| Yardsticks: Retarded Characters and Their Roles in Fiction Contributor(s): Puccinelli, Patricia (Author) |
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ISBN: 0820420018 ISBN-13: 9780820420011 Publisher: Peter Lang Inc., International Academic Publi OUR PRICE: $42.70 Product Type: Hardcover Published: February 1995 |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Education | Special Education - General - Literary Criticism | American - General - Performing Arts | Film - General |
| Dewey: 813.009 |
| LCCN: 92043532 |
| Series: American University Studies |
| Physical Information: 104 pages |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: A retarded character is often used in fiction as a conventional device. This study traces its history from the court fools of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries up through the characters in twentieth-century works. Puccinelli identifies the retarded character's role in narrative in terms of the following five categories: the yardstick (the most prevalent of the five), the wise fool, the catalyst, the window pane, and the accessory. Though this discussion is limited to American fiction, the analysis perseveres in other national literatures and in other media, including film and television. |