Literary Analysis #1

1) Running with Scissors is an autobiography about the life of Augusten Burroughs. He is a teenage boy who moved out of his mothers house, and in with her therapist. His father was an alcoholic who left him when he was very young. His mother seemed to be losing a little more of her mind every day. This is why he moved in with Dr. Finch and his family. The book is mainly about all the crazy and awful things he goes through while living there. It is also about how he discovered he was gay, and his first love interest. He met his boyfriend Bookman who was twice his age through the Finches. Bookman later disappears, after telling Augusten he loved him so much it scared him. Augusten forms an interesting bond with one of Dr. Finches daughters named Natalie. He finds her interesting and easy to talk to. She too formed a relationship with a  pedaphile who broke her heart. He bounces back and forth in time through out the book. He talks about the insane things his mom had done, and how he adjusts to living with a therapist who seemed to be the craziest one of them all.  One example the craziness in the Finch house was when Augusten and Natalie decided the wanted a moon roof in the kitchen, the just cut a hole in the ceiling, and no one seemed to care.

2) I would say the main theme in this novel is that the way you are raised has a huge effect on the way you view the world. Augusten struggles with this idea. He spends his whole life worrying that he may end up like his mom. This fear drives him to try and make sure he is his own person. It is this characteristic that makes him fit in in the Finch household.

3) I would describe the author's tone in this book as facetious. He often takes very serious matters and makes them funny. " I had nothing in common with these kids. They had moms that nibbled matchstick- thin slices of carrot. And I had a mom that ate matchsticks." 

"All the commotion had caused the roaches to reatreat deeply into the walls so Natalie hardly screamed at all."

" That's when I noticed she was also wearing a stocking cap and a green wool coat. Something in her brain had short circuited. She was now prepared for Christmas."

4) tone- This helped readers to not be bogged down by what a sad life he led. 

P.192

Motif- the common thread through out the book was mental health

" My mother was a writer but she was also crazy. And the only people who read her poems were the depressed women in the writing classes she held it her house in the summers or friends she called on the phone" p.154

Simile- this also added to the comedy in the book

"My brother had a very unique way of communicating through grunts and snorts like, one can only assume our very distant ancestors."p. 104

Imagery- This helped me to picture such crazy events happening. "I slid into the smooth brown courduroy seat" P. 105

Irony- There was a ton of irony in the fact that the person who was supposed to help his mom get better was in fact crazy himself. P. 122-123

Personification- The author often personified items in the Finch home in order to better describe what an awful state the house was in. P. 39

Symbolism- The kitchen ceiling on page 139. Was described as "crushing" the main character. I think this symbolizes how trapped Augusten felt in his situation. I think this really helped the author get his point across. It made me feel sympathy for him. He never really felt like he was in controll of his destiny

Point of view- I really loved that this story was an autobiography. The fact that it was told in the first person just makes the content seem that much more mind boggling. This helped the book to hold my interest.

Diction- The story is told in a way that makes me think that the conversations in this book actually happened the way he says they did. I could picture a teenage boy saying things like "so basically, you're giving me away to your shrink"

Pg. 138

Flashback- there were many of these all throughout the book. He never stuck to one specific time or instance. I like this, because it helps readers to understand why he reacts to certain events the way he does. Pg. 215