The Fifth Child - Opening Scene

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Textual analysis : Extract 1 INTRODUCTION The passage under analysis – the very first pages of the novel - sets mainly to hook the reader by describing David and Harriet. A. Hooking the reader B. D and H vs the rest of the world C. Soul mates... for better and for worse ? A. Hooking the reader The first pages of a novel aim at establishing the theme and introducing the main characters and the setting. WHO ? David and Harriet, the protagonists (they are the only ones of the crowd to be named) WHERE ? In England. WHEN ? In the late sixties. WHAT ? Their meeting at an office party. The reader is hooked by something unusual : the characters are interesting as they are anti-heroes. The story begins with a turning point in their lives : how H and D met. It is a non-complicated opening without any boring back story which will come later (not to kill any curiosity). B. D and H vs the rest of the world Physical description : We are told that H has got curly dark hair, that she is solidly built and healthy. In the late 60s, she was not trendy : girls used to have straight peroxided hair, be skinny, smoke and drink, even take drugs. H seems to come from a painting or an old movie : she is described as “a pastel blur”, “an Impressionist picture”, “a trick photograph”. The writer uses the cinematographic technique to describe her. As a result, the reader is under the impression of a crossfade between H and her surroundings, he/she imagines her figure in a soft focus. As for David, he has no special features. It is interesting to notice that their ages are not mentioned, as if it didn't matter : they seem to be from a bygone era. As they don't behave like the other youth of the 60s, it is pointless to say how old they are. Psychological description : The first paragraph of the extract is eloquent. The
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