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Summary Of E. L. Doctorow's Ragtime

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New Beginnings Published in 1975, the book Ragtime by E.L. Doctorow is a story of the oppression of different social groups whether it is immigrants or other races. The novel takes place during the period of American history called “The Gilded Age”, coined by the author Mark Twain in 1873 in his novel The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today, referred to gilding, or the application of gold to different surfaces which manifested the homes of the American elite, such as Cornelius Vanderbilt, imitating the homes of the Czars in Russia. The Gilded Age showed the rise of extremely wealthy families who had risen above all and created large wealth gaps between the social classes, resulting in the rise of socialism and communism, ultimately leading to the creation of labor unions and strikes. The passage in chapter thirty-four takes place during a storm on the beach in Atlantic City, where Tateh and Mother look for the little boy and girl. Doctorow uses imagery, anaphora, cataloging, and similes to represent that even in harsh times there was still hope which embodies the American dream. Doctorow’s use of imagery, simile, and cataloging helps set the scene and lets the reader imagine a storm settling into the beach. Doctorow firsts …show more content…

The continual use of they in the beginning of sentence is an example of anaphora by Doctorow these include, “They stood up…They started back…The crouched…They stared…” (264). This first portion of anaphora refers to the two children who later become siblings, as Doctorow progresses with the next portion, referring to Tateh and Mother he writes, “They stumbled…They turned…They called…They ran…” (265-265). The continual use of anaphora give the reader a sense of strong connection between the two children and the two adult. This is one of the bright moments in the passage where the rest is enveloped in the darkness of the

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(Bradbury, 9). The use of personification is applied through the use of weather and emotion. The weather cannot portray real human emotions but it can symbolize anger and fury. The parallels between the children and the house are no mistake. The children’s raw emotions echo through the house, the environments in their lives only cater to them and their feelings.

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