument, dialogue,
rhymed or alliterative poetry, etc.)
Can you identify paradoxes in the author's thought or subject?
What is left out or kept silent? What would you expect the author to talk about that the author avoided?
IV. Point of View and Characterization:
How does the passage make us react or think about any characters or events within the narrative?
Are there colors, sounds, physical description that appeals to the senses? Does this imagery form a pattern?
Why might the author have chosen that color, sound or physical description?
Who speaks in the passage? To whom does he or she speak? Does the narrator have a limited or partial
point of view? Or does the narrator appear to be omniscient, and he knows things the characters couldn't
possibly know? (For example, omniscient narrators might mention future historical events, events taking
place "off stage," the thoughts and feelings of multiple characters, and so on).
V. Symbolism:
Are there metaphors? What kinds?
Is there one controlling metaphor? If not, how many different metaphors are there, and in what order do
they occur? How might that be significant?
How might objects represent something else?
Do any of the objects, colors, animals, or plants appearing in the passage have traditional connotations or
meaning? What about religious or biblical significance?
If there are multiple symbols in the work, could we read the entire passage as having allegorical meaning
beyond the literal level?
(Adapted from http://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/reading_lit.html)
Theme/Important Ideas
The theme of a literary work is its controlling idea or some observation or insight. Many literary works
suggest several themes: sometimes one primary motif and several related ones, sometimes a number of
unrelated motifs. Theme is central to a work of literature; frequently all of the other elements help develop
and support it.
On occasion, the writer or a character states the theme directly. Ordinarily, though, the theme remains
unstated and must be deduced by examining the other elements of the literary work.
When writing about theme, ask yourself what the theme is, what elements support it, and what elements
create it.
Check the comments of the characters and the narrator to see whether they state the themes directly. If they
don’t, assess the interaction of characters, events, settings, symbols, and other elements to determine them.
(Adapted from http://www.course-notes.org/English/Outlines/Chapter_19_Writing_About_Literature)
When writing about theme/big ideas , you may wish to think about/answer one or several of the following
questions/suggestions:
• What ideas do you discover in the work? How do you discover them (through action, character depiction,
scenes, language)?
• To what do the ideas pertain? To the individuals themselves? To individuals and society? To religion? To
social, political, or economic justice?
• How balanced are the ideas? If a particular theme is strongly presented, what conditions and qualifications
are also presented (if any)? What contradictory ideas/themes are presented?
• Are the ideas limited to members of any groups represented by the characters (age, race, nationality,
personal status)? Or are the themes applicable to general conditions of life?
• Which characters in their own right represent or embody ideas? How do their actions and speeches bring
these out?
• If characters state themes directly, how persuasive is their expression, how intelligent and wellconsidered?
• What idea seems particularly important in the work? Why? Is it asserted directly, indirectly, dramatically,
ironically? Does any one method predominate? Why?
• How pervasive in the work is the idea (throughout or intermittent)? To what degree is it associated with a
major character or action? How does the structure of the work affect or shape your understanding of the
idea?
• What value or values are embodied in the idea? Of what importance are the values to the work’s
meaning?
• How compelling is the idea?
(Adapted from http://www.deltasd.bc.ca/se/english11/eng1118writingontheme.pdf)
Note: Early in the work, you may not be able to discern the text’s theme. In that case, your response might
start to focus on what you detect to be one of the novel’s “big ideas.” Then, you can gradually form an
opinion of what theme the work promotes.
Free Response
Responding in your Reading Log…
As you read, write your personal response in your reading log. State your feelings, thoughts, reactions, and
questions about situations, ideas, actions, characters, settings, symbols, plot, theme, and any other elements
of the book. You can't be wrong in your responses, so take some risks and be honest. Write about what you
like or dislike, what seems confusing or unusual to you. Tell what you think something means. Make
predictions about what might happen later. Relate your personal experiences, which connect with the plot,
characters, or setting. Let me hear your voice.
Some suggested sentence starters follow:
1.
I really like/dislike this idea because...
2.
This character reminds me of somebody I know because...
3.
This character reminds me of myself because...
4.
This character is like (name of character) in (title of book) because...
5.
I think this setting is important because...
6.
This scene reminds me of a similar scene in (title of book) because...
7.
I like/dislike this writing because....
8.
This part is very realistic/unrealistic because....
9.
I think the relationship between ______and ______ is interesting because...
10. This section makes me think about, because...
11. I like/dislike (name of character) because...
12. This situation reminds me of a similar situation in my own life. It happened when...
13. The character I most admire is ________ because...
14. If I were (name of character) at this point, I would...
15. Any questions you might have after reading – Be sure to explain them.
16. Did I learn anything from this part of the book? Can I take anything from it to improve myself?
17. Can I make any predictions on what may happen next? Why do I think these things will happen?
What details in the section support my prediction.
18. Write about what your feelings are after reading the opening chapter(s) of the book. How do your
feelings change (or do they) after reading half the book? Do you feel any differently after finishing
the book? Would you read the book again?
19. What emotions did the book invoke: laughter, tears, smiles, anger? Or, was the book just boring
and meaningless? Record some of your reactions.
20. Sometimes books touch you, reminding you of your own life, as part of the larger human
experience. Are there connections between the book and your own life? Or, does the book remind
you of an event (or events) that happened to someone you know? Does the book remind you of
what happened in another book you've read?
21. Would you like to be one of the characters (acquire a personality trait)? Which of the characters
would you become, if you could? Why? If there's something about the character that you'd want to
change, what is it?
22. If you were the author, would you have changed the name of a character, or altered the location of
a scene? What does the name mean to you? Do you have a negative connotation associated with
the name (or the place)? What would you name the character instead? What would you use as a
setting?
23. Does the book leave you with questions you would like to ask? What are they? Would you like to
direct your questions at a particular character? What questions would you like to ask the author of
the book? Are they questions that you may be able to answer by reading more about the author's
life and/or works?
24. Are you confused about what happened (or didn't happen) in the book? What events or characters
do you not understand? Does the use of language in the book confuse you? How did your
confusion affect how you liked the book? Is there anything that the author could have done to
make what happened (or didn't happen) more clear?
25. Is there an idea in the book that makes you stop and think, or prompts questions? Identify the idea
and explain your responses.
26. What are your favorite lines/quotes? Copy them into your reading log and explain why these
passages caught your attention.
27. How have you changed after reading the book? What did you learn that you never knew before?
28. Who else should read this book? Should anyone not be encouraged to read this book? Why?
Would you recommend the book to a friend or fellow classmate?
29. Would you like to read more books by this author? Have you already read other books by the
author? Why or why not?
30. Write about the characters? Which one is your favorite? Is there a character you
hate/detest/despise? Why? What traits could you change about the characters that would change
how you think about them? Do you think that any of the characters represent real people? Does
anything about a particular character seem to be related to the author's true personality--who the
writer is?
You may certainly use other ideas of your own. Just make sure you do not summarize.
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