The Conjure Woman and Other Tales Literary Elements

The Conjure Woman and Other Tales Literary Elements

Genre

Anthology of Short Stories

Setting and Context

The anthology is written in the context of slave life.

Narrator and Point of View

This is a third-person narrative.

Tone and Mood

The tone candid is, and the mood is humorous.

Protagonist and Antagonist

The protagonist of the story is the conjure man.

Major Conflict

The main clash is in the story 'The Goophered Grapevine." Uncle Julius prevents John from purchasing the old plantation based on the questionable quality of grapevines obtained from the plantation.

Climax

The climax is in the story 'Po Sandy,' in which Uncle Julius does his level best to stop the demolition of the schoolhouse on the agricultural estate.

Foreshadowing

Sis Becky's terrible fortune in life is foreshadowed by her decision not to do something to improve her situation.

Understatement

The historical reality of racism is understated in the book. For instance, the author does not directly tell readers about the suffering of slaves but focuses on conditioned bigotry, which leaves readers to make their own conclusions.

Allusions

The story alludes to slavery and the suffering of the slaves.

Imagery

The images of suffering, slavery, and separation are all over the book. These images play a critical role in painting a picture for readers to see how slaves were forced to work for their masters.

Paradox

The dramatic paradox is discussed in 'Po Sandy', in which the man vows not to lose his wife again to the slave masters. The man turns his wife into a tree during the day and turns her human at night. Ironically, when the man loans his lover to a different plantation, the tree is chopped off! Consequently, the man loses his second wife again.

Parallelism

N/A

Metonymy and Synecdoche

Conditioned slavery is a metonymy for the intentional blinding of the masses for the benefit of the slave master.

Personification

N/A

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