Angelica Hernandez, the water dancer

ENG1141

Creative Writing

Formal Critique

Formal Critique: Angelica Hernandez  

Title: The Water Dancer Author: Ta-Nehisi

Plot: 

I personally found this this story was a little hard to understand  but what I took away from the plot of the story is the main characters personal history with this bridge they talk about in the first paragraph. I think the bridge is where people wne to commit suicide(?) becuase in the second paracgrah they say “I had always avoided that bridge, for it was stained with the remembrance of the mothers, unles and cousins.” and then saying “how it can open a blue door from one world to another”. The main character ten talks about their mother who passed away and how they have no memory of her. I also believe that te  mian chactater is sort of afraid of the bridge because they then speak on that theirs no “sensation like drowning”  and speaks about how that felt and hoe the memories of thier  life “decended” on them. In the end he was able to see his mothers spirit.

Did the mother die becuase of the bridge?

Characters: 

Their are 3 characters in this sotry, the main character, their brother Maynard. Id consider their mother a character although shes not physically in the story but more mentioned.

Point of View: 

The stroy is told in a first person perspective. We get to understand their feelings and thoughts more because of it.

How does the main character feel after that experience of seeing his mothers spirit?

Setting and Context:

Its clear to the reader that this takes place in Virgina because its mentioned a few times in the story.

What does the term “Natchez way” mean does it change anything in regard of the setting or the people in the sotry?

Voice & Style: 

The terms are repetitive in this story, like “Nathez way” the terms slavery and freedom aswell.. The sotry dosent move on about the bridge because its all connected to the river I think.

Dialogue: 

There was dialogue between the main character and Maynard when he fell into the water. I found it sort of wired that the main character thought of their brother as a dead man when he fell instead of being positive. Also because when their brother asked for help he said “he cant”.