Analysis

This analysis of the short story “Cold Calling” by Chuck Palahniuk will give you an overview of narrative and language elements that will help you gain a detailed understanding of the text.

In what follows, we will explore the structure of the short story looking at title and plot elements and narrative techniques.

We will examine the most important characters, William and Samantha, considering how their outer and inner characterizations are constructed.

We will present the setting of the story, a small American town called Walla Walla, including aspects of the social setting related to racial prejudices and stereotypes.

We will take a look at William’s character as narrator, looking at how his point of view influences the narrative.

We will outline and discuss the language used in the text, including language devices like imagery, allusions, similes, metaphors, repetitions, and symbols.

Read the full analysis on the next pages!