Tiffany Le 8/13/12 Per. 4 Mrs. Schaeffer AP Literature & Comp.

. The Street by Ann Petry 10 Dialectical Journals 1 it drove most of the people off the streetexcept for a few hurried pedestrians who bent double in an effort to offer the least possible exposed surface to its violent assault (5-9). The weather was so harsh that the citys inhabitants knew better than to brave it on the streets. Those who failed to avoid it could only brace themselves for the lashing wind while attempting to maximize what little protection they had. The wind creeps along the curve with its fingers, raising a flurry of paper in the air that flew in the faces of pedestrians as they hurried along the street. Personification The author portrays the wind as a perpetrator inflicting violent assault on unlucky pedestrians, giving it a terrorizing persona that wields control over the population of the city. The November wind assumes the role of an invisible aggressor not to be reckoned withthose who failed to avoid it must cower and take the punches, as retaliation is not an option when confronted with this fearsome force of nature. Selection of detail/Imagery The detail of the wind having fingers is chosen to enhance the imagery of its sweeping motion along the sidewalk, since the agility of fingers parallels the airy fluidity of the wind. The depiction of dancing papers establishes a chaotic atmosphere that complements the hectic visual of papers and faces colliding at once. These elements contribute to the overall entropic environment of a city with its contents stirred by wind. Imagery The author enhances the readers experience of the winds effects by describing feelings of suffocation, blindness, and stinging in order to show the futility of braving the wind, whose power exceeds not only that of the citys but of its inhabitants as well. Personification Again, the author uses the detail of fingers to depict the swift and unpredictable movements of the wind. In this case, the wind is personified as a mischievous thief, running astray with hats, scarves, and coats with no reason or purpose but to create discomfort and stir unnecessary chaos. Imagery The author uses the winds act of blowing Lutie Johnsons hair away to emulate the feeling of being stripped of ones defenses. Because the chaotic city environment can be alienating to individuals, the addition of the winds harsh effects worsens the tense relationship between the protagonist and her setting. The reader is forced to feel the minor yet annoying discomfort of having his or her own body becoming a hindrance to completing a goal.

2 Fingering its way along the curb, the wind set the bits of paper to dancing high in the air, so that a barrage of paper swirled into the faces of the people on the street (15-18).

3 the dirt got into their noses, making it difficult to breathe; the dust got into their eyes and blinded them; and the grit stung their skins (2326). 3 And then the wind grabbed their hats, pried their scarves from around their necks, stuck its fingers inside their coat collars, blew their coats away from their bodies (31-34). 4 The wind lifted Lutie Johnsons hair away from the back of her neck so that she felt suddenly naked and bald, for her hair had been resting softly and warmly against her skin (35-38).

The wind prevented the people from breathing and seeing properly by clogging their senses with dirt and dust, which lashed against their skin as they walked as well. The wind blew away hats, unwound scarves from necks, and peeled coats away from the people as they walked.

The winds sole purpose is to remove people from the comfort of their own bodies, and in this case, Lutie Johnsons protective cascade of hair is blown from its warm resting place into disarray.

 4 It even blew her eyelashes away from her eyes so that her eyeballs were bathed in a rush of coldness and she had to blink in order to read the words on the sign swaying back and forth over her head (40-44). 5 Each time she thought she had the sign in focus, the wind pushed it away from her so that she wasnt certain whether it said three rooms or two rooms. If it was three, why, she would go in and ask to see it, but if it said two why, there wasnt any point (45-49). 5 she could see that it had been there for a long time because its original coat of white paint was streakedand the metal had slowly rusted, making a dark red stain like blood (50-55). 6 It was three rooms. The wind held it still for an instant in front of her and then swooped it away until it was standing at an impossible angle on the rod that suspended it from the building (56-59). 6 She read it rapidly. Three rooms, steam heat, parquet floors, respectable tenants. Reasonable (

The wind impaired Lutie Johnsons most important sense at this place and time, stinging her eyes with coldness so that reading the moving sign became all the more difficult.

Lutie Johnson attempts to make sense of the sign, but repeatedly fails every time she comes close. Her trek could end at the moment she finds what she has been looking for3 vacant roomsbut the simplicity of her quest is negated by the absurdity of the situation. Lutie Johnson saw that the sign wore years of weather through its streaking paint and dark, rusting metal.

Imagery The author couples the painful sensation of having wind blown through ones eyes with the annoyance of reading a moving sign to instill frustration in the reader. The reader sympathizes with Lutie Johnson through this imagery and glimpses into her uneasy interaction with the city, constantly magnifying whatever troubles she already faces. Selection of detail The author chooses to add the minor details of what Lutie Johnson wanted to see on the sign in order to mark the frustration the character feels. Because her goal could be met so easily at this moment were it not for the wind, this detail magnifies the exasperating nature of the interaction between the main character and her city. Imagery/selection of detail The sign is depicted as old and rusty, imagery that lends itself to the suggestion of history and hardship. Whereas Lutie Johnson can be inferred to be a young woman, the sign contrasts her as an ancient and ragged artifact, having faced years of harsh treatment by weather such as the one currently plaguing 116th Street. Imagery The brevity of the moment when Lutie Johnson can finally comprehend the sign characterizes the volatile nature of the wind. The imagery of the sign being held still for milliseconds then suspended into a ridiculous position on the rod adds to the random nature of the city and enhances the authors description of it as a chaotic and discomforting place. Diction/selection of detail The authors choice of the word reasonable as the final verdict suggests compromise, characterizing Lutie Johnson as one used enough to city life to know that pragmatic, not perfect, decisions must be made. The selection of such details as steam heat and parquet floors contribute to the promise of comfort that is often advertised but often found lacking for many inhabitants of large urban settings.

The wind showed an unexpected instance of leniency and allowed Lutie Johnson to finally see what she had been searching for, but quickly snatched it away.

Lutie Johnson finds that the signs contents met her standards and goals, not perfectly but reasonably.