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Structuralism
Structuralism is a mode of thinking and a method of analysis practiced in 20th-century social sciences and humanities. Methodologically, it analyzes large-scale systems by examining the relations and functions of the smallest constituent elements of such systems, which range from human languages and cultural practices to folktales and literary texts.
Narratology
The study of the basic codes which make narrative possible, and which make it work. This is known generally as narratology, and often produces what might be called a grammar of narrative.
Valadimir Propp
This approach derives from the work of Victor Propp (The Morphology of the Folktale, 1928, which analysed fictional characters in terms of plot function).
Grard Genette (Narrative Discourse, 1972: the application of linguistic terms to the study of narrative and discourse),
A.J. Greimas
A.J. Greimas (Structural Semantics, 1966: actantial grammar, where characters have semantic roles, rather like nouns),
Tzvetan Todorov (The Poetics of Prose, 1971: figuration, the principle that patterns are observable in a text which appear to exist independently of the author).
2. 3.
1. Tense
Tense is the arrangement of events in the narrative with respect to time. That arrangement involves the notions of order, duration, and frequency.
1.1 Order
Order refers to the relationship between the chronology of the story(the order in which the events of the story occur in the fictional world)and the chronology of the narrative (the order in which the narrative presents those events
1.2 Duration
Duration refers to the relationship between the length of time over which a given event occurs in the story and the number of pages of narrative devoted to describing it.
1.3 Frequency
Frequency involves the relationship between the ways in which events may be repeated in the story An event can occur once and be narrated once (singular). An event can occur n times and be narrated once (iterative). An event can occur once and be narrated n times (repetitive). An event can occur n times and be narrated n times (multiple).
2.
Mood
2.1 Distance
Distance is created when the narrator is one of the characters in the narrative, a go-between through whose consciousness the story is filtered. The more intrusive the narrator, the greater the distance between narration and story. Conversely, the least distance is created when we are unaware of the narrators presence, when a tale seems to tell itself. Distance is also created by the absence of descriptive detail. The less detail given, the less the effect of reality is created, and the greater the sense of distance between narration and story. The more detail given, the less distance exists. Thus, the least distance, or the greatest imitation of life, is produced by maximum information and minimum presence of the narrator.
Since Moinuddin Daniyal himself is not one of the characters in his stories, the distance between the story and its narration is the least one. Readers are given a detailed account of what characters are thinking and what they do.
2.2 Perspective
Perspective is the point of view adopted by the narrator, which Genette calls focalization. "So by focalization I certainly mean a restriction of 'field' actually, that is, a selection of narrative information with respect to what was traditionally called omniscience" (1988, p. 74). These are matters of perception: the one who perceives is not necessarily the one who tells, and vice versa.
Daniyals Perspective
Genette distinguishes three kinds of focalization: 1. Zero focalization: The narrator knows more than the characters. He may know the facts about all of the protagonists, as well as their thoughts and gestures. This is the traditional "omniscient narrator". 2. Internal focalization: The narrator knows as much as the focal character. This character filters the information provided to the reader. He cannot report the thoughts of other characters. 3. External focalization: The narrator knows less than the characters. He acts a bit like a camera lens, following the protagonists' actions and gestures from the outside; he is unable to guess their thoughts.
3.
Voice
Voice refers to the voice of the narrator. The voice we hear (the narrators) may not be the same as the eyes we see through (the perspective). When we analyze voice, we analyze the relationship of the narrator (the act of narration) to the story being told and to the narrative (the way the story is being told). Voice helps us determine the narrators attitude toward the story and reliability.
As her work is a memoir so sometimes she does not follow chronological order strictly when she narrates events from her life. She mentions events as flashbacks come in her mind. As in first chapter, starting from the discussion of female position within Pakistani culture she moves towards Dadis character (with no proper start or background), discusses the history of the development of Pakistan, discusses food, Dadi and her relation to God, discussion on Eid festival and chopping of animals, political issues, moving towards the mishap to her brother and Dadi and so on.
1965, father offered his services to Government in war 1968, Yahiya khan in power 1970, elections held 1971, --civil war, which lead to the establishment of East Pakistan as an independent nation called Bangladesh (March 26) 1977, Bhutto removed from power, had Bhutto hanged, and imposed martial law 1979, Dadi died 1985, Martial law was lifted 1988, Zia killed
2. Internal focalization: The narrator knows as much as the focal character. This character filters the information provided to the reader. He cannot report the thoughts of other characters.
All the stories are narrated in 1st person Narrative. Sara herself is a character in the stories.