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Word Choice In Madeleine Roux's Asylum

935 Words4 Pages

The dystopian realistic-fiction novel “Asylum” tells a tale of three characters by the names of Abby, Jordan, and Dan becoming friends at a college preparatory over the summer. Unlike years past, the college preparatory that these three characters are attending is moved to an old, unused asylum due to construction being done on the original building. This doesn’t seem like a problem at first, but when a mysterious killer murders two people at the college prep and the main character, Dan, starts getting threatening anonymous notes, the asylum’s past starts to reveal itself in a chilling way that connects back to Dan’s family line. Throughout this novel, the author Madeleine Roux elaborates her word choice in a way that contributes to the meaning …show more content…

For example, on page 241, she writes, “But suddenly, Dan heard a voice in that last room, and he moved stealthily toward it. ‘Please . . . P-please don’t hurt me.’ Felix. He quickened his pace. ‘P-please . . .’ it was Felix again….His throat had tightened so much, each suck of air came in with a wheeze. Pressing against the wall, he inched his head around the corner, dreading what he would find.” Here, the author’s choice of dialogue specifically conveys a suspenseful, or on-edge mood. Since Roux chooses to stutter this voice that the character is hearing and draw it out, it takes on a whole new meaning. If the author were to simply say “please don’t hurt me,” it wouldn’t nearly convey as strong of a suspenseful mood as it does. Additionally, when the author decides to use the phrase “dreading what he would find,” it raises the question of what the character Dan will find when he sees what is around the corner. It makes it impossible for the reader to stop reading before Dan knows what is around the corner out of simple curiosity. In turn, this contributes to the meaning of the text by exaggerating the point of what the character is feeling inside as he is listening to this voice cry out for help, so that the reader can fully understand the intensity of this

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