English Lit/Lang Anthology [Isabella Bird] Cheat Sheet

This text is an extract from Isabella Bird's letters to her sister, Henrietta, regarding her travels in the Rocky Mountains.

The letters were subseq­uently published as a book in 1879.

Bird was a prolific and intrepid 19th century female traveller who became well-known through her published journals, magazines and travel books.

Due to her being a missionary and explorer who travelled all over the world, her occupation different to that of many women in the 19th century England.

She travelled to a vast amount of places, including Canada, Scotland, Australia, Hawaii, Colorado (which this extract was about), India, Tibet, The Persian Gulf, Japan, Chica, Korea and Morocco.

She wrote 5 books from 1856-99, and was the first woman to be rewarded an honorary fellowship by the royal Scottish Geogra­phical Society (1890). She was also the first female member of the Royal Geogra­phical Society (1892).

GRAMPS

Genre: Letter
Register: Informal
Audience: Her sister, the public.
Mode: Personal letter, travel­/au­tob­iog­rap­hical style of writing.
Purpose: Initially to inform her sister, eventually to educate and inspire Victorian Women.

Introd­uction to her letter fits the frame of expect­ation for the letter and also tells us she is recoll­ecting in the letter. Fits the conven­tions of a letter.

Archaic reference to a woman "got up" in "­pai­nt" shows Bird's condes­cending tone, combined with the tricolon of opulence "­emerald green velvet, brussels lace, and diamon­d" shows Bird's contempt to frivolous women.

Use of "­inu­nda­ted­" shows that Bird looks down on this form of "­vul­gar­ity­" and suggests she shows contempt to those who dress like the women she mentioned earlier.

"­Inu­nda­ted­" gives connot­ations of an overwh­elming nature to the people, as if Bird could feel trapped by their presence.

"I was a salient point for the speake­r's next sally" gives a colloquial nature to the letter due to its inform­ality. The sibilance in this line suggests that Bird could feel contempt towards this speaker, as if she is hissing out these words.

"A ladylike Englis­hwo­man­" this subclause places power in the notion of an "­Eng­lis­hwo­men­" reinfo­rcing Bird's contempt to "­vul­gar­" American woman.

"The neighb­ourhood and its wild beasts, especially bears."­ "I dreamt of bears so vividl­y" Bird's litotes when discussing the "­bea­rs", used throughout the whole letter, shows her confid­ence, which is very incong­ruous due to her being a solitary female traveller.

"­Furry death hug at my throat, but feeling quite refres­hed­" The nonchalant tone and oxymoron of the "­furry death hug" and her "­feeling quite refres­hed­" reinforces her lack of fear and her confidence due to her experience as an explorer.

"­Cin­nam­on-­col­oured bear with two cubs" This allite­ration of the "­cin­nam­on-­col­oured bear" emphasises her descri­ption of the bear, making it vivid as she uses "­cin­nam­on" rather than a more subjec­t-s­pecific colour word like "­bro­wn".

"The mother might acquit me of any designs upon her lolloping childr­en" use of formal "­acq­uit­" and condit­ional "­mig­ht" makes light of the danger these bears pose, could also be slight overco­nfi­dence, but she has extensive experi­ences with bears as she had travelled to 4 different places this trip.

"­Ung­ainly, long haired partly crossed the river" emphasises inhuman nature to the animals, tone implies she looks upon the animals as improper due to their "­ung­ain­ly" nature. Person­ifi­cation of the "­par­ty" emphasises her high expect­ations of these animals to be prim and proper.