A Telephone Call
A Telephone Call
Face to Face with Obsession In “A Telephone Call,” Dorothy Parker uses diction, tone, and point of view to expose obsession and give it a voice. Parker reveals the deep feelings of a woman experiencing an infatuation. The language usage and tone help keep a high-paced unstable feeling throughout the story. Point of view focuses on the thoughts and agitations of the crazed woman. To highlight the theme Parker sensibly uses these specific literary tools.
Parker takes advantage of diction as a literary tool in “A Telephone Call.” Her use and choice of words continuously help display her theme. The reader assumes that the presence of incomplete or run-on sentences reflects the unstable thoughts of the obsessed woman. Parker uses short interjections to convey the desperate pleading and incoherent contemplation. Repetition is another effect of obsession. The woman repeats the short hopeless phrase “Please, God” numerous times and usually follows it with frantic condemning or pathetic begging. Commas, hyphens, and semi-colons connect these various streams of mixed and confused thoughts. The obsessive woman uses aggressive and almost violent language toward the telephone, God, and even the man she adores. Diction is an important tool that Parker uses to suggest various symptoms of obsession.
Throughout “A Telephone Call” the tone keeps the reader’s focus on the woman’s obsession. The run-on sentences and short outbursts create a fast frantic pace. The woman asks God for help, because she can no longer control herself. In a sense, the story itself seems out of control. The rising action commences at the beginning of the story and strangely does not end within the story. The reader remains at the edge of their seat, listening to her frequently shifting thoughts and waiting for some kind of appeasement for her infatuation. The tone keeps the story on the same unstable level as the woman.
Though diction and tone help display obsession,
Face to Face with Obsession In “A Telephone Call,” Dorothy Parker uses diction, tone, and point of view to expose obsession and give it a voice. Parker reveals the deep feelings of a woman experiencing an infatuation. The language usage and tone help keep a high-paced unstable feeling throughout the story. Point of view focuses on the thoughts and agitations of the crazed woman. To highlight the theme Parker sensibly uses these specific literary tools.
Parker takes advantage of diction as a literary tool in “A Telephone Call.” Her use and choice of words continuously help display her theme. The reader assumes that the presence of incomplete or run-on sentences reflects the unstable thoughts of the obsessed woman. Parker uses short interjections to convey the desperate pleading and incoherent contemplation. Repetition is another effect of obsession. The woman repeats the short hopeless phrase “Please, God” numerous times and usually follows it with frantic condemning or pathetic begging. Commas, hyphens, and semi-colons connect these various streams of mixed and confused thoughts. The obsessive woman uses aggressive and almost violent language toward the telephone, God, and even the man she adores. Diction is an important tool that Parker uses to suggest various symptoms of obsession.
Throughout “A Telephone Call” the tone keeps the reader’s focus on the woman’s obsession. The run-on sentences and short outbursts create a fast frantic pace. The woman asks God for help, because she can no longer control herself. In a sense, the story itself seems out of control. The rising action commences at the beginning of the story and strangely does not end within the story. The reader remains at the edge of their seat, listening to her frequently shifting thoughts and waiting for some kind of appeasement for her infatuation. The tone keeps the story on the same unstable level as the woman.
Though diction and tone help display obsession,