Compare and Contrast Draft 2 PDF

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An early draft of the Compare and Contrast essay between two different short stories....

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Kameron Cross

February 8, 2019

COMPARE AND CONTRAST Two stories known as “Lather and Nothing Else” by Hernando Tellez, and “Razor” by Vladimir Nabokov used three literary elements. The three literary elements used in each story are conflict, suspense, and point of view. Although the literary elements would make the stories seem similar, they happen to be used in several different ways. Those stories may have similar settings, but they show that various stories with similarities would be written in different perspectives, and with different actions. Both stories used literary element known as point of view. “Lather and Nothing Else” used first person point of view. The author used the point of view of the protagonist known as the barber. “I took out a sheet from the cabinet and tied it around my customer’s neck.” First person point of view is when the author uses words like “I” and “My”. Another example of first person point of view is when the barber said “I am a barber who still does things well”. He is cautious with his work and his customers. In “Razor”, third person point of view was used as the author wrote Ivanov’s character as “he”, “his” and “him”. “His regimental comrades had a good reason to dub him ‘Razor’”. Ivanov was called “Razor” because he had no façade and worked at a barbershop. First person point of view and third person point of view have been used through both stories. Another literary element that has been used in various ways in the stories is suspense. The tension in “Lather and Nothing else” involves the barber feeling hesitant and nervous about killing Torres with the razor in his hand. “I was shaking like a real murderer. A stream of blood would spill from his neck, onto the sheet, onto the chair, onto my hands, onto the ground.” The

barber was afraid he would slit Torres’ throat instantly. He believed it would have been easy to kill Torres after fourteen rebels have been murdered. However, the barber does not believe any human being should be killed. In “Razor”, Ivanov was surprised that a man who interrogated him arrived. “So shaken was he by having encountered this person again.” Ivanov informed the customer, “Those sentenced to death are shaved too. And now I am shaving you.” It could have been revealed that the customer also had a death sentence although he interrogated Ivanov. This shows that suspense could be used through actions and dialogue. In “Lather and Nothing Else”, Man vs. self conflict is used as the barber refrains from killing Captain Torres with a razor he is using for his face. “I, on the other hand, with razor in hand, polishing his skin again and again, avoiding spilling any blood from these pores, watching every stroke, can’t think clearly.” The barber was refraining from killing Torres even though he felt like he had the urge to do so. That was when Torres invited him to a playground after revealing that he has murdered rebels. Meanwhile the barber was a secret revolutionary; however he preferred to be a barber. “My destiny depended all on this blade”. When the barber had the blade in his hand, he saw himself as if he would be a killer barber. However, he did not want to be a murderer, all he wanted to do was shave Torres’ face thoroughly. In “Razor”, man vs. man conflict was used as Ivanov reminds a customer that he interrogated. “I remember how you interrogated me some six years ago in Kharkov.” This shows that Ivanov may have been involved with something extreme, and he attempted to remind the German customer who he was. This shows that conflict would be used differently in various stories. Two stories which had similarities used three different literary elements in different ways. Hernando Tellez used Man vs. Self conflict and first person point of view in “Lather and Nothing Else”. Vladimir Nabokov used Man vs. Man conflict and third person point of view in “Razor”.

Both stories used the literary element of suspense in different ways. In “Lather and Nothing Else”, Captain Torres was convinced that the barber was going kill him, which gave him a purpose to go to the barbershop in order to find out for himself. This would have been man vs. man conflict; however, the barber refrained from killing Torres. Captain Torres was an executioner. In “Razor”, Ivanov remember everything about his encounter with the customer who he was shaving. After being shaved by Ivanov, the customer kept his eyes shut. Ivanov forced him to stand up and leave while his eyes were still closed. This shows that whether stories would have similar scenarios, different kinds of conflict would be used. Even if conflict would be used in different ways, stories would be told from different perspectives and various levels of suspense would be performed.

Works Cited Tellez, Hernando. “Lather and Nothing Else”. pp. 2-4 Nabokov, Vladimir. “Razor”. pp. 2-4...