Genre
Fiction/Coming-of-age
Setting and Context
Florida, mid-1990's
Narrator and Point of View
First person narration by Paul Fisher.
Tone and Mood
Observant; smart; wry; honest.
Protagonist and Antagonist
Protagonist: Paul Fisher. Antagonist: Erik Fisher.
Major Conflict
Paul Fisher must overcome his fears of his older brother while learning to confront the lies and subtle manipulations of his family.
Climax
Paul remembers what happened to him when he was a kid, when Erik pinned him down and sprayed paint into his eyes. Paul confronts his parents about the reason they never told him what happened. They tell him that they didn't want him to hate his brother. In response, he asks them if they wanted him to hate himself instead.
Foreshadowing
Paul's struggle with his family is foreshadowed in the preface of the novel when he has a mysterious flashback. He remembers Erik swinging a baseball bat at his head and missing. He remembers running to his parents and telling them about it, but his parents deny that Erik would ever do something like that.
Understatement
By narrating Tangerine from a child's point of view, Edward Bloor brings an innocent and trusting perspective to situations that an adult perspective might dismiss or question more critically.
Allusions
N/A.
Imagery
The novel is filled with rich imagery, from the landscape of tangerine groves to the prefab school portables and the sterile landscape of the housing development.
Paradox
N/A.
Parallelism
N/A.
Metonymy and Synecdoche
N/A.
Personification
N/A.
