The Persimmon Tree by Marjorie Barnard Essay -- English Literature

How does the extract affect the whole story? (The Persimmon Tree by Marjorie Barnard)Extract I liked the room from the first anyone who appeared to incurher life so perfectly under control.Question How does the extract affect the whole story?The writer of the story The Persimmon Tree, Marjorie Barnard, wasborn in Sydney. She was a novelist, historian, biographer as well aslibrarian in her lifetime. She wrote many books, and among them, AHouse is Built (1928) and Tomorrow and Tomorrow (1947) are the best cognise (124 tutorial 30-10-01). Although The Persimmon Tree isgenerally thought to be a piece of subtle work, and we may find itdifficult to get the hidden meanings of the words, Barnard has do itcharming by associating different things. She entitles the story ThePersimmon Tree partly because persimmons represent the narrator aweak and lonely individual whose life is in sharp contrast with whatBarnard describes, the shadow of the tree, which represents the international world. Bar nard has delicately presented the narrators complexfeeling living between her shell and the outside world, and how theoutside forces contribute to her reform in the end of the story.Obviously in the beginning of the extract, Barnard suggests thatshadow does not merely mean shade that is caused by an object itis the trees in the story blocking direct rays of light (OxfordAdvanced Learners English-Chinese Dictionary 1380). Barnard, infact, associates shadow connotatively with two things changingmatters in the outside world and impertinently life. Although it is notpresented clearly in the story, Barnard reflects her idea through thedescriptions of the narrator about the shadow the mov... ... her current help.The story has an open ending, as there is not becoming space for furtherdevelopment. We are not sure about what happens next, although thenarrator thinks her heart would break that represents changes toa better self (par.14). However, in my opinion, Barnard succeeds inportrayin g the attempt of the narrator when she is put to differenttests (the shadow, the woman and herself). As we read the story,we can see how delicately Barnard sets each character and expressestheir feelings under different settings. In conclusion, The PersimmonTree is a piece subtle and delicate work.BibliographyBarnard, M. (1976) in Heseltine, H. The Penguin Book of AustralianShort Stories UK Penguin pp126 129Hornby, AS. (1994) in Lee, Peita Oxford Advanced LearnersEnglish-Chinese Dictionary UK Oxford University Press foliate 1380