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Ok guys,in this opportunity, I'm going to explain about Introduction to Literarure especially PROSE..
Guys udah pernah denger kan kata Prose atau prosa??
Prose is a
communicative style that sounds natural and uses grammatical structure.
Prose is the opposite of verse, or poetry, which employs a rhythmic structure that does
not mimic ordinary speech. There is, however, some poetry called “prose
poetry” that uses elements of prose while adding in poetic techniques such as heightened
emotional content, high frequency of metaphors, and juxtaposition
of contrasting images. Most forms of writing and speaking are done in prose,
including short stories and novels, journalism, academic writing, and regular
conversations.
The word
“prose” comes from the Latin expression prosa oratio, which means
straightforward or direct speech. Due to the definition of prose referring to
straightforward communication, “prosaic” has come to mean dull and commonplace discourse.
When used as a literary term, however, prose does not carry this connotation.
Examples of
Prose
Everything
that is not poetry is prose. Therefore, every utterance or written word that is
not in the form of verse is an example of prose. Here are some different
formats that prose comes in:
1.Casual dialogue:
“Hi, how are you?” “I’m fine, how are you?” “Fine, thanks.”
2.Oration: I
have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where
they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their
character. –Martin Luther King, Jr.
3.Dictionary
definition: Prose (n)—the ordinary form of spoken or written language, without metrical
structure, as distinguished from poetry or verse.
4.Philosophical
texts: Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not
become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will
gaze back into you. –Friedrich Nietzsche
5.Journalism:
State and local officials were heavily criticized for their response to the
January 2014 storm that created a traffic nightmare and left some motorists
stranded for 18 hours or more.
Significance
of Prose in Literature
Much of the
world’s literature is written in a prose style. However, this was not always
the case. Ancient Greek dramas, religious texts, and old epic poetry were all
usually written in verse. Verse is much more highly stylized than prose. In
literature, prose became popular as a way to express more realistic dialogues
and present narration in a more straightforward style. With very few
exceptions, all novels and short stories are written in prose.
Examples of
Prose in Literature :
Example 1
I shall never
be fool enough to turn knight-errant. For I see quite well that it’s not the
fashion now to do as they did in the olden days when they say those famous
knights roamed the world.
(Don Quixote
by Miguel de Cervantes)
Don Quixote
is often considered the forerunner of the modern novel, and here we can see
Cervantes’s prose style as being very direct with some sarcasm.
Example 2
The ledge,
where I placed my candle, had a few mildewed books piled up in one corner; and
it was covered with writing scratched on the paint. This writing, however, was
nothing but a name repeated in all kinds of characters, large and
small—Catherine Earnshaw, here and there varied to Catherine Heathcliff, and
then again to Catherine Linton. In vapid listlessness I leant my head against
the window, and continued spelling over Catherine Earnshaw—Heathcliff—Linton,
till my eyes closed; but they had not rested five minutes when a glare of white
letters started from the dark, as vivid as spectres—the air swarmed with
Catherines; and rousing myself to dispel the obtrusive name, I discovered my
candle wick reclining on one of the antique volumes, and perfuming the place
with an odour of roasted calf-skin.
(Wuthering
Heights by Charlotte Brontë)
In this prose
example from Charlotte Brontë we hear from the narrator, who is focused on the
character of Catherine and her fate. The prose style mimics his obsession in
its long, winding sentences.
Example 3
“I never know
you was so brave, Jim,” she went on comfortingly. “You is just like big mans;
you wait for him lift his head and then you go for him. Ain’t you feel scared a
bit? Now we take that snake home and show everybody. Nobody ain’t seen in this
kawn-tree so big snake like you kill.”
(My Antonia
by Willa Cather)
In this
excerpt from My Antonia, Willa Cather uses her prose to suggest the sound
of Antonia’s English. She is a recent immigrant and as the book progresses her
English improves, yet never loses the flavor of being a non-native speaker.
Example 4
Robert Cohn
was once middleweight boxing champion of Princeton. Do not think I am very much
impressed by that as a boxing title, but it meant a lot to Cohn. He cared
nothing for boxing, in fact he disliked it, but he learned it painfully and
thoroughly to counteract the feeling of inferiority and shyness he had felt on
being treated as a Jew at Princeton.
(The Sun also
Rises by Ernest Hemingway)
Ernest
Hemingway wrote his prose in a very direct and straightforward manner. This
excerpt from The Sun Also Rises demonstrates the directness in which he
wrote–there is no subtlety to the narrator’s remark “Do not think I am very
much impressed by that as a boxing title.”
Example 5
The
Lighthouse was then a silvery, misty-looking tower with a yellow eye, that
opened suddenly, and softly in the evening. Now—
James looked at the Lighthouse. He could see the white-washed rocks; the tower,
stark and straight; he could see that it was barred with black and white; he
could see windows in it; he could even see washing spread on the rocks to dry.
So that was the Lighthouse, was it?
No, the other was also the Lighthouse. For nothing was simply one thing. The
other Lighthouse was true too.
(To the
Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf)
Virginia
Woolf was noted for her stream-of-consciousness prose style. This excerpt
from To the Lighthouse demonstrates her style of writing in the same way
that thoughts occur to a normal person.
Example 6
And if
sometimes, on the steps of a palace or the green grass of a ditch, in the
mournful solitude of your room, you wake again, drunkenness already diminishing
or gone, ask the wind, the wave, the star, the bird, the clock, everything that
is flying, everything that is groaning, everything that is rolling, everything
that is singing, everything that is speaking. . .ask what time it is and wind,
wave, star, bird, clock will answer you: “It is time to be drunk! So as not to
be the martyred slaves of time, be drunk, be continually drunk! On wine, on
poetry or on virtue as you wish.”
(“Be Drunk”
by Charles Baudelaire)
Unlike the
previous examples, this is an example of a prose poem. Note that it is written
in a fluid way that uses regular grammar and rhythm,
yet has an inarguably poetic sense to it.
Example of a poetry verse
Read this from “Stopping
by Woods on a Snowy Evening” written by Robert Frost.
“The woods are lovely, dark
and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.”
Prose form
“The woods look lovely
against the setting darkness and as I gaze into the mysterious depths of
the forest, I feel like lingering here longer. However, I have pending
appointments to keep and much distance to cover before I settle in for the
night or else I will be late for all of them.”
The above paragraph is
conveying a similar message but it is conveyed in ordinary language, without a
formal metrical structure to bind it.
Some Common Types of Prose:
1.
Nonfictional Prose: A
literary work that is mainly based on fact although it may contain fictional
elements in certain cases. Examples are biographies and essays.
2.
Fictional Prose: A
literary work that is wholly or partly imagined or theoretical. Examples are
novels.
3.
Heroic Prose: A literary
work that may be written down or recited and employs many of the formulaic
expressions found in oral tradition. Examples are legends and tales.
4.
Prose Poetry: A literary
work which exhibits poetic quality using emotional effects and heightened imagery but are
written in prose instead of verse.
The following is a series of ten writing tips offered by author Tracy Kidder and editor Richard Todd :
1. To write is to talk to strangers. You have to inspire confidence, to seem and to be trustworthy.
2. It is always prudent to remember that one is not Tolstoy or Dickens.
3. Don’t concentrate on technique, which can be the same as concentrating on yourself. Give yourself to your story.
4. The reader wants to see you trying—not trying to impress, but trying to get somewhere.
5. For a story to have a chance to live, it is essential only that there be something at stake. A car chase is not required.
6. Try to attune yourself to the sound of your own
writing. If you can’t imagine yourself saying something aloud, then you
probably shouldn’t write it.
7. The creation of a style often begins with a
negative achievement. Only by rejecting what comes too easily can you
clear a space for yourself.
8. Use words wantonly and you disappear before your own eyes. Use them well and you create yourself.
9. The best work is done when one’s eye is simply on
the work, not on its consequence, or on oneself. It is something done
for its own sake. It is, in Lewis Hyde’s term, a gift.
10. Be willing to surprise yourself.
Prosa adalah karangan bebas.
Maksudnya, penulis prosa dapat secara bebas menuliskan apa yang ada di dalam
pikirannya, tanpa harus terikat oleh aturan tertentu. Penulis tidak perlu
menggunakan bentuk kata yang dibuat-buat agar terasa indah. Penulis tidak perlu
bersusah payah mencari kata-kata atau huruf-huruf yang bunyinya sama di akhir
kalimat. Tak perlu pula menghitung jumlah huruf, suku kata, dan kata yang
dipergunakan untuk mengutarakan ide atau pesannya secara tertulis. Itulah
kebebasan yang dimaksud dalam menulis prosa.
Kebebasan dalam menulis prosa, tidak
berarti kebebasan tanpa batas. Karena ada bentuk prosa yang memperhatikan
keindahan bahasa. Jadi ada prosa yang menitikberatkan pada unsur keindahan
bahasa yang dipergunakan dalam pemerian suatu objek tertentu.
Prosa yang merupakan pemerian
langsung dan lebih menitikberatkan pada kejelasan objek yang diuraikan disebut
prosa yang bukan merupakan cipta sastra atau disebut juga karangan nonfiksi.
Prosa yang merupakan pemerian
langsung dan menitikberatkan pada unsur keindahan bahasa disebut prosa yang
merupakan cipta sastra atau disebut juga karangan fiksi.
Prosa merupakan karangan bebas, dan
pada umumnya memiliki ciri-ciri sebagai berikut:
1)
Sebuah karangan tidak terikat pada jumlah kalimat tertentu. Banyaknya kalimat
bergantung pada panjang pendeknya karangan.
2)
Tiap kalimat tidak terikat oleh ketentuan banyaknya kata maupun suku kata.
3)
Tidak ada ketentuan yag menyangkut persamaan bunyi.
Ok guys,please give your comment.. thank you :)
http://literarydevices.net/prose/
http://www.signature-reads.com/2013/01/good-prose-month-10-writing-tips-from-tracy-kidder-and-richard-todd/
https://sofiamafaza.wordpress.com/2012/11/02/menulis-prosa/
