MRS BIXBY AND THE COLONEL"S COAT

            A fiction writer such as Roald Dahl has at his disposal, distinctive narrative techniques to assist the reader to gather certain meanings from the text. Techniques such as characterisation, language and narrative point of view are used throughout the short story "Mrs. Bixby and the Colonels Coat". It is the story of an adult character Mrs. Bixby, who is supposedly visiting her mother, meanwhile she is having an affair with the Colonel. Narrative techniques are highlighted in certain parts of the story, for instance language which helps to reinforce the social and historical context of the short story. Point of view and characterisation also add to these methods that position the reader to dislike Mrs. Bixby and sympathise with Mr. Bixby. Roald Dahl's story "Mrs. Bixby and the Colonels Coat" encourages the reader response of sympathy for Mr. Bixby and is able to accentuate certain meanings, through the extensive use of characterisation, narrative point of view and most importantly, language.
             Throughout the story specific types of language such as figurative, colloquial and descriptive language are used to construct certain meanings for the reader. There are many examples of figurative language used by Roald Dahl in the text, which helps to emphasise significant events. "Reaching out delicately like tendrils" (Page 14, Paragraph 1) is an example of a simile that is used to describe the action, Mrs. Bixby used when reaching out for her Labrador Mink coat. This engages the reader with the text and adds to the emphasis of the quality of the coat. Descriptive language also engages the reader with the text and is often used in the story to describe certain characters like Mrs. Bixby. "She looked dazzling, radiant, rich, brilliant and voluptuous all at the same time" (Page 14). This use of descriptive language creates an enhanced image and another dimension for the reader, also positioning us to sense the power that that the coat has given Mrs.