Language

Style of writing

The language in the short story “Legacy” by PR Woods is simple and straightforward. This makes the events easy to follow.

In terms of choice of words, we have plenty of vocabulary related to marine creatures, for example: “clams” (l. 2), “crabs” (l. 1), “fruits de mer” (l. 61), “blue-ringed octopi” (l. 156) and “pufferfish” (l. 149). The words are appropriate in the context of a fundraiser to help safeguard the oceans and add realism to the story. The short story also contains examples of figurative language related to the sea, such as "A ripple of applause made its way around the room, a lazy wave riding up a beach and receding again" (l. 21-22).

A significant particularity in the style of writing is the use of all-capital letters at the beginning. When Rory is working with the envelopes, Jola reprimands him: “ ‘DON’T LICK YOUR FINGERS!’ ”(l. 12). The use of capital letters draws readers’ attention and helps build suspense. Later on, further clues reveal that something is wrong with the envelopes, which explains Jola’s urgency in making sure her son is careful when handling them.

Humor is present throughout the story. Jola’s voice is ironic and humorous, which comes across as amusing despite the suspicion that she is planning to kill someone. An example of humor is when we are told that Jola needed “to be reminded to desc...