Introduction of the Essay:
The essay entitled ‘Art of Story – Telling’ is the best essay based on the art of story - telling. In this essay, the writer presents some important rules and his observations about the story - telling. He advises the story - tellers to follow some of the precautions while telling the stories. He insists on the vital need of physical movements and expressions. He observes that suspense plays a vital role in making a story very interesting, hence a story teller should assume the expression of seriousness. The writer advises the -story - tellers not to mingle their personal vanities in their stories. The story tellers should apply humour to provide a remarkable joy to the listeners.
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| Richard Steele’s Essay Art of Story-Telling—Summary and Critical Analysis |
Summary of the Essay:
The next day, Tom Lizard created an atmosphere of great joy at the tea table by telling an interesting story to the family. This story consisted great humour. This story was already known to the family. It also provided great joy to Tom Lizard's brother, Will. The next day, Will got the company of some acquaintance and he was determined to tell the story of great mirth. The writer did not know why he resolved to tell the story. When Will began to tell the story, the writer felt great pity for him. Will did not know the art of moving the hearts of the listeners. His story was incapable to impress the listeners. When Will found no expression of joy at the face of the company, he felt ashamed and looked round the room. He asked the members of the company why they were so grave. He told them that it was a very interesting story and he also admired the story when he heard it. After arriving his house, the writer contemplated deeply upon the art of telling the story. He decided to form some precautions upon this subject. The writer oftenly thought that the art of story-telling was a natural gift and it was inborn quality. According to the writer, some men see the things in another light than men of grave dispositions. The men of mirthful temper and lively imagination impact the minds and hearts of the hearers in the same manners as they themselves were influenced. The men of serious dispositions accept the things with disliking attitude. Some strange events which happen in their life, excite aversion in them, but the same events show their pleasing impacts if they are knitted well in the story by the men of mirthful nature. In a well - told story, unpleasant parts of the incidents are removed or concealed and only mirth - giving parts are displayed in the story. The writer thinks that the story - telling is not an art, but a skill of performing this task. The art of story - telling does not remain alive upon intellect but upon humour. This art is not perfect without the physical movements and physical expressions. The writer also knows that a certain sobriety of the face balances some stories. After bearing the expression of gravity upon the face, the story - teller puts the listener in suspense and gives him a profound astonishment in the end. But this rule of gravity is a very general rule. It is not necessary that for making suspense in the story, the story - teller should only bear the expression of gravity. By having the cheerful and anxiety looks, the same feeling of surprise can be created. Next, the writer says with confidence that the success of a story very often depends upon the structure of the body of the story - teller and his physical features which he applies while telling the story. Dick had fanciful opinions, so the writer was much dissatisfied with his personal vanity. Once, Dick's personal vanity forced him to exhibit his wit among the widow and other ordinary mechanics who oftenly visited the coffee - house. The writer could not abstain from laughing at those who heard Dick. When the writer examined, he found that the members of all the company were dull. Later on after discovering the mystery of the merit of Dick's wit, the writer found that it was the shaking of his fat belly and the rising and falling of his rosy cheeks. Once, Dick fell ill and due to sudden attack of illness, he grew weak. His fat disappeared. Now a great fall came in his popularity. But, once again he gained his reputation with the flourishment of his body's fat. He also acquired the same glow of his cheeks. Now, he is very jovial and skilful and has a good temper for wit.
Thus those who are endowed with natural gifts are surely inclined to make an excessive display of their talents. When the subject - matter of the conversation passes beyond in development, all the professor of this art begin to tell the stories. In this way, the conversation takes the form of the story and the conversation loses its charm. Hence, the poet advises the skilled story - tellers not to wander from any conversation and not to change their conversation into story. The story - tellers want to enliven their conversation by using a story. Some stories which are very common cause vexation. These stories may be mentioned by the way of allusion. The stories, which are completely new, should never be heralded without introducing a short and appropriate character of the chief persons. By doing so, a story - teller makes the listeners acquainted with the characters of the chief persons. The dress and complexion of the man of which the story - teller is talking, should be chosen carefully and aptly because they (dress and complexion) present the image of the man of the story. Inadequate and trifling accounts of those who are familiar to us manage more mirth than the point of intelligence in unknown characters. The writer remembered Tom Lizard who, after having made his sisters merry with an account of an old man's way of complimenting, accepted very frankly that if he had made the old man's hat one inch narrower; his story would have been worth nothing. It is necessary for a perfect story - teller that he should not only bring the special features of the characters before the listeners but also he should select appropriate circumstances. The story - teller should make a proper end of the story. An interesting end of the story on right time is also an art; it leaves great impact on the minds of the listeners and gives a special charm to the story. If the story - teller does so, the elements of a drama enter in the story. Indeed it is a miserable thing when the listener is expecting humour in the story, but he or she is forced to listen the things of personal vanity of the story - teller and the real matter of the story is left behind, then the story does not remain the source of entertainment . Indeed it is a bad thing for the story teller when he does not make an amazing end of his story and completes his story by saying to his listeners that these were the details of the story or all this happened in the story.
The suitable circumstances are the life of a perfect story, hence a story - teller should select the circumstances very carefully to make the story worth impacting. Humour also plays a vital role in a story; hence a suitable quantity of humour is also necessary to enhance the charm of the story. The story-tellers, who collect the absurd accounts or particulars, spoil and deaden the charm of story. The old men do not present anything clearly; they often confuse their listeners while depicting any incident and character in the story. Sometimes they change the places of the incidents and the names of the characters. Their sentences mislead the listeners. The writer mentions Ned Poppy who has passed away. He was a very honest man. He was so excessively inclined over his pipe that his stories oftenly wandered from the right subject and they lost their meaning, charm and moral. He knew well where and when things happened and what those places and names were, yet he changed them, so he never got to the end of his tale . When he mentioned a considerable person in his story, he would relate him with an episode. While telling the story of that person, if he remembered the third person, he at once left that person in midway and started to mention about the third person and continued to tell about the third person. Ned Poppy always reminded the writer the same thing about the story tellers which Sir William Temple oftenly told him (the writer) about the story - tellers in the north of Ireland. In the north of Ireland the story tellers were hired to tell the stories of giants and enchanters to lull people asleep. The bargain was made on this condition that the story - teller should have the capacity to go on with his stories without staying anywhere until the patient got a sound nap. If the patient enjoyed the long nap with great peace, the story - teller could continue his work.
If the story - tellers continue to tell the stories one after another, they should use humour in limited way. The excessive use of humour can be harmful and it cannot support the story for longer. In fact, it is one of the greatest evils of story - telling. If the stories are suitable to the subject, they can be added in the conversation and the writer encourages such stories. The writer has a great and strong disliking for those grave fellows who examine everything with the utmost precision and find extreme ill - will of a lie in a piece of humour, are pushed a little beyond from exact truth. The writer does not have good opinions for those who know the trick of maintaining constant expressions of their faces. They do not change the expressions of their faces even when the pleasant things are said and asked. The writer thinks that the men of intellect and talents should treat one another with benevolence.
Critical Analysis of the Essay:
Introduction:
The essay entitled ‘Art of Story – Telling’ is a very interesting essay written upon the art of story - telling. After a close observation, the writer presents some main points to be remembered by the story - tellers. He also describes the story - tellers of different nature and attitude. He mentions those points which are very necessary for a perfect story. While telling a story, he advises to follow some of the precautions. In a well told story, unpleasant parts of the some incidents are concealed and only mirth giving parts are displayed. The art of story-telling needs physical movements and expressions. The writer observes that suspense also plays a vital role in making a story very interesting; hence a story teller should bear the expression of gravity. The writer accepts that personal vanities should be avoided by the story teller otherwise the mirth of story may be spoiled. The writer advises not to convert the conversation into story. The writer insists on the use of humour which is regarded the greatest source of entertainment.
Thought - Content:
The writer begins this essay with a story - teller who tells an interesting story which consists great humour. Later on another story - teller tells a story, after being influenced with the story of the first one, but he cannot impress the listeners. After this the writer decides to form some precautions upon this subject. He presents different attitudes of men to see the things. He thinks that story - telling is not an art, but a skill of performing this task. The writer observes that the art of story - telling does not remain alive upon intellect but upon humour. When the subject - matter of the conversation passes beyond in development, all the professor of this art begin to tell the stories. In this way, the conversation takes the form of the story and the conversation loses its charms. The poet advises the skilled story - tellers not to wander from conversation. The writer thinks that the common stories may be mentioned by the way of allusion. The story - teller should make a proper end of the story. Indeed it is a bad thing for a story teller when he does not make an amazing end of the story and completes his story by saying to his listeners that these were the details of the story or all this happened in the story. The story - teller, who collects the absurd accounts, spoils and deadens the charm of the story. The old men do not present anything; they often confuse their listeners while depicting any incident and character in the story. The writer shows his great and story disliking form those grave fellows who examine everything with the utmost precision and find extreme ill - will of a lie in a piece of humour. The writer thinks that then men of intellect and talent should treat one another with benevolence.
Some Traits of Good Stories and Precautions to be followed:
The art of story - telling is basically incomplete without physical movements. A certain sobriety of the face balances some stories. By having the cheerful and anxiety looks, the feeling of surprise can be created. The structure of the body of a story - teller should be favourable. An excessive display of talent and wit should not be made in the story. The stories which cause vexation should be told through the use of allusions. An entirely fresh story should be told by introducing a short and appropriate character of the chief persons. The dress and complexion of the man of which the story - teller is talking should be chosen carefully and aptly. There should be proper selection of characters and circumstances. A proper end of the story is very essential. Personal vanities of a story - teller should be avoided. Humour also plays ani vital role in a story; hence a suitable quantity of humour is also necessary to enhance the charm of the story. If the story - tellers continue to tell the stories one after another, they should use humour in limited way.
Style and Language:
Correctness and cultivated quality of expression of the style of Steele produce a friendly relationship between the readers and the author. The essay carries a remarkable note of an effusiveness of conversation about them. Instead of pressing more and more attention to the construction of sentence, he remains free from any kind of pedantry. His prose is not only an ease and flow but also symptomatic of conversation. Besides it, sincerity of conviction, naturalness and spontaneity have also made his very remarkable. His style is also marked by noble and gentle irony. He uses pithy sentences:
“His brother Will , the Templar, was highly delighted with it, and the next day being with some of his Inns of Court acquaintance resolved (whether out of the benevolence , or the pride of his heart , I will not determine) to entertain them with what he called, a pleasant humour enough.”
He uses humour when depicts Dick:
“I found after some time, that the merit of his wit was founded upon the shaking of a fat paunch, and the tossing up of a pair of nosy jowls.”
He passes satire on those story tellers who do not make a proper end of their stories and complete their stories by saying "That's all!”
