E B White The Ring Of Time Summary

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The author E. B. White wrote the essay The Ring of Time in an attempt to “describe the indescribable” as he watches a fascinating scene of a young girl practicing for a performance in the circus. He feels as though he is obligated to record the events he is witnessing, and to convey this to his readers, however difficult this may be. After watching her magnificently ride around in the circus’ rings, the author sees a connection between the girl and her act. This brings about the author’s idea of a cyclical view of time. By using literary devices such as effective diction, sentence structure and rhythm, imagery and consonance, White tries his best to not only capture the exquisiteness of this experience in a way that recreates the event for the reader but also, using the repeated symbol of a circle, show that time cannot move in a circle. The author uses several examples of imagery to help enhance his purpose. To describe the day at the circus, the author says he is “grateful to be briefly out of the sun’s glare”. This use of personification aids in the visualization of the scorching…show more content…
In the beginning of the passage, the older woman in the circus ring has on a “short-skirted costume and conical straw hat”. The consonance of the c’s in the word “conical” creates emphasis on this word, and thus creates a vivid image of this woman for the reader, illustrating the overall experience for the reader even more. Also, as the author is continuing to watch the rehearsal, he witnesses her go “twice around the ring”. The consonance in this expression is used to emphasis the statement to reiterate the idea of repetition and circular motion. This is also effective in describing the trajectory of the performer, illustrating the experience of watching this woman do what looks to be a near impossible thing. Thus, the author is able to effectively convey his purpose through the use of
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