Notice and NoteSignposts for Close Reading

The Aim of these Six Brief Lessons: To Empower you to recognize

signposts in texts, and then ask the questions that will help you make

sense of what you have read.

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CONTRASTS AND CONTRADICTIONSThe Notice and Note Signpost and Definitions

The Clues to the Signpost

WHAT LITERARY ELEMENT IT HELPS READERS UNDERSTAND

A SHARP CONTRAST BETWEEN WHAT WE WOULD EXPECT AND WHAT WE OBSERVE THE CHARACTER DOING; BEHAVIOR THAT CONTRADICTS PRVIOUS BEHAVIOR OR WELL-ESTABLISHED PATTERNS

A CHARACTER BEHAVES OR THINKS IN A WAY WE DON’T EXPECT,

OR …

AN ELEMENT OF A SETTING IS SOMETHING WE WOULD NOT EXPECT

A. CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT

B. INTERNAL CONFLICT

C. THEME

D. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SETTING AND PLOT

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CONTRASTS AND CONTRADICTIONSSIGNPOST #1 THE ANCHOR

QUESTION THAT FOLLOWS EACH OCCURENCE

WHY YOU SHOULD ASK THIS QUESTION

Contrasts andContradictions

Why is the character doing that?

Contrasts and Contradictions show us other aspects of a character or a setting. The question encourages conversation about character, motivation, or the situation s/he is in.

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STOP and NOTICE and NOTE

When a character says or does something that is opposite (contradicts) what s/he has been saying or doing, OR conflicts with what you, as the reader, would expect him to do in that situation or setting, you should ask yourself:

“Why is the character doing that?”

Your answers will help you make text-based, specific predictions or inferences about the plot and conflict.`

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You have a print copy of Katherine Brush’s short story

The Birthday PartyAs we read this short story aloud, please mark on

your copy any place where you notice contrasts and contradictions in dialogue, situation, and/or

character. We will stop at appropriate places to identify any contrasts or contradictions and discuss

possible answers to the key question: Why is the character doing that?

So let’s begin…

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They were a couple in their late thirties, and they looked unmistakably married.

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They sat on the banquette opposite us in a little narrow restaurant, having dinner. The man had a round, self-satisfied face, with glasses on it; the woman was fadingly pretty, in a big hat.

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There was nothing conspicuous about them, nothing particularly noticeable, until the end of their meal, when it suddenly became obvious that this was an Occasion—in fact, the husband’s birthday, and the wife had planned a little surprise for him.

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It arrived, in the form of a small but glossy birthday cake, with one pink candle burning in the center. The headwaiter brought it in and placed it before the husband, and meanwhile the violin-and-piano orchestra played “Happy Birthday to You,” and the wife beamed with shy pride over her little surprise, and such few people as there were in the restaurant tried to help out with a pattering of applause.

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It became clear at once that help was needed, because the husband was not pleased. Instead, he was hotly embarrassed, and indignant at his wife for embarrassing him.

Let’s stop here and look over what you have marked. What surprised you about the way a character acted, something a character said or did? Ask yourself the

Anchor Question:Why is the character doing that?

You have very little to go on, so far, but you can still consider some possibilities. Look closely at the text again, and make some

more notes on your copy.

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Let’s hear some of your ideas. Remember to refer to words in the text that drew your attention to a Contrast or Contradiction, or that

made you ask yourself the question:

Why is the character doing that?…Now we will continue reading.

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You looked at him and you saw this and you thought, “Oh, now, don’t be like that!”

But he was like that, and as soon as the little cake had been deposited on the

table, and the orchestra had finished the birthday piece, and the general attention

had shifted from the man and the woman, I saw him say something to her under his breath—some punishing thing, quick and

curt and unkind.

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I couldn’t bear to look at the woman then, so I

stared at my plate and waited for quite a long time. Not long enough,

though.

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She was still crying when I finally glanced over there again. Crying quietly and

heartbrokenly and hopelessly, all to herself, under the gay

big brim of her best hat.

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Now that you have finished the story refer to words in the text that drew your attention to a Contrast or Contradiction, or that made you

ask yourself the question: Why is the character doing that?

Make some specific notes. Now reread the story through to the end. What questions

were answered? Which ones went unanswered?

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Discuss your ideas with your seat partners. Remember to pay close attention to the

textual clues that led you to your conclusions or theories. With your seat partners draft a paragraph OR a bulleted list of things you

discovered or thought about the characters by examining contrasts and contradictions.

Make it legible, as you will turn it in. Put your names on it so I give appropriate credit.

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Now that you have finished your

paragraphs or bullet lists, let’s talk about

theme.What themes might be imbedded in this short

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This is only the first of a series of Signposts you should look for when reading a text,

whether it is a poem, short story, novel, or even a work of non-fiction.

Using signposts to examine a text closely will increase your understanding of the piece and

enable you to talk and write specifically about it. Instead of looking at the technique

as a task, look at it as a tool to make the study of literature easier!

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