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"The Door in the Wall" by Marguerite De Angeli The Door in the Wall written by Marguerite De Angeli is, probably, one of the most exciting books one have ever read. This book captivates the readers breath from its very beginning with the writers elegant, simple, finely crafted, and robust literary style, revealing the mystery of why did this book become Newbery Award Winner in 1950 and Lewis Carroll Shelf Award in 1961. The paper explores Marguerite De Angelis literary style, as one of the fundamental elements of fiction in order to analyze what makes The Door in the Wall the award winner. The Door in the Wall tells an amazing story about Robin, son of Sir John de Bureford, the boy who learns the ways of knighthood and the ways to serve his king. Since his early childhood the boy was raised in the best traditions of nobility, knighthood, and honesty. He has expected to become a strong knight, but all his life has drastically changed when he has fallen ill and has lost the use of his legs.
Robin then was abandoned by his servants, left alone, and was taken to the hospice of St. Mark's by one of the monks, Brother Luke. Being in the hospice Robin learns woodcarving, and, what is even more important, Robin learns to be strong and patient. Brother Lukes saying Thou has only to follow the wall far enough and there will be a door in it" (De Angeli, 1990) helps Robin to understand that he should not give up and should overcome all difficulties on the way. This saying changes his life drastically, and when the castle of Lindsay is in great danger, Robin saves people and finally discovers that there is more than one way to serve the king. The plot of the story is quite simple, but it is not the plot, but the writer's style that makes the story the award winner.
Marguerite De Angeli manages to reproduce the feeling of medieval time and setting by a rich variety of literary effects, as well as sound effects, such as chants, church bells, sub tones of the music, that make the reader not simply reading the book, but becoming a part of the events that take place. Marguerite De Angeli's language is not over emotional, but very expressive with its finely crafted words, and well-performed descriptions of places and characters. The medieval world created by Marguerite De Angeli is really amazing. It makes the reader thunderstruck by careful choice of expressive words. The story, written in the third person amazes by its realism whimsically combined with the elements of fairy-tale-like, bright, and, probably, somewhat naive narration. The writers style makes the reader to believe that everything is possible, and the miracle does occur.
Marguerite De Angeli embeds the thought that the most important miracle the person makes with no magic, because the miracle and almightiness is the result of patience, belief, selflessness, courage, and inner strength. Marguerite De Angeli has her own, brilliant talent of a narrator. Her style impresses by simplicity and refinement. Marguerite De Angelis literary style makes an impression of fairy tale, as it allows the readers to soar in their thoughts high into the sky. At the same time, the story is amazingly earthy, as all the characters seem to be very real. The naughtiness in her story does appear once in a while, then it goes away, making the reader being absorbed in reflections, and again appears, to make the reader smile and believe in miracle.
It seems that the writer, similar to her characters from The Door in the Wall does know how to tell the truth that is far more striking than any fairy tale or legend. It is Marguerite De Angelis expressive use of words and brilliant literary style that allow the writer to make impossible and to combine all incompatible elements of fiction in a comprehensive whole. Apart from that, the unsurpassed sense of humor, tender irony and lyrics has evidently helped the writer to make narration more human and realistic. Interesting enough, but the writer not only manages to write about the medieval times, but manages to bring the past closer to the readers. By doing this, Marguerite De Angeli is not satisfied by the usual set of neutral literary techniques used by the vast majority of historical novelists.
Instead, she uses the elements of the style based on imitation of both the epoque and language. The writer as if includes the language in order to show medieval times not only in customs, traditions, ideals, and characters, but also in its language. By doing this, the writer introduces the rich world of medieval culture with its moral values to the readers. And, as far as the story is aimed for both, young and adult readers, the children have a chance to get a better understanding of the amazing world of knighthood, with its honesty, courage, and other positive traits. The Door in the Wall is noted for an inexhaustible supply of intonations, ranging from the grotesque humorous tones to somewhat lofty pathetic al notes, from vivid descriptions and noisy sounds to silent and even sad intonations. The writer evidently has a gift of empathy for the characters, as the reader can easily feel and imagine himself in Robins place.
Rich fantasy and delicate perception of the imaginary world makes the story sound alive and bright. The writer allows children to look inside the imaginary world, and to take part in the historical events, to discover the world in a new way. A careful choice of words, and perfectly chosen composition makes the book interesting, original, and exciting reading for all ages. The story is written by simple and vivid language. All word expressions, feelings, impressions, and emotional experiences are quite simple, with no excessive sophistication and complicated choice of words. Marguerite De Angelis story is a perfect example of her literary style, as this book proves that the writer cherishes the treasures of her literary treasury.
Her portrayals of life are very realistic, and by carefully selected details Marguerite De Angeli manages to present a believable picture of Roberts life and adventures in the fourteenth century. She describes the life in medieval England so thoroughly that the reader easily sees the bright sun and gloomy castle, smells the bustling medieval town, and hears the cheerful singing and the calm serenity of a monastery. As we have already mentioned, the use of archaisms makes the story be more medieval-like, as all these thou and thee forms make Brother Luke sound more realistic, and the words used by Robert suggest his nobility. Although the author doesn't use real Middle English, it doesn't spoil the story, as it, probably, would be quite difficult for the young readers to understand all archaic forms of the words. Instead, Marguerite De Angeli adds an archaic flavor that makes the story sound very expressive and even poetic. In conclusion it may be said that the author managed to make an unforgettable impression on the readers.
Marguerite De Angeli created an excellent introduction to the medieval England in the best traditions of her unsurpassed literary style. Although The Door in the Wall is written in a simple, robust, and finely crafted manner, the imitation of the medieval language and setting make it realistic and believable. No wonder that Marguerite De Angelis literary style, one of the fundamental elements of fiction, made The Door in the Wall Newbery Award Winner in 1950. Works Cited De Angeli, Marguerite. The Door In The Wall.
Yearling, 1990.
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Research essay sample on The Door In Wall By Marguerite De Angeli
