Diction and Syntax in "The Shack"

           William Young does his best to vary the diction and syntax that is used throughout this book. He uses a lot of informal diction to show how the holy characters in this book are attempting to relate to a normal man. One such example of this would be when "Papa", AKA God, is speaking to Mack, the normal man in the book, "I'm not asking you to believe anything..." (Young, 119). Instead of demanding that Mack stop being so narrow-minded, God uses simple words such as "asking" to show that she isn't asking anything of Mack. She is trying to let Mack know that she is on his side, and this contributes to the overall theme of this story, which is "Love should be showed in every way possible". Another type of diction that is used is the story is abstract diction. The main word that stands out is "love". This word is used over and over again, and becomes so repetitious that after seeing it, you can't help but wonder if it is truly being felt by the characters.

Syntax is another tool that is used by William Young. He uses long, explanatory sentences whenever God is trying to show Mack something about religion and the world. He uses short to medium length sentences whenever informal discussion is taking place. In the entire book, maybe one or two sentences have less than five words, which shows that this book really is philosophical and requires long sentences for all of the information.

As the aforementioned paragraphs show, Young is a versatile author with a lot to offer in the language arts department. He uses different diction and syntax to get his point across to the audience, and he also uses it to show the tone and style with which he writes.

Krista Ramsey -- "Dear new mom, welcome to a loving group"

       In "Dear new mom, welcome to a loving group", Krista Ramsey discusses moms. She goes through the ins and outs of being a mom, and what it takes to have that desired quality of a "good mother".

Link to the great mom article

"Willingness to hold, talk to, read to, listen to, protect and love their child means everything" (Ramsey, Paragraph 6) is the line I chose because it really changed the dynamic of the column for me. Ramsey does a good job with describing some of the things that she's noticed has made a difference between good mothers and bad mothers. I like that she used the word "willingness" because it shows that the mother cares so much that she is willing to do all of this stuff, and to make all of these sacrifices. Also, all of the commas truly show all of the qualities that a good mother has to have.

Ramsey is a very day-to-day life type of writer. All of the topics that she writes about have some type of relation to her readers. In the first article, she mentions "what all that screen time is doing.." to relate to her readers. In the second article, she writes about "Super Bowl QBs" whom everyone know about. And the "love and affection" that moms need is something that all kids are familiar with! I have had a great time reading about and of Krista Ramsey!

1. Why did you want to become a writer?

2. How long does it take to write a publish-worthy article?

3. Were you a good student growing up?

How YOU can relate to "The Shack"

       Mackenzie Allen Phillips, the protagonist in this novel, has come to a point in his life where everything needs to make sense in order for him to live. He has come face to face with God. He has looked into the eyes of Jesus. He has questioned their judgment. But why? What loyal, active Christian would possibly have the courage, or even the guts, to look the one they worship in the eyes and tell them that they "don't get it"? Some of you can probably make this connection as well. At times in your life, you have a breakdown. You ponder about the meaning of life. Why do certain things happen? Who has the right to take the life of another? Why doesn't God help? You think that there is no way to escape from your sorrows. Maybe, like Mack, "The Great Sadness" has taken control of your life and you can't stop it. You want to change, you want to feel better, but you just can't.

Well, just take a visit to "The Shack". The religious viewpoint on dealing with your problems is discussed with tremendous detail here. Not only can you use this book to deal with your own problems, but you can use it to make everything in your life happier with the power of God. Millions of Christians, upon reading this book, will love it and cherish everything that it has to say. It truly does show the power of Christ.

How "The Shack" surprised me

 I'm about 130 pages into this book, and I must say, I cannot believe the turn that this book has taken. In my first post, I made a hypothesis that this book would be a mystery, and in the beginning, it was a mystery. However, now it is just about religion, and Jesus, and Christianity. I don't like how everything that is discussed in this book is about Christianity. When William Young introduced "Jesus", "Papa", who is supposed to be God, and "Sarayu", the Holy Spirit, I was taken aback. I'm not sure whether or not I like the direction this book is headed. As I read on, I hope that all this talk of religion will stop, because I am not personally religious, but if it continues, this book might just become another one of those "Good thing gone bad" type of novels. One thing that really annoyed me was the sudden appearance of Jesus: "'Mack,' said Jesus. I have come for you" (Young, 126). It's appaling that suddenly, out of nowhere, Jesus can come and take Mack to this holy place where his daughter was murdered. Another thing that really annoyed me was how confused Mack seemed. If he got a letter from God, why wouldn't he expect to see Jesus?