night

• when is was young, there seemed to be never a childbirth, or a burst appendix, or any other drastic physical event that did not occur simultaneously with a snowstorm


  the narrators childhood was tumultuous big important life events always occurred when there was bad weather
• there must have been a cloud around that word...

  (metaphor) obscurity and a desire to hide her diagnosis
• the relationship between us was always 'unsettled'


  (adjective) there was a level of instability and it was never the same and always varied
• i was not myself

  so who do you think you are then

  think again

  short paragraphs- she looses her identity and sense of self as a result of her illness
• something was taking a hold of me

  (personification) further emphasise how she is being controlled by it (her illness)
• the more is chased the thought away the more it came back

  constantly returns despite the Narrator wanting to forget it
• because of madness 


  an overbearing all consuming feeling and not knowing why it is there
• could be lying right beside me there in the night

  (personification)(personification)

  the feeling of wanting to murder her sister is described as a companion who will not leave her alone
• all intensely black

  where there was suddenly darkness everywhere 


  expressing her feelings of loneliness

  symbolises her being lost and doubtful she doesn't know what to do next
• so absurd

  absurd

  the repetition of absurd- trying to convince herself that murdering her sister is a strange and unreasonable thought

  weird peculiar + illogical

  emphasis
• twentieth or the twelfth or only the eighth or the ninth that i had gotten up and walked 


  (polysyndeton of or ) she is aimlessly wondering, disoriented by her lack of sleep
• dark work pants, the next thing to overalls but not quite, and dark, rough shirt and boots 


  Masculine ad powerful, mysterious and suspicious figure

  associated with obscurity, both hiding secrets but both confronting each other
• the possibilities that had once inhabited...taking up the corners everywhere


  murderous thoughts expanding and filling up the whole how the feeling was inescapable

  it was everywhere all the time
• handgun in the desk drawer

  very protective and capable of violence
• Ether they gave you in the hospital

  as an excuse to prevet feelings of wrong

  he used the physical illness and operation
• "people have those thoughts sometime" dad

  casual, nonchalant attitude towards his daughters confession

  lying to his daughter so she will not uncover his secretive actions

  or he is trying to comfort her

  there is evil in this world (set during WWII)