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English 101 Reading Packet II !

Los Angeles Mission College Spring 2016 Section 0294

Instructor Lan Pham !______________________

student name !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!contact information in case of loss:

_______________________________ _______________________________ _______________________________

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Table of Contents Individual Readings are labeled with internal page numbers. !!

Class Handout Literary Devices Handout !Reading 1 “The Process” Brian Evenson !Reading 2 “The Lottery” Shirley Jackson !Reading 3 “3 Ways to be Feminine” wikihow.org !Reading 4 “3 Ways to be Manly” wikihow.org !Reading 5 “How to Date a Browngirl, Blackgirl, Whitegirl or Halfie” Junot Díaz !Reading 6 “Fiesta, 1980” Junot Díaz !Reading 7 “Girl” Jamaica Kincaid !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

LITERARY DEVICES HANDOUT !Use this Handout to clarify your understanding of all of the literary texts in this class. This

Handout is designed to aid you in reading and analyzing literary texts, as well as to prepare you to write Literary Analysis Essays. Pay close attention to how each Literary Element can work to

create meaning within a text, and try to apply these concepts as you read and re-read the literary texts in this class. !

!1. CHARACTERIZATION: The author's expression of a character's personality through the use

of action, dialogue, thought, or commentary by the narrator or another character. A quality that a character exhibits is called a character trait. Characterization works to develop character traits in many ways. For example, !

An author may create a fictitious character by simply describing the character: Karen was small for her age and inclined to plumpness. Her blue eyes viewed the people and events around her with a mixture of curiosity and amusement. She was not a woman, but she was past being a child; too sophisticated for toys, she might still, on impulse, turn a somersault on the living rug. !An author may also reveal a character through his speech or actions.

Nonfiction/Expository Texts Literary Texts

Essays Articles (Scholarly, News)

Research Reports

Short Stories Novels Poems

Meaning created through Meaning created through

Argumentation: Citations of sources/evidence Explanation of data/evidence

Straightforward assertions Making comparisons between sources

Literary Devices: Character

Setting Plot

Point of View/Perspective Dialogue, etc.

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OPENING QUESTION FOR LITERARY ANALYSIS: What is the quality and nature of the world that the author is building, and what message does the author create

through building this world? Asking yourself this preliminary question will help you to analyze a literary text and examine its meaning. Literary Devices all work in the service of the author’s world-building. For the purposes of this class, we will be focusing

especially on the following Literary Devices

"But why can't I go?" Karen wailed. "Everyone else is going. You never let me go anywhere!" You just don't want me to grow up and have fun!" Karen wheeled around and stormed out of the house, slamming the door behind her. !An author may give the reactions and opinions of other characters. "I've known Karen for a long time, ever since first grade. We've been best friends since last year. I like her because...well, I guess it's because she is always so happy and sure of herself and she's good at things like baseball, and swimming and painting and stuff." Joanie paused, then added, "Everybody at school likes her." !An author may show the character's inner thoughts and feelings. The sunlight trickled between the slates of the bamboo blinds. Karen stretched luxuriously, pleasantly aware of the tingling sensation in her muscles. She really ought to get up, she thought. Sally was coming over at eleven. Maybe she should make some sandwiches so they could eat out in the backyard. Mrs. Henley was taking them to the beach in the afternoon. She should finish that letter to Peggy...maybe she would tonight...if she remembered...and if she had time. !→ You can build close analysis of character and characterization through paying attention to the specific ways that an author chooses to build the characters in their text. In many texts, an author will only choose one or two of the previously-mentioned methods to develop their characters. An in-depth analysis of characters and characterization will thus identify the specific ways that an author chooses to produce characterization, and why. For example, if an author is writing a story about an isolated or lonely character, they could develop this characterization using any number of the above ways. It is your job to identify which ways the author chooses, and to analyze how that choice builds the story’s overall meaning. You might ask yourself: • Is this loneliness depicted through their interactions with others? Through the author’s

depiction of the character’s inner thoughts? Through the author’s descriptions of the character’s physical manner? Through the author’s straightforward descriptions of the character’s everyday life?

• Are these questions related to the character’s social/cultural/economic/racial environment? If so, what might the author be seeking to communicate about this character and the world that they inhabit?

• Why is the character lonely? How does an author’s choice to depict a lonely character contribute to the story’s overall meaning?

→ As you think about and answer these questions, analysis of characterization should draw you closer to understanding the overall meaning of the literary text. !CHARACTERIZATION can be used to produce meaning in a number of ways within a literary text. Here are more useful questions to ask yourself about characters and how the author chooses to characterize them:

• What historical period does the character belong to? Is that historical period different from, or the same as, that of the author?

• What is the character’s gender? • What is the character’s nationality? • What is the character’s ethnic or racial identity? • Does the character have a stated sexuality? Or, is their sexuality enhanced or developed

by the author? • What is the character’s social class? • What is the nature of the character’s reality? (Is it a realist story? Futuristic? Magical

Realist?) How does the character’s reality work help shape who that character is, and the meaning that the author is creating through them?

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• How do all of the above questions contribute the character’s behavior, or contribute to a message that the author may be trying to construct?

→ NOTE: Not all of these questions will be relevant in every story. An author may emphasize certain character traits, within defined contexts, in order to draw out specific meanings. For example, a story which contains a 1950s American housewife who is experiencing suicidal thoughts carries different implications than a story about a suicidal lone male astronaut stranded in space in the year 2560. How might the different contexts of each story contribute to each story’s characterization choices, and its overall meaning? !!2. SETTING: The time and place in which a story takes place. Details of a setting include: !Time/Historical Period: The general period of the plot and the main location of the story (ex. “this story took place during the 1960's at Woodstock.”) !Physical Features: What the place/location of the setting looks like physically (ex. mountains, streams and fields of grass) !Geographic Location: The actual location of the place (ex. “this story takes place on Wall Street in NYC”) !Cultural/Racial/Economic Contexts: The specific social characteristics of a setting (ex. “this story takes place in a low-income, of-color community in South Los Angeles.” !Some questions to ask yourself about a story’s setting are:

• How do specific setting characteristics aid the author in creating their particular message? • No story is universal. How do setting specifics influence the applicability of the author’s

message? How do these specifics form the particular focus of any given story? • What message is the author forming about the specific setting in which the story takes

place? Is this message wholly dependent upon the setting of the story, or can the reader reasonably extrapolate a relation to the real world, based on similarities between our world and that of the story?

• Do setting details contrast with the story’s plot, characters, dialogue, etc.? For example, does something violent occur in a peaceful, idyllic setting? Why might the author choose to create contrasts between what is expected in certain settings, and what actually happens in them?

• Conversely, do setting details exist in coherence with the story’s plot/characters/dialogue, etc.? How does this contribute to the world-building that occurs in the story, and why might the author choose to maintain this consistency?

• Is the historical period in which the story takes place the same as that from which the author is writing from, or different from it? How might this consistency or contrast between time periods contribute to the story’s overall meaning? (For example: should the story be read as the author’s commentary upon their own historical period, their interpretation of the past, or perhaps their prediction of the future? For example, many science fiction texts take place in a futuristic world whose setting attributes are accentuated or exaggerated features of what the author feels characterizes their own world. In this way, a futuristic vision can represent a commentary on the present and/or predictions for the future direction of society.

• Does the story take place in an unidentifiable time period, that exhibits similarities to your idea of the past, present, or future? How can you look at these similarities to develop an interpretation of the story’s applicability to our world?

• Do the setting’s geographical features contribute to creating a mood or atmosphere within the story? (For example: How might a harsh, desolate, and mountainous setting contribute

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to the overall mood and meaning of a short story? Conversely, how might a sunny, warm, and bright setting contribute to the mood and meaning of the story?)

• Are there specific historical or cultural elements that come into play as a result of the story’s time setting and geographical location? If so, why might the author have chosen to include these setting details, and how do these details work to form the story’s overall meaning?

• Are there multiple settings in the story, which contrast with one another? Why might the author have chosen to do this? !!

3. PLOT: The accumulation and order of events in a story. Plot can be very useful in determining the overall meaning of a story, as well as what kind of world the author is seeking to build. Some questions to ask yourself about a literary text’s plot are: • Does the story’s beginning contrast to its end? How? What has changed, and why? OR,

what hasn’t changed, and what meaning might this lack of change create? • What is the story’s sequence of events? Why might the author choose to have certain

events occur within the story’s timeline, and at specific points within that timeline? What is the meaning of these events?

• What do plot events communicate about the world that the author is building? • Do characters change from who they were in the beginning of the story as a result of the

story’s events? How and why? How does this change based on events produce the story’s meaning?

• Does something surprising or unexpected occur within the story’s plot? If so, why might the author seek to build this sense of surprise, shock, or suspense?

• What does a story’s plot reveal about the nature of the world/society/community that the author is depicting? Is this world brutal? Compassionate? Mysterious? Violent? Predictable? Is it like our world? If so, in what ways is it similar to our world? How might a similarity to our world produce a commentary on our world? What is that commentary? !!

4. POINT OF VIEW/PERSPECTIVE: The vantage point from which the author presents action of the story. Who is telling the story? An all-knowing narrator? (omniscient) A voice limited to the views of one character? (limited omniscient) The voice and thoughts of one character? (first-person) A narrator issuing commands to the reader through the use of the word “you”? (second person) Does the author change the point of view in the story? Why? Point of view is often considered the technical aspect of fiction which leads the reader most readily into the problems and meanings of the story. Questions for comprehension:

• What is the relation between the narrator in the story and its characters? Is the narrator one of the characters inside of the action of the story, or do they stand, god-like, outside of it?

• What meaning is produced through this relation? For example, if the narrator is a third-person omniscient narrator, does this place the reader in the position of a type of voyeur or spy on the action of the story? Or, might the third-person narration place the story in the realm of parable or fable? Conversely, does a first-person narrator, who only knows what they know, produce a sense of suspense, tension, or mystery in the reader? Does a first-person narrator, who is also a character in the story’s action, give in-depth insight about the social/cultural/political/economic contexts of the story? How? If the story is told in second-person, might this type of narration make the reader feel directly implicated in the meaning of the story? !

5. DIALOGUE: Vocal exchange between two or more characters. Dialogue is one of the ways in which plot, character, action, etc. are developed. As with other Literary Device, certain stories may contain dialogue, and some may not. The presence or absence of dialogue thus reflects a specific intent on the part of the author, and their particular way of building their

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story’s meaning. Some questions to ask yourself about dialogue, if it is present in the story, are: • How do characters speak to each other? Informally? Formally? Intimately? With hostility?

With kindness? What does this dialogue reveal about the relationship between characters, and their social/cultural contexts?

• Does the nature of character dialogue morph throughout the development of the story? If so, how and why? What does this change reveal about the relationship between the characters, and/or the world that they live in?

• Does the nature of character dialogue remain the same, despite major upheavals in plot or setting? What might this lack of change reveal about the characters and/or their relationship to each other? !!

6. TONE: Suggests an attitude toward the subject which is communicated by the words the author chooses. Part of the range of tone includes playful, somber, serious, casual, formal, ironic, etc. Tone is very important to think about in determining the overall meaning of a literary text. For example, if an author were to write about a kindergarten playground in a highly sarcastic way, how might this affect the meaning of the story? Questions:

• Does the author’s tone contrast with what is commonly expected while writing about the subject matter? If so, how does this contribute to the literary text’s overall meaning?

• How does an author’s attitude toward any idea/character/setting, as revealed through their tone, work to build the text’s meaning? Are they cold or passive about the depiction of violence? Or do they take a more compassionate tone? How might each of these distinct positions contribute to a text’s overall meaning? !!

7. SYMBOL: Related to imagery. It is something which is itself yet stands for or means something else. It tends to be more singular, a bit more fixed than imagery. For example, in Lessing's "A Woman on a Roof," the brief red sun suit seems to symbolize the woman's freedom and independence from externally imposed standards of behavior. Questions: • What character or object can you identify as a symbol in the story? What is it about the

traits of that character or object that lead you to believe that it stands for an abstract idea outside of itself, in addition to being the character/object that it is?

• Is the character/object described in a particular way that lends itself to symbolism? If so, name the ways that it is described in order to build your case about what it symbolizes.

• How does the symbol connect to or build the story’s overall meaning? In other words, how is the symbol used by the author in order to create a message?

• Does the type of character/object carry similar symbolic significances in our world? If so, how does this contribute to the applicability of the story’s overall meaning? !

8. METAPHOR: A comparison of two things that are not usually compared in order to suggest a likeness between them. For example, ”That girl is made of steel!" or “Her hair was silk.” A metaphor is figurative, rather than literal. An author may make use of figurative comparisons in order to make surprising conceptual connections between things that the reader may not commonly associate with one another. Questions to ask yourself if metaphor(s) are present in a text: • What comparison is the author making, through their use of metaphor? Why might the

author choose to make this comparison, and how does this comparison contribute to the story’s overall meaning?

• Why might the author choose to compare the two things that they do in using a metaphor? For example, is the comparison flattering? Unflattering? Unexpected? Powerful? Why?

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• Is the author using a metaphor in order to produce a commentary about the society in which their characters live, or the psychology of their characters? If so, what is that commentary? !!

9. DICTION: The words that an author chooses to describe the setting/characters/plot/symbols/metaphors/comparisons/imagery, etc. of the story. The identification of diction requires the use of of adjective. For example: aggressive, harsh, casual, everyday, playful, sarcastic, formal, informal, serious, terse, ornamental, flowery, etc. Also, the identification of diction requires the critical reader to single out specific words in order to build their case for the adjective that they are asserting about the author’s diction. (For example, a reader might write in their essay: “The author uses harsh, cutting diction in her selection of the words ‘sliced’, ‘slammed’, and ‘smeared’ while describing the way that the character treats an animal carcass. This contributes to an overall atmosphere of fear, brutality, and ghoulishness.”) Questions: • What kind of diction does the author use to describe certain things? Does the author use

different types of diction to describe distinct objects/characters/events? Does their diction change over the course of the story? What might be the reason for these choices?

• How does diction contribute to the author’s overall meaning, or their development of certain concepts, ideas, or messages? !!

CONCLUDING NOTE: You may have studied other Literary Elements in previous classes. You are not limited to exclusively focusing on the Elements listed here. Feel free to make note of and write about other Literary Elements in the texts for this class, as long as you have a solid grasp on them and can build a strong case for their usage in your Essay. !!!!__________________________________________________________________ !

adapted from Purdue OWL: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/575/01/

and http://www.eastauroraschools.org/cms/lib/NY19000901/Centricity/Domain/292/Literary

%20elements.doc and

http://www2.uncp.edu/home/canada/work/allam/general/glossary.htm

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Brian Evenson (born August 12, 1966) is an American academic and writer of both literary fiction and popular fiction, some of the latter being published under B.K. Evenson. !From 2003 to 2015, Evenson was Professor of Literary Arts at Brown University, but has accepted a new position to teach at CalArts starting in 2016. His fiction, often described as literary minimalism but also drawing inspiration from horror, detective fiction, science fiction and continental philosophy, makes frequent use of dark humor and often features characters struggling with the limits and consequences of knowledge. He has also written non-fiction, and translated several books by French-language writers into English. !from wikipedia.com !

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Shirley Hardie Jackson (December 14, 1916 – August 8, 1965) was an American author. She was a popular writer in her time, and her work has received increased attention from literary critics in recent years. She influenced Neil Gaiman, Stephen King, Nigel Kneale, and Richard Matheson. !She is best known for the short story "The Lottery" (1948), which reveals a secret, sinister underside to a bucolic American village, and for The Haunting of Hill House (1959), which is widely considered to be one of the best ghost stories ever written.[by whom?] In her critical biography of Jackson, Lenemaja Friedman notes that when "The Lottery" was published in the June 26, 1948, issue of The New Yorker, it received a response that "no New Yorker story had ever received". Hundreds of letters poured in that were characterized by, as Jackson put it, "bewilderment, speculation, and old-fashioned abuse". In the July 22, 1948, issue of the San Francisco Chronicle, Jackson offered the following in response to persistent queries from her readers about her intentions: ! Explaining just what I had hoped the story to say is very difficult. I suppose, I hoped, by setting a particularly brutal ancient rite in the present and in my own village to shock the story's readers with a graphic dramatization of the pointless violence and general inhumanity in their own lives. !Jackson's husband, the literary critic Stanley Edgar Hyman, wrote in his preface to a posthumous anthology of her work, "she consistently refused to be interviewed, to explain or promote her work in any fashion, or to take public stands and be the pundit of the Sunday supplements. She believed that her books would speak for her clearly enough over the years." Hyman insisted the darker aspects of Jackson's works were not, as some critics claimed, the product of "personal, even neurotic, fantasies", but that Jackson intended, as "a sensitive and faithful anatomy of our times, fitting symbols for our distressing world of the concentration camp and the Bomb", to mirror humanity's Cold War-era fears. Jackson may even have taken pleasure in the subversive impact of her work, as revealed by Hyman's statement that she "was always proud that the Union of South Africa banned 'The Lottery', and she felt that they at least understood the story”. !from wikipedia.com !

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3 WAYS TO BE FEMININE

From WikiHow: http://www.wikihow.com/Be-Feminine

Do you want to explore your feminine side? If you really want to embrace your inner lady, then you have to adopt the mindset of a more traditional woman and know how to cultivate grace, politeness, and capability. If you want to know how to be feminine,

just follow these steps.

Looking Feminine

• Wear the right clothes. To dress more femininely, you should wear flattering clothes that aren't too revealing. Wear more lady-like clothes such as skirts, dresses, pointed shoes, scarves, tank tops, or anything that distinguishes you as a woman and a lady. You don't have to look buttoned up, but you can avoid looking too provocative. Wear anything that highlights your feminine features, whether it's your elegant neck, your curvy waist, or your long legs.

-You can find the look that's best for you. If you really don't look good in skirts, go for skinny jeans or dresses. -Just avoid the "just rolled out of bed" look. Don't wear baggy sweatshirts, baggy pants, long t-shirts, or anything that completely hides your shape. -Whatever you wear, you should look like you've put in an effort. Anyone should be able to see that you've put some time and effort into putting your look together.

• Wear a little makeup. This step is not necessary, but it will help make you look

a little more feminine. Red and pink lipstick and neutral eyeshadows will help to create a feminine look. But remember, you do not need makeup. Wear it only if you want to. If you're not comfortable with makeup, then so be it.

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-If you're really opposed to makeup, make sure your lips are moist by wearing lip balm whenever you can.

• Accessorize. In addition to your clothes and makeup, you should spend some

time finding the perfect accessories to go with your wardrobe. You don't need to get a box full of accessories -- just a few key items can help tie your look together and can make you look more feminine. Here are some items to consider as you work on your more feminine look:

-A pretty silk scarf -Pearl earrings or other studs

-A cute headband -A ribbon hair barrette -Some thin silver bracelets -Rings that are cute but not too chunky or flashy

• Love every inch of your body. The body is what makes you female, so how

can you be feminine if you don't embrace your female form? A woman's body naturally has a higher body fat percentage than that of a man, so don't dismiss your curves. On the other hand, part of loving your body is taking care of it, so don't dismiss your cholesterol levels, either. Fortunately, you don't have to look like a catwalk model in order to be reasonably healthy.

-Loving every inch of your body doesn't mean flaunting your body or showing it off every chance you get. It just means loving how you look and being comfortable in your own skin. -Don't think that you can't work out because it's not lady-like. Taking a yoga class, a dance class, or running or swimming will get you more in touch with your feminine side and will make you love your body even more.

• Devote some time to grooming. Though you don't have to take a two-hour

shower every day or spend an hour doing your hair, you should make sure that you always look, feel, and smell clean and that you've devoted enough time to keeping up a clean and ladylike appearance. Showing up somewhere after working out without showering is not very feminine; make sure that you exude cleanliness and poise and look relatively put together wherever you go.

-Never look like you rushed to get your look together in time or put on makeup or comb your hair in front of your friends because you didn't have time to do it before.

• Wear perfume or scented lotion. If you want to look like a lady, then you

have to smell like a lady. Consider putting a dab of perfume on your neck, or rubbing some scented lotion on your neck or arms. Remember to only use a light touch --you don't want to overwhelm anyone with too-strong perfume.

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Acting like a Lady

• Be graceful. In most societies, women are thought to be more naturally graceful than men. There are always exceptions, of course, and it is totally up to you whether you choose gracefulness to be an expression of your femininity. Generally, however, many women feel more feminine when they make smooth movements, rather than jerky, powerful ones. And, of course, consider the context. You might want to be fierce on the volleyball court or shooting range, and svelte at a bar or in the bedroom. There's no rule saying you have to be graceful (or feminine) all the time.

-To be graceful, wear cute shoes that are comfortable for you to walk in so you don't trip or walk in a way that looks unnatural. If you want to master heels but don't quite know how to walk in them, practice at home or in front of a mirror before you bring your new look out in to the world.

• Learn to dance. Dancing is an extension of your body, and through dance you

can find ways to emphasize your femininity. Belly dancing, for example, accentuates the natural curves of a woman's form. A partner dance, like salsa or the waltz, can also help you feel more feminine because such dances are built upon the traditional differences between men and women - the man guides, while the woman follows and makes more fluid, extravagant movements.

-Part of being feminine means being comfortable enough with your body to rock out on the dance floor. You don't have to be a professional to know how to feel the music and have a great time while you're doing it.

• Be playful. Let's ditch the whole idea that being feminine means being perfect

and ethereal. For those times when grace is lacking and you fall flat on your face in the middle of a room, the true test of your femininity is your ability to laugh it off! Because think about it: taking life too seriously isn't very feminine in most people's books, and it's not very healthy overall. So smile a lot, flirt, tease, and play. Have fun! Ultimately, being feminine is about feeling at ease with yourself, and you can't feel at ease if you're too stiff, somber, and serious, so be the opposite: lighthearted and playful.

-Flirting is a part of being a woman. Don't think that you're not allowed to flirt just because you're trying to be feminine.

• Be confident. This is another important step to looking feminine, bright,

healthy, and confident. Anyone can agree that learning to love yourself is important. Having confidence will not only make you look more feminine mentally and physically, it will help you to be more independent and outstanding. Never give up on yourself, ever.

• Walk in a more feminine way. If you want to have a more feminine walk,

then you should work on walking more with your hips than your shoulders, taking lighter steps instead of stomping, and taking your time to move from place to place. To be truly feminine, you should be gliding gracefully on your way, not look like you're rushing off to your next location. If you have to rush, try to look

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composed as you take quicker short steps to reach your destination. • Be a good caretaker. If you want to be feminine, then you have to know how to

take care of someone -- whether your boyfriend has gotten sick, your dog has gotten injured, or your best friend just needs a shoulder to cry on. Be prepared to serve chicken soup, take a person's temperature, or just know how to tell a person to lie down and make him or her feel more comfortable and cared for. A feminine woman doesn't do nothing if she's around a person who clearly needs her help, and she should spring into action when someone needs to be nurtured.

-This doesn't mean that you should focus your energies to taking care of other people. It just means that when the time to be a caretaker comes, you should be prepared.

Have admirable manners. If you want to be feminine, then you have to have good table manners and good manners when you go out into your everyday life. This means not eating with your elbows on the table, greeting a person kindly even if you're having a bad day, not slouching or sneezing into your hands instead of a tissue, and generally acting in a way that can serve as a model for others. Here are some other things to consider as you refine your manners: -If you're eating dinner in a group setting, make sure you say, "Please pass

the chicken," instead of reaching over yourself and invading another person's personal space.

-Find a nice way to give negative feedback. Instead of saying, "Will you shut up already?" say, "Would you mind lowering your voice?"

-Avoid burping in public. Once you reach a certain age, burping in public is not funny anymore. If it happens by accident, just say "Excuse me," or "Pardon me," but don't try to do this if you want to impress your friends or make your guy friends laugh. This is simply not ladylike behavior.

-Avoid rolling your eyes or generally being rude when someone is saying something you don't really want to hear.

Using the Right Words

• Talk like a lady. To be feminine, you can't curse like a sailor, yell to get what you want, or talk so loudly that any person in the building can hear you. Part of being feminine is knowing how to get across exactly what you want to say while being graceful, poised, delicate, and considerate. Speak more softly, slow down your words, and express your thoughts as eloquently as possible. Say, "It's a little chilly today," instead of "I'm freezing my butt off!" to sound more feminine as you share your ideas.

-You don't have to change the way you think or all of the things that you talk about to be feminine -- you just have to consider the way you say them.

• Give sincere compliments. You don't have to give people fake compliments to

be feminine. However, you should be able to find something kind or complimentary to say, and to make a person feel special and important by pointing out something that he or she is doing well. You can say something as

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simple as, "I love your dress. It matches your eyes perfectly" or "You're so great at piano. How long have you been playing?" Take a sincere interest in a person and find a small way to show that you're paying attention.

-You don't have to go overboard. Just give a compliment whenever the mood strikes you.

• Avoid bragging. If you want to be feminine, then you should avoid bragging

about your accomplishments, talking about how amazing you look, or generally showing off. A truly feminine person is confident enough in her looks and abilities to be modest and to let other people figure out how amazing she is. You don't have to be so humble that you can't take a compliment or never talk about your achievements, but avoid doing anything that may come off as bragging or making you seem a little full of yourself.

-A truly feminine person doesn't need to show off for the compliments to come.

• Be polite. A feminine girl isn't rude, off-putting, or generally mean to anyone around her. Even if you're hanging around someone you don't like very much, you should avoid being openly combative or hostile. Instead, smile, be polite, and limit your contact with this person as much as you can. A feminine woman also says "Please," and "Thank you" whenever it's necessary.

-Being polite also means talking about polite topics. Don't talk about anything overly vulgar, curse too much, or just bring up inappropriate topics in mixed company.

• Be compassionate. A feminine woman feels compassion for other people,

knows how to sympathize with people, and says the right thing when she's trying to help someone. Know how to say things like, "I'm so sorry you're feeling that way," "I can't imagine how hard that is for you," or "Please let me know if there's anything I can do." A feminine woman knows how to recognize when someone is feeling upset, whether it's a dear friend or a small child, and knows how to make that person feel better.

-While you're saying comforting words, you should also behave in a comforting manner. Don't be afraid to put your arm around the person or to use your body language to show how sympathetic you are if it's appropriate.

Tips

• Everyone has a masculine and feminine side. You can be feminine in one way, such as you like getting your nails done or doing makeup, but masculine in another because you like playing or watching sports. But most people are more one than the other.

• Femininity is strong and always has been. Show the world how strong you can be while being feminine!

• Always wear your hair down or pinned up.