Tar Baby Literary Elements

Tar Baby Literary Elements

Genre

Novel

Setting and Context

Set in Florida

Narrator and Point of View

Third-person narrative

Tone and Mood

Tense and intriguing.

Protagonist and Antagonist

The central character is Jadine Childs.

Major Conflict

There is a conflict between Valerian and his wife, Margaret, over the invitation of strangers to live in their house.

Climax

The climax is when Jadine moves together with Son to live as a couple in New York.

Foreshadowing

Michael’s failure to honor his mother’s invitation for Christmas to the island is foreshadowed by the childhood torture he received from her.

Understatement

Margaret's innocence is understated. Valerian is shocked to learn that Margaret tortured their son, Michael.

Allusions

The story alludes to life exploration.

Imagery

The images of railroad tracks depict sight imagery to readers.

Paradox

The main paradox is that Jadine is first frightened of Son, but at last, they end as lovers.

Parallelism

N/A

Metonymy and Synecdoche

Picnic is used as a metonymy for fun and relaxation.

Personification

N/A

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