PASSAGE
PICKER
Section
One
“One sweltering summer eve, near
midnight, a violent storm broke over the city where Fabrizio lived. Lightning splintered the inky darkness. Thunder rumbled like siege guns. The falling rain fell with the sound of a
million hissing snakes.”
·
The passage I
chose is a great example of a DESCRIPTIVE type of passage.
·
This passage is
a DESCRIPTIVE passage because is describes the how the strong the storm
was. It describes three aspects of the
storm: the lightning, thunder and the rain.
·
Do you think
that the author’s descriptive words for the storm had an impact on the
story? I think that the author used
descriptive words like inky darkness, siege gun and hissing snakes because
those things are unpleasant. I think
that he was setting the tone for what was about to happen next.
·
The author
included this passage in the story because he is trying to describe the storm
using detailed words.
Page
7, Paragraph 4
““Count Scarazoni!” Fabrizio
cried. Not only was Scarazoni the king’s
closest adviser, most people believed he was the real power in the
kingdom. Fabrizio knew him best as the
principal tormentor of Mangus at his trial.”
·
The passage I
chose above is a great example of FORESHADOWING.
·
This passage is
a FORESHADOWING passage because it introduces an idea that will later be a key
part in the story; it gives the reader a little hint as to what is to come in
the following chapters.
·
What do you
think will happen later in the story based on the fact that this passage tells
us that Count Scarazoni is the real power behind the kingdom? I think that something will happen to the
king and Count Scarazoni will use his overruling power to take over the king.
·
This passage
adds drama to the story by creating a sense of suspicion.
Page
17, Paragraph 2
“Inside, all was dim and steamy, the
only light coming from a scrawny candle in a wall socket. Its yellow flame fluttered like a frightened
butterfly, just enough to illuminate the face of Count Scarazoni.”
·
The passage I
chose is a great example of FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE.
·
This passage
shows examples of FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE because it uses a very powerful simile…“its
yellow flame fluttered like a frightened butterfly.”
·
Why do you
think that the author used this simile to describe the flame? Do you know what
a frightened butterfly looks like? I
think that AVI used this simile because it helps me, the reader picture the
wild flame. I do not think that I have
ever seen a frightened butterfly, but I can imagine that it would be flapping
its wings very fast and sporadic.
·
The author
included this passage in the story because although we cannot see the flame,
using the simile helps us to visualize it because most readers know what a
butterfly looks like.
Page
23 (last line)- Page 24 through Paragraph 4
“The soldier’s words stung
Fabrizio. How dare they mock his
master! Furious, he reached into his
pocket and pulled out one of the coins Signora Sophia had given him. He held it up.
Puzzled, the soldiers started at
him.
Mangus, realizing what Fabrizio was
doing cried, “Fabrizio! Don’t!”
Too late. Fabrizio made a simple pass, wiping his left
hand over his right hand, which held the coin.
As he did, he deftly palmed the coin into his left hand, creating the
illusion that it had disappeared.
The soldiers gasped with
astonishment. As Fabrizio replaced
Mangus’s hood over his master’s face, he smiled.”
· The passage that I picked is an example of a SURPRISING passage.
· This passage is SURPRISING because it is a huge surprise that Fabrizio performed a piece of magic in front of the soldiers, knowing that it could result in his immediate death.
· Why do you think that Fabrizio performed this small piece of magic? I think that he did the magic so that the attention of the soldiers would be focused on him rather than on Mangus. Fabrizio loves Mangus so much that he is willing to be harmed in order to help Mangus feel more safe and comfortable.
·
This passage
adds a nice twist to the beginning of the book.
It sets up the tone for the rest of the book and allows the reader to
look again, quickly, at Fabrizio’s personality.
Back to Midnight Magic Section One