The Man Who Thought Himself a Woman Literary Elements

The Man Who Thought Himself a Woman Literary Elements

Genre

Short fiction.

Setting and Context

19th century.

Narrator and Point of View

“The Child’s Champion” and “How Nancy Jackson Married Kate Wilson” employ third-person omniscient narrators.

Tone and Mood

“The Child’s Champion”: Compassionate and Romantic.

“How Nancy Jackson Married Kate Wilson”: Sensitive and mysterious.

Protagonist and Antagonist

“The Child’s Champion”: Lankton is the protagonist, whereas Mr. Ellis is the antagonist. “How Nancy Jackson Married Kate Wilson”: Nancy Jackson is the protagonist, whereas Mr. Thomas Furlong is the antagonist.

Major Conflict

“The Child’s Champion”: Mr.Elllis' inhumane exploitation of Charles.

“How Nancy Jackson Married Kate Wilson”: Nancy Jackson’s hidden gender and secret identity.

Climax

“The Child’s Champion”: Charles’ night with Lankton.

“How Nancy Jackson Married Kate Wilson”: Nancy Jackson’s wedding to Kate Wilson.

Foreshadowing

“The Child’s Champion”: Charles foreshadows that he will escape from Mr. Ellis’ mistreatment and enslavement.

“How Nancy Jackson Married Kate Wilson”: Robert Finely predicts that there would never be love between him (her) and Kate Wilson.

Understatement

“The Child’s Champion”: Mr. Ellis understates Charles’ potential usefulness to Lankton.

Allusions

“The Child’s Champion”: and “How Nancy Jackson Married Kate Wilson” allude to the queer theory.

Imagery

“The Child’s Champion”: Lankton’s affection for Charles is instant and unaffected.

“How Nancy Jackson Married Kate Wilson”: Nancy Jackson's masculine appearances effectively mislead Kate Wilson and her family that she is male.

Paradox

“The Child’s Champion”: Love that blossoms among unfamiliar persons is paradoxical.

“How Nancy Jackson Married Kate Wilson”: Kate Wilson’s vow to never join anyone in matrimony is paradoxical because she marries Nancy Jackson.

Parallelism

N/A

Metonymy and Synecdoche

“The Child’s Champion”: “Evil” denotes enticement.

“How Nancy Jackson Married Kate Wilson”: "Sex" denotes gender. 'Name' denotes reputation.

Personification

N/A

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