Logos In Lost Memory Of Skin By Russell Banks

Many times, stories or novels are deemed successful or unsuccessful in all aspects due to the content, language, or stylistic perspective. However, every individual has a different opinion about how well the author executes his ideas and these opinions can be solely based on one single notion of the author's. Some ways to judge the success of a piece of literature is through its appeal to pathos, ethos, or even logos. In Lost Memory of Skin by Russell Banks, the author withholds several pieces of the character's story from the audience which creates suspense thus, making the novel extremely successful, and this is reflected mainly through the sympathetic lives of the Kid and the Professor and questioning the credibleness of the Professor,

For instance, Banks begins the novel by describing the Kid's flow of emotions when the librarian recognizes him and says, "Thats…you. Isn't it?" (6) while not giving away what happened to cause this trigger of panic. Not only does this create suspense, but it also grabs ahold of the readers attention. Because Banks chose to describe the Kid's current situation without giving the story behind his mistake, the readers are not able to make a judgement on whether or not the Kid is in the right or the wrong. Due to this, the audience will have a better understanding of the Kid's point of view thus, feeling as though the kid was not at fault for his situation. Because the story is told through the eyes of the Kid or first person point of view, the audience is able to directly make an emotional connection with the character. For instance, when the librarian asks about personal information from the Kid, the readers can sense his panic and tenseness through his speech as he frantically runs the other way until "he is back on his bike" (6) back to the Causeway. The readers do not know what might have caused the trigger, but it's clear through his actions that the Kid was uneasy about giving his name and