Onomatopoeia is literary device in which a word sounds
like what it means. For example, pop, hiss,
and sizzle are all words that sound like what they mean. Holling
Hoodhood is the narrator of The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt, and
he is a rather dramatic seventh-grader. Because of that, he is a lively storyteller and
uses vivid language throughout the entire novel. In fact, it was quite easy to locate at
least five examples of onomatopoeia.
- Every time
we hear about Sycorax and Caliban, Holling describes them as “clacking their yellow
teeth.” (Obviously, this is a sound which rather freaked Holling
out.) - Once the rats escape their cages, Holling says, "We
heard heavy pattering across the asbestos ceiling tiles." Pattering
is just the right onomatopoetic word, as we can imagine the muffled sounds of their feet
pattering above us as the creatures scurry across the
ceiling. - In the Perfect Room of the Perfect House
(Holling's house), he describes a "roaring fire." We know this is onomatopoeia because
we know this is different than, say, a sputtering fire or a
crackling fire. This fire is going full blast, and it sounds like
it is roaring. - When Holling has a chance to get a little
revenge on Doug Sweiteck's brother by throwing a snowball at him, he describes it this
way: "His face turns toward me at the last moment, and the snow-ice-slush-spitball
splatters against his nose." Splatters, of course, is the example
of onomatopoeia. - After he threw the snowball, Holling
says, "I went back to Mrs. Baker’s classroom and sat down squishily." No explanation
necessary.
These few instances tell you that
Holling likes to use lively and expressive language to convey his story through each of
his senses. Onomatopoeia is an example of just that kind of
language.
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