Mitch Tooley

English Assessment Plaster cast and Fresh bait The stories I have chosen to talk about today are Plaster Cast by Archimede Fusillo, and Fresh Bait by Sherryl Clark. I have chosen to talk about these particular stories, because the ways in which they are similar captured my interest when reading them. Both stories feel as if they are written from end to beginning. They unfold slowly, keeping the reader in rapt suspense, on the edge of their chair, until the very end, when the story takes its last breath to reveal to the reader the horrible, unforeseen truth.

The authors of these two stories employed many techniques to create works that are similar in some ways, dissimilar in others. It is these different techniques I will talk to you about today. One of the most important elements of a short story is characterization. In both stories, the author intertwines the concepts; confusion and suspicion to portray their individual protagonists, letting out small details to intrigue the reader and make them wonder about the characters. In plaster cast, Miranda (the main protagonist) is a new art student entering gruesome sculptures into her school art show. uote “They’re not fit for a school art show” pg49 Her character is slowly developed and revealed through these sculptures, that seem eerie and “too lifelike” for comfort. Similarly to Plaster Cast, the character traits of the main protagonist in Fresh Bait are revealed slowly. The unnamed character remains to the reader a mystery, as we are left to stumble slowly yet blindly after her on her strange journey. Similarly to Miranda, the anonymous hero in Fresh Bait seems somewhat strange to the people around her who cannot understand the peculiar things the does. uote “I walked back a few paces, bent down and noted his number plate. ” Pg19 Structure Language Technique comparison The Technique in these stories is quite different. In fresh bait the language techniques mostly include adjectives, listing and a few similes and metaphors, quote “Called up the list in my head again. Blue Holden new. Sales Forty-Fifty. Finger. ” Pg21. This quote is an example of listing. The language techniques in the plaster cast mostly include adjectives and repetition. Quote “They could be living things. Breathing, pulsating, living things. ” Pg49