The whales' experience in Antarctica contains some of the most poetic and visually rich writing of the novel.  During this leg of our journey, we will explore the descriptive tools used to make this portion so memorable.

Compare the following sentences:

1. There was bad weather in Antarctica.  vs.  "Above, the frozen continent was swept with an inhuman, raging storm" (p. 96).
2. The ice made noises.  vs.  "The ice cracked, moaned, shivered, and whispered with rippling glissandi, a giant organ playing a titanic symphony" (p. 96).
3. He turned and sharp ice fell on him.  vs. "He made a quick turn and suddenly shards of ice began to cascade like spears around his head" (p. 97).

Descriptive writing is meant to help the audience "see" a specific person, place, or thing.  It can also be used to help them "feel" the emotions associated with an event.  Descriptive writing uses many tools to help the reader imagine a sensory experience.  Click on the following for more information:

• Simile
• Metaphor
• Personification
• Alliteration
• Onomatopoeia
• Hyperbole
• Idioms
• Cliches

Now that you know about the tools used in descriptive language, please answer the following prompt:

At this point in the novel, many characters are called upon to demonstrate bravery.  Describe a time when you felt brave.  What was the situation?  What kind of bravery did you demonstrate:  physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, or some combination of these?   Was the object of fear a situation, a thing, or a person?  How did you overcome your fear?  What was the result?  Use as many of the descriptive writing tools as you can in your response, but use no less than four.  Think carefully about which tool(s) would work best in each situation. 

Students will explore cultural, visual, and emotional literacies in this project.

• Cultural:  students will investigate the effect culture has upon figurative language, particularly through the use of idioms and cliches.
• Visual:  students will work in reverse, constructing visual meaning from textual. 
• Emotional:  students must effectively communicate their feelings on a subject in order for the description to be accurately conveyed.