Types of Prose Narratives: A Text-Book for the Story WriterFansler, Harriott Ely
General
Types of Prose Narratives: A Text-Book for the Story Writer
Fansler, Harriott Ely
English prose literature; Storytelling
Literary eye-witness account, however, need not be devoid of all
expression of personal feeling. It is only necessary that the writer
make clear to his reader which are thoughts and feelings and which
are facts. Indeed, the best effect of such a narration will often
come from the contrast. The artist lets us into his own state of mind,
describes perhaps more or less minutely the stage-setting of his
little occurrence--especially if any part is necessary to complete
understanding later--portrays in general the types of people who were
or might have been concerned, and then drops from his pen one by one
the facts cold, clear-cut, unembellished, orderly in sequence, with
their participants graphically and cleanly outlined, and thus gains his
effect. He is as precise as a lawyer, but he has been also as crafty,
in the good sense of the word. He has prepared us to appreciate his
facts. If he interprets to us afterwards, he does so in a reflective
and an apparently hesitating way that seems to leave us in full
possession of our own opinions, which will prove to be in reality only
corroborative of his.
It will be good practice for you to attempt to give an eye-witness
account of some occurrence. If two or three of your friends were
present at the same happening, you may enjoy comparing reports. There
will probably be more than one incident to relate; if there is, you
must be careful to have sequence and coherence in all that you say.
You should anticipate and answer any questions one would naturally
ask of an oral reporter. Stop when you have finished. Doubtless you
have noticed the unpleasant habit many narrators have of starting over
again and repeating all or part of the tale. The temptation does not so
readily come to a writer, of course, as to a speaker--unless the writer
is paid by the word.
Your readers will not resent interpretation even if it be
philosophical, if it be not mixed with the narration and be only
honest and of the pragmatic school--interrogative and not dogmatic.
Indeed, mankind likes philosophy when it seems to come as an inevitable
though tentative summing-up of our almost bewilderingly multiple
phenomena.
=Story of the Revolution in the Portuguese Capital=
Cherbourg, October 8.--On board the Royal Mail Steam Packet liner
_Asturias_, which arrived from Lisbon this morning, were a number of
passengers who witnessed the fighting in the Portuguese capital on
Wednesday, among them M. Octave Castaigne, a lawyer, of Tournai, who
was among the passengers by the _Asturias_ who ventured to land at
Lisbon on Wednesday.
"On Tuesday evening," said M. Castaigne, "we were informed by a
wireless message that the revolution had broken out in Portugal. From
far out at sea was heard the thunder of the cannon and as we entered
the Tagus the crackle of rifle fire. On our arrival before Lisbon we
noticed that the cruisers _Sao Rafael_ and _Adamastor_, which were
flying the Republican flag, were still firing on the town.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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