The Shipping News | Techniques
As the tale unravels, Quoyle quite literally learns the ropes of life. Chapters are introduced by quotations from Clifford Warren Ashley's The Ashley Book of Knots (1944), which Proulx acknowledges provided her with the inspiration for making the novel into more than "just the thread of an idea." Quoyle, whose name means a coil of rope, experiences the various knots or themes of life as he either uncoils (or unravels) or coils himself from childhood into adulthood.
Knots are strung throughout the novel, pictured at the openings of most of the chapters, and one type of knot...
[The entire page is 665 words long]
Join eNotes
Over 3,500 study guides, question and answer forums, literature criticism, reference content, and much more!
Navigate
Tell a friend about The Shipping News at eNotes.
