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Showing posts from December 5, 2020

Classic Authors and Irritants of Minor Complication

The following are classic examples of minor complications occurring in the novel. And what do we mean by that? The basic definition: whatever "complicates" the story, but not always existing in strong relation to the major dramatic complication or plot conflict. Minors may erupt in the same way tornadoes spin off from hurricanes, or they may be unrelated: a dropped glass, an interpersonal argument, a house-devouring sinkhole, a child with wild and green eyes attacking a homeless person, i.e., whatever irritates, provokes, or disturbs, and in usually such a way as to either nudge the story, create suspense or verve, shove the character into revealing a trait, or some combination thereof.      "The Sun Also Rises" by Ernest Hemingway   Scene 8:    Robert Cohn, friend of the narrator, enters the scene while narrator is having a conversation with another character by the name of Harvey.  Very soon, Harvey baits Cohn, insults him.  The tension rises. As a result, Cohn be