Annie Dillard: A Literary Analysis

In American literature, there are many ways to express your personality and experiences through writing. Each writer has their own style and way of presenting their ideas to others. Two influential women in history, wrote about their childhood events. Their purpose was for people to enjoy and think about these events and how they are relative to their own lives. After reading excerpts written by each of these authors, I compared my own life experiences to these stories in similar situations. I think back to Annie Dillard’s story of her childhood fear and relate it to my own. Also, recalling Le Ly Hayslip’s portrayal of her as a child, acting out and being reprimanded by an adult for her actions. Following, are the ways each author creatively …show more content…
She writes of her first-hand experiences and of what life was like for the people in her village at the time. Hayslip uses a lot of vivid imagery and descriptive vocabulary to make the reader truly feel and see what she was feeling during the time of war. For example; “..when the door slammed shut I found myself in darkness with a hollow heart, sick stomach, and itchy legs..” Hayslip also uses a fair amount of metaphors to describe her experiences. She mentions: “....the Republicans avoided it (Bai Gian) like the plague.” Young Le Ly was recognized as a hero after getting released, following her first arrest. She describes the “Song for Sister Ly” as having a deep and sentimental meaning not only to her as the hero, but to the others in the village, especially the children. The author mentions the song several times throughout the text. She even recites the words to the song in the excerpt. Le Ly often repeats the word “after/before sundown” to emphasize the dangers of the village at night. She also relays her encounters with soldiers and how her life was at stake many times. Hayslip makes the reader sympathize with her in those hard times. This text is about Hayslip’s triumph and survival against the Republican soldiers in the Vietnam War. The writer uses narrative contrasting with dialogue as her style, as well as a casual diction and a colloquial syntax to express …show more content…
The monsters hiding in the dark were my biggest fear. I thought every black corner of my room moved and had eyes. Sleeping with a night light and my back against the wall would keep the monsters from breathing down my neck. It was the best way to keep calm and collected throughout the night. It acted as a sense of security knowing my backside was safe from surprise. It was as if I could almost feel them sometimes, lurking around me. A fearless night light would banish all the bad things that could get to me. The brutes would not survive in the daylight, but they thrive in the dark. Thinking myself into a sweat at night was common, imagining the shadows moving across the room was harrowing. I could not run, the monster under the bed would grab my feet. Feeling as if the entity in the closet watched me sleep. The beast from outside peered through the window and had glowing eyes. On windy nights, the monsters would scratch at my window and shake the trees. The door was too far away to escape, but it had to be cracked or my body was locked in. By morning, I felt relieved and not afraid anymore. What brought on this fear was watching horror films as a child. The first scary movie I watched, it was I Know What You Did Last Summer. I was about 6 years old, without a doubt too young to watch a horror film. Looking back now, that movie is not something to even be considered “scary”, but at the time it was terrifying.