What's Eating Gilbert Grape (Novel) Imagery

What's Eating Gilbert Grape (Novel) Imagery

The imagery of color

The author uses color to depict the sense of sight to readers. The narrator says, “One truck will carry the Octopus, another will carry the Tilt-A-Whirl with its blue and red cars, two trucks will bring the Ferries wheel, the games will be towed, and most importantly, the horses from the merry-go-round will arrive.” The description of color makes it clear for the reader to see what is happening.

The imagery of the night

The narrator says that the family wonders if Arnie will wake up the following morning when the night comes. According to Doctors, Arnie was to die at the age of ten, but now he is turning eighteen and can die at any time. The narrator says, “So every night my sisters and I, and my mom too go into bed wondering if he will wake up in the morning.” The narrator's description evokes an emotional feeling that depicts the sense of touch to readers.

The imagery of Arnie’s face

The description of Annie's face by the author brings out the imagery of sight. The narrator says, "One of the first things you should know about Arnie is that he always has traces of food on his face or ketchup or toast crumbs.”

The imagery of hearing

The hysterical giggling sound made by Arnie when he chops grasshoppers depicts the sense of sight to readers. The narrator says, "In the summertime, he catches grasshoppers and sticks them in this metal tab on the mailbox, holding them there, and then he brings down the metal flag, chopping off the grasshopper heads. He always giggles hysterically when he does this, having the time of his life.

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