Guest Post by Alisha
I took this passage from a book I am currently reading. Can anyone guess the title ?
Lou Clark knows a lot of things. She knows how many footsteps there are between the bus stop and home. She knows she likes working in the Buttered Bun tea shop and she knows she might not love her boyfriend Patrick. What Lou doesn’t know is she’s about to lose her job or that knowing what’s coming is what keeps her sane.
Will Traynor knows his motorcycle accident took away his desire to live. He knows everything feels very small and rather joyless now and he knows exactly how he’s going to put a stop to that. What Will doesn’t know is that Lou is about to burst into his world in a riot of colour. And neither of them knows they’re going to change the other for all time.
What can you say about the passage ?
What genre is used ?
What tone is used ?
And what’s the writers purpose?
oxy[morons] 
The passage rubs off the idea of being a cliché romance, with the happy ending of the two characters falling in love. The tone is informal and is hopeful for the better in the future for the pair. The writer’s purpose could be to show us how Lou manages to discover herself more and be able to positively brighten Will’s demanted soul.
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Good, Samu. There is a touch of the cliché, I agree! How do you think the contrast is effective?
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Besides the fact that it is the interaction between a girl and a guy which would automatically suggest a romance type of genre, I would say that this passage strikes me as a sort of adventure of discovery for the two characters- an adventure where they discover how one person can change one’s life. At the start the writer’s tone is rather tragic as both characters at in the midst of despair. Later, as the passage progresses the writer hits at a happier time when the two characters finally meet. The writer’s purpose would be to demonstrate how to opposite individuals can change each other’s life.
The title of the book is “Me Before You” by Jojo Moyes.
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Good Carolyne! I’m curious: if you began this commentary with stating the writers’ purpose first if it would significantly change how you organise your thoughts?
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this is taken from the book “me before you” where two total opposites fall in love in the most unlikely way. The writer has created a feeling of sadness when describing will being in a motorbike accident. These two people are a typical example of a cliche romance novel where the two most unlikely of people fall in love and one of them dies in the end. The writer uses a very informal tone where it is like he is speaking directly to you. The writer uses a very light hearted tone and demonstrates the theory of how opposites attract.
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Good, Ashleigh! Can you think of one way in which the writing gives a sense of them being opposites?
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The passage has rhythm and there is also alot of repetition for effect used by the writer when starting the sentences such as “He knows” or “She knows”. The passage also shows instead of telling, foe example when the author says “What Will doesn’t know is that Lou is about to burst into his world in a riot of colour” instead of simply saying he is going to fall in love with her.
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Very good Daphine! Don’t you think the use of “he knows” and “she knows” sets these two characters up as parallels?
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The brief introduction of the male and female character suggests that this genre is romance. This passage suggests that their liver are intertwined and that there romance will make a huge life changing impact. It is almost hopeful as it leads up to how they will end up together. The tone could be described as in a way endearing as each character is described in a very quirky way. The purpose of this is to show how their lives will be entwined by fate. How two people with completely different lives will end up together.
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Very well put, Leah. I enjoy how you reflect on the suggestion of how they will be significant to each other, even as the text expounds on their separate lives.
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It definitely shows that it is a romance, as it includes both a girl and a boy. There is a mystery by the phrase “What Lou doesn’t know is she’s about to lose her job” which means that Lou thinks she is doing everything to her best but she opens know what the future holds for her. It will give her a chance to know who she really is and discover new things in the future. The purpose shows how in the end, the two people that own have much in common will end up being together.
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Very good, Jamie. The use of “what Lou doesn’t know…” is almost a form of dramatic irony, which is when the reader or audience knows more than the character.
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