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William Saroyan Literary Devices

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A quote from an unknown source says that, “Life is simple, it’s just not easy.” In William Saroyan’s “Gaston”, a daughter travels to visit her father in Paris and then while eating a peach an insect crawls out and her father explains the insect’s life. Saroyan’s use of symbolism and conflict shows just that, life can be simple, but it just can’t always be easy. Saroyan’s story has many different literary devices used throughout the story, but symbolism is one of the most used. As Gaston was outside of his peach home sitting on the white plate, his daughter asked how he is feeling in that moment. The father replies by saying, “Well, he’s a little confused. Now, inside that house of his he had everything in order. Bed here, porch there, and so forth”(page 2). Although it is overt that a bug would not have an actual bed and porch as humans would, the father is symbolising that life can be turned upside down as instantaneously as you bite into a simple peach. …show more content…

The daughter’s mother calls as the father leaves to go purchase more peaches.They have a conversation about what the mother considers, just a bug and what her daughter calls Gaston at first. The mother adds a conflict to the daughter’s mind about whether or not Gaston has any importance. The mother seems to believe that, “Somebody gets a peach with a bug in it, and throws it away, but not him. He makes up a lot of foolishness about it ”(page 4). According to the daughter ,it is not foolishness, it is Gaston the grand boulevardier. In the final moments of their conversation, the daughter changes her mind once again, and states that Gaston is indeed just a bug ,who in her words is all ugh, as she thought in the beginning of the story.The daughter thought that it was so easy, Gaston needed to live in her father’s house, but that idea of easiness changes after her conversation with her mother

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