Language

Dialogue

The language used in “A Shocking Accident” by Graham Greene is simple and easy to comprehend. Moreover, the story combines narrative and descriptive passages with dialogue, which makes the story more dynamic and realistic:

“You were very small when your father died?”
“Just nine.”
“Poor little boy,” she said.
“I was at school. They broke the news to me.”
“Did you take it very hard?”
“I can’t remember.”
“You never told me how it happened.”
“It was very sudden. A street accident.”

In what follows, we will present you some of the linguistic devices employed by Graham Greene in his story, so you can better understand the author’s style.

Imagery

In literature, descriptive language is mostly known as imagery – the creation of visual and sensory images in the reader’s mind. In “A Shocking Accident”, imagery is mostly used in connection to the way Jerome’s fathe...