Caleb Williams Literary Elements

Caleb Williams Literary Elements

Genre

Political philosophy

Setting and Context

Set in the late 1700s

Narrator and Point of View

Caleb Williams is the novel's first-person narrator

Tone and Mood

The tone of this novel is philosophical.

Protagonist and Antagonist

The protagonist is Caleb Williams, and the antagonist is Falkland.

Major Conflict

The major conflict in the novel is the murder of Tyrell.

Climax

The climax of the text is when Falkland accuses Caleb of stealing, and he goes on the run.

Foreshadowing

Falkland warns Caleb that his curiosity will lead to punishment, which it does.

Understatement

N/A

Allusions

Caleb's name is an allusion to the biblical figure of Caleb.

Imagery

The text contains medieval imagery, as Falkland is a fan of medieval stories.

Paradox

N/A

Parallelism

The false accusation of Hawkins is parallelled with the false accusation of Caleb later in the novel.

Metonymy and Synecdoche

Godwin refers to the "pen" as representing the written word.

Personification

Godwin personifies wealth as influencing the law.

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