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Sonata for Harp
and Bicycle
By Joan Aiken in August
1958
About the Author
Joan Delano Aiken
● Born in England in 1924
● Daughter of Conrad Aiken
● Lived in eerie house
● Worked for London magazine, an advertising agency, and the United
Nations
● Died January 4, 2004 in Petworth, United Kingdom
Additional Works
● Wrote the Wolves Chronicles including The Wolves of Willoughby Chase and Nightbirds in
Nantucket
○ These stories are about two cousins who live in England and come upon
tough situations during their parent’s leave to the canary islands
● Wrote many singular books like The Scream and The Girl From Paris
Setting
Halloween Night, around 1950
Grimes Building- office building located in London (Clerkenwell District)
Room 492- The room full of music that Daisy plays the harp- located on the Eighth Story of Grimes Building
The Fire Escape- an emergency escape located on each floor of the Grimes Building
The setting adds a realistic and recognizable aspect to the story. The empty building also adds to the mysterious mood
Mood - a mysterious and suspenseful mood is most prominent
- underlying romantic mood
Primary CharactersJason Ashgrove● Stubborn ● Curious ● Round ● Dynamic
Indirect characterization(dialogue, effect
on others, actions, thoughts)
Berenice Golden● Caring● Helpful ● Flat● Static
Indirect Characterization(dialogue, effect on others, action)
William Heron ● Persistent ● Vengeful ● Round ● Dynamic
Indirect Characterization (actions, other’s
opinions, effect on others)
Summary● Jason Ashgrove wonders why no one is allowed in the building after 5 pm
● He asks Miss. Golden why they have to leave
● He asks to take her out to coffee so she will tell him why
● She states it has to do with the fire escape, a bicycle and a harp
● After she leaves, he continues to the Grimes Building to investigate
● He hears a voice calling for Daisy, and is pushed against the wall by William Heron for trespassing
● Jason escapes by climbing down the fire escape
● Berenice tells Jason he is cursed, and she explains the back story
● Jason decides to try and break the curse
● Berenice and Jason execute their plan and cause William and Daisy to meet up
● They see a bicycle ride by with the roses and wine they left them
● Berenice and Jason parachute off of the building
Freytag’s
Pyramid
ExpositionSetting: London, England- Clerkenwell District Time: set in the 1950s Social Milieu: working class Mood: Mysterious, romantic
Inciting Incident Jason wonders why the workers have to leave the building at 5PM everyday .
Rising
Acti
on
Jaso
n ask
s Bern
ice w
hy, a
nd sh
e give
s a
vagu
e ans
wer, so
he go
es to
the b
uildin
g
to in
vesti
gate.
He e
ncou
nters
Will
iam
and i
s cur
sed. B
erenic
e tell
s Jas
on th
e
back
story
of W
illiam
and D
aisy,
Berenic
e and
Jaso
n reu
nite W
illiam
and
Dais
y the
nigh
t afte
r
ClimaxBerenice and Jason parachute off of the fire escape
Resolution Berenice realizes she is lucky to be kissed in midair at midnight on halloween night
Point of View
● Third person omniscient
● Used to show how Jason felt as well as other characters
● Builds in more detail the opinions of the characters and sharpens the reader’s awareness of the situations
Technique
Suspense
The fire escape exit
Foreshadowing
The 5:00 rule of the office workers
Imagery
The offices in the Grimes building
The proposal falling in midair
Symbols
The Grimes Building
The dark and empty building at night symbolizes the emptiness and loneliness of the building after dark
The Hand Washing
Before leaving the building the cleansing of the hands show the washing away of the curse
Theme
● The theme expressed in the short story is people should not give up on love by fighting for what they want.
● Jason doesn’t give up on his relationship with Miss. Golden because he is cursed
● William still haunts the building in search of Daisy
Rating
● We rate this story 4 out of 5 stars
● It has a well developed plot and very exciting events such as starting the reader off wondering
why the workers all have to leave at 5 PM
● Some sections lacked detail and were hard to follow such as the story of William and Daisy
Sources
● https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAcQjRxqFQoTCPXn3Oq0sMgCFQtYPgodGOYPsw&url=http%3A%2F%2Funtappedcities.com%2F2013%2F08%2F28%2Fcities-101-what-the-rules-to-fire-escapes-in-nyc%2F&psig=AFQjCNE0y-YBj3NO0cRMfIfKaTKeRCa47w&ust=1444309105164311
● https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAcQjRxqFQoTCM7wovS0sMgCFYTYPgodMn4Kng&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.more.com%2Fentertainment%2Ffood-travel%2Fget-more-out-every-bottle-wine&psig=AFQjCNHJfvfbCbO2Be2POmxjhLMxcRYQ5A&ust=1444309123811703
● https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAcQjRxqFQoTCOT7qPy0sMgCFYZbPgodw2MCtA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fclipgid.com%2Frose-bouquet-clip-art.html&psig=AFQjCNGmlHP7hGNPCdPdBo6ynQOya8TUwQ&ust=1444309142022644
● http://static1.squarespace.com/static/51f24eb6e4b0d06478a83b19/t/530bd6c5e4b0ee38396f2b89/1393284805856/london+silhouette.png?format=1000w ● https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAcQjRxqFQoTCOC6nra1sMgCFYdWPgod1kgI4w&url=http%3A%2F%
2Fwww.museumoflondon.org.uk%2Fexplore-online%2Fmuseum-london-apps%2Fstreetmuseum%2F&bvm=bv.104615367,d.cWw&psig=AFQjCNGq8o3pxo8aZW1-ch1XMInAY9e5Ug&ust=1444309259821358
● https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAcQjRxqFQoTCIqN78-1sMgCFQZ0Pgod1cMGYg&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.123rf.com%2Fphoto_17588890_man-and-woman-kissing-silhouette-vector.html&psig=AFQjCNHQy17aAnirHfWM6BkSTcf9jBelnQ&ust=1444309311057560
● https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAcQjRxqFQoTCJ-nyOu1sMgCFYpxPgodsCcDWA&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cokertire.com%2F20x1-3-8-general-bike-whitewall-tire.html&psig=AFQjCNFbyqhpsuHXgRLwZP-RQbLujAmOuA&ust=1444309360871260
● https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAcQjRxqFQoTCOK2zef7xcgCFcZVPgodeygOPQ&url=http%3A%2F%
2Fwww.youropi.com%2Fen%2Flondon%2Flocations%2Fclerkenwell-1646&bvm=bv.105039540,d.
cWw&psig=AFQjCNHNyH5ahNRKVKr05N01DBzMtVQlrg&ust=1445049687055121
● http://quoteko.com/black-and-white-and-book-image.html● http://www.examiner.com/article/about-the-author-joan-aiken
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