Being rehabilitated by the Patient. The English Patient by Michael Ondaatje

Essay from the year 2014 in the subject English - Discussion and Essays, grade: 97.50, , course: ENG4U, language: English, abstract: Not a single novel currently existing on the earth at the moment provides a better prototype for the perfect piece of literature for the next generation of writers to model their own works by than "The English Patient" by Michael Ondaatje. The ways that Ondaatje incorporates realistic geographical information dictates the course of the plot and this is not readily seen in other works of fiction, while in young writers is often a weak point. In some ways, the most effective way to evoke feelings in the audience of a fictional text is to place tragic events of real origin into the piece of literature, this is why his use of real history is so effective. This tactic encourages the reader to travel with these fictional characters and even emulate the emotions they experience. As well, in certain types of literature the use of literary devices is expected, however, the percentage that can adopt and incorporate this practice effectively is limited. Lastly, another valuable aspect of Ondaatje's writing is his ability to mix fantasy and fact. While Ondaatje uses factual information from geographical and historical aspects of life, he still finds a way to seamlessly embed aspects of a fictional dramatic fairytale to engage the reader. Michael Ondaatje's The English Patient scores high in all four of the categories of writing that have been mentioned: the inclusion of geographical description, relation to real historical events, the effective use of literary devices, and the merging of reality and fairytale features. It is these literary aspects of Ondaatje's writing that make The English Patient worth its weight in literary gold.