Question

You will be doing a literary analysis by discussing how a particular literary element was used in a story. Use complete sentences. These sentences should give specific examples from the story that highlight your chosen literary element (from above).
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Answer 1

For this analysis I will deal with the element of characterization in the short story "The Instrument" by Canadian writer Wayde Compton. It tells the story of twin brothers Albert and Donald. They used to be siamese, conjoined at the back of their heads until they underwent surgery as children to separate them.

The conflict in the story arises when one of them wants to record a documentary about their father, a former musician that seems to have become mentally ill after years of drug use. The person financing the documentary is the same millionaire that paid for the surgery decades before. While Donald wants to record the documentary and interview his father, Albert will try to stop it because he thinks their father is crazy and he will embarrass himself.

The conflict is framed through the separation between the two brothers, both physical through the surgery they underwent and the resultant emotional separation. At one point, Donald sees Albert for the first time in a while, "Donald runs a hand over his own scalp, seems to catch himself doing it, puts his palm down flat on the white table". This quotation points out that the first thing that comes to mind when they see each other is how they were joined or connected, and we may hint some longing for reconnection, even if it is through reflex actions like touching the scar in the scalp.