ENG1141

Creative Writing

Formal Critique

Reviewer’s Name:  Angelica Salazar

Title of Piece: The Wife’s Story                              Author’s Name: Ursula K. Le Guin

Plot:

I thought the plot of the story was interesting. With the first sentence of the story I was intrigued, the author Ursula did a good job catching the readers attention. I thought it was interesting how the author starts off in the beginning describing the woman’s husband and leads up to the climax of the story which is the woman’s husband turning into a man.

What other ending could have occurred?

What was the aftermath of the situation?

Point of View:

I enjoyed reading this short story, I especially liked how the author wrote in the perspective of a wolf (I am assuming). In the beginning I thought she was talking about a human, but later on we know that the story is being told from the perspective of a mother wolf who saw the unexpected.  

Setting & Context

The author did a good job when I came to details. Le Guin described many of the characteristic of the husband, showing he was not violent prior to the incident. She also included many details in the story that helped visualize the story as if it were a movie.

Voice & Style

Was there any reason why you wanted to write in the perspective of a wolf and not the other way around? (a man turning into a wolf)

Dialogue:

The dialogue given in the story was concise, the dialogue was mainly between the wife and the husband, I like how the dialogue between the two main characters gave them more of a human aspect. I also enjoyed when the author included a stare between the wife and the human man, it made the story suspenseful.