The+Portable+Phonograph

__ Short Stories - Literary Devises __ ** __ Title:The Portable Phonograph __ **

**Point of View:** omniscient (all knowing) but limits how much they reveal to us

**Protagonist:** The old man (Dr. Jinkins)


 * What type of character is the Protagonist?: ** Round/Dynamic

**Antagonist**: The sick musician

**Describe the setting:** This story takes place in the future, after a devastating world war. It is late fall/early winter and it is very cold. "There was a small expectation of snow." They are sitting in a dugout sort of cell resembling a mine tunnel entrance. The mood is quite lonely and hopeless as the men have given up on their lives ever returning to normal.

**Type of Conflict:** Man vs Man, Man vs Himself

One of the main conflicts is that the musician has for gotten what the songs sound like. This causes him great distress because to him music means more than to the others. While the group of them were listening to the song the other three were remembering things about their past but the musician listened to the song just for what it was. The musician is obviously very jealous of the doctor's phonograph and record collection. (Man vs Man) - The other main conflict directly ties to the Man vs Man conflict. The musician is so jealous of the doctor's phonograph and records that he might be willing to kill for it, or maybe just attack the doctor and steal them. (Man vs Himself)
 * Describe the main conflict(s): **

**Describe the Climax of the Story**: The climax of the story is after then men leave and the doctor pokes his head out of his hut to listen. He is listening for something specific, something he knew he would head, which is the sound of muffled caughing,

**How does the Protagonist change over the course of the story?** The protagonist changes when he realizes the musician is going to return to try to steal the phonograph. He probably thinks the act of stealing something like that would be very selfish because it is one of the only connections any of them have to their past. Describe the relationship between the title and the theme

**How does the main conflict help to illustrate the theme?:** The main conflict helps illustrate the theme by showing an aspect of true humanity, jealousy. The musician think he is more deserving of the music than the others are so he decides to steal it from the doctor. This is a selfish act because the other three deserve top hear the music just as much as he does. The music helps them reflect on their own humanity. Without this weekly music composition, they will loose some of that.

**How does the climax help to illustrate the theme?** The climax helps to illustrate the theme by showing an element of humanity.The doctor was generous by sharing his music and books but then realized that the musician was ready to go to grave measures to gain these for himself.


 * When is the story set? What has recently happened? Support you opinion with details from the story: **This story is set in "the future after a deviating war." It is late fall or early winter because the author mentioned there was an expectation of snow and the geese were flying south. Recently the characters have been getting together to listen to a passage from a book and one song on a portable phonograph. They just finished listening to the passage from the book and are about to choose a song.


 * What is the purpose of the men's meeting? Why does the author compare the unwrapping of the book bundle to a ceremonial rite?** The purpose of the men's meeting is to listen to a song and read a passage from a book to "reclaim" some of what used to be a normal part of life. They felt like it was a symbol of what was. The author compares unwrapping the books to a ceremonial rite because to them it sort of was. Unwrapping the books was an important ritual to them. It wasn't just listening to the book for them, it was an almost sacred ritual that reconnected them to their humaity.


 * What is the significance of the books that were saved? Why are there no recent works of fiction included?** The significance of the books that were saved were their connection to what the doctor thinks of as his own humanity. They represented what the doctor though as the rest of what was good in this world. These books are classics and considered "old" but many not so recent publications are some of the best books ever written.


 * a) What do you think is the significance of Dr.Jenkins clutching the lead pipe at the end of the story?** I believe the significance of Dr.Jenkins holding the lead pipe is that he intends to defend himself, his books, and his music from whomever might try to hurt him or steal the music.


 * b) What do you think might happen next? Use references from the book:** I think what happened next is that the person trying to steal the phonograph and records is the sick musician because at the end of the story the doctor heard the muffled coughs in the distance and recalled the musician's extreme reaction to the song earlier.

**Simile:** "Narrow, black cloud strips like threats across it."

**Metaphor:** "He was like a prehistoric priest preforming a fateful ceremonial rite."

**Personification:** "The expansive blizzards paraded for days."

**Symbol:** //The books//: The books are a symbol of their humanity and also a symbol of what used to be. The doctor kept only four books that have special significance.

**Foreshadowing (give both elements):** In the beginning of the story under the title there is a phrase that says "Before the night is over, these men will come to know the finest and worst instincts of human nature." This is a good piece of foreshadowing because the author is revealing that both good and bad aspects of humanity will appear in this story.

**Irony:** The old man sacrificed one of his good needles to play the music for the musician yet the musician was the one who was going to attempt to steal it.

**Imagery:** "sensation of torment, of two-sided, unpredictable nature, arose from the stillness of the earth air."

**Describe the relationships between the class theme and the story.:** This story shows both the good and bad sides of humanity. The characters have realized the important things in life and never realized how important these things were until their access to them was limited. The author also chose to include a uniquely human emotion, jealousy. The story illustrates how something like a phonograph and a few worn out records can be worth killing over to some people because of how precious small things are in times like that. Even though they are in a war-torn landscape and realize that the war was most likely started over jealousy and greed, they never learn from this. They once again resort back to selfish and greedy tendencies when they find something they want. COMPLETION 5/5 EFFORT 5/5 CONTENT 5/5 QUESTIONS 8/8 TOTAL 23/23 =Link To Slideshow=


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total 14/16
 * CATEGORY || 4 || 3 || 2 || 1 ||
 * Content || All required slides complete with insightful responses and support || All required slides. Responses are adequate but may not be fully supported. || May be missing 1-3 slides and information is cursory and not fully supported. || Missing more than 3 slides and content is inaccurate. ||
 * Citations || All citations are present and in the proper format. || All citations are present however there are 1-3 errors in format. || Missing 1-3 citations. || Missing more than 3 citations. ||
 * Images || All images are relevant and add significant incite to the meaning of the text. All images are clear and unpixelated. || Most images are relevant and add incite into the meaning behind the text. || 1-5 Images have no clear connection to the text and some images are pixelated. || Several images (more than 5) have no clear connection to the text. ||
 * Spelling/Grammar || No discernible spelling or grammar errors. || 1-3 errors. || 3-6 errors || More than 6 errors ||