Direct narrative & Free Indirect Speech

[Phantas]

Hello I'm new on the forum!!!

I'm currently going crazy trying to understand the difference between the two - what is the difference between free indirect speech and direct narrative? I thought I understood it until i read:

Elizabeth felt herself growing more angry every moment; yet she tried to the utmost to speak with composure when she said,

Now I thought this was free indirect speech but then I thought well no because its not hinting at any speech its simply describing how a character is feeling for the reader.......any help please??

P.S. I'm sorry if I have posted in the wrong forum!!

[Zippy]

Hello Phantas,

I went through the same confusion earlier this year when I started my OU course and was introduced to free indirect speech, direct speech and indirect speech.

The example you give above would seem to me to be straight-forward narration rather than any of the different types of speech used in prose. I’m not sure what comes after this piece, but if it is in quotation marks it’s probably direct speech:

Direct Speech: "I ain’t listening to no crappy advice,” he said.

If there are no quotation marks but the narrator is telling the reader what a character said (without using the nuances of that character’s speech) then it is probably indirect speech:

Indirect Speech: Jim said that wasn’t going to listen to his advice.

If the narrator is telling the reader what a character said AND using nuances of that character’s speech, then it’s probably free indirect speech. Notice also that there is no 'Jim said':

Free Indirect Speech: he ain’t listening to no crappy advice.

From a technical point of view, the advantages of direct speech is that it engages the reader fully, gives the reader the character’s view directly and is therefore more reliable.

Indirect speech has the advantage of brevity. You can condense three paragraphs of dialogue into one paragraph of indirect speech. If it’s written as indirect speech it probably isn’t vital to the story.

Free Indirect speech stands mid-way between the two and has the advantages of both – reliability and brevity.

Hope this helps.

Regards,

Zippy.

[Phantas]

Thank you very much it has cleared some things up for me - I've not long started my 3rd course with the OU and I know if I dont get this spot on I'm going to have alot of trouble!

Thanks again

[Zippy]

What course are you doing?

[Phantas]

I've just started A210 Approaching Literature

[Zippy]

Just about reaching the end of that one, my exam is tomorrow! If ever want a second opinion on anything, feel free to send me a private message.

[Scheherazade]

I have just completed Y152 and will be starting A177 (Shakespeare) in November. I am considering taking A210 sometime as well! How is it? What is included?

[Phantas]

oh excellent thank u very much - I have to admit I do feel alot more 'alone' on this course!!

And there's a hell of alot of reading involved!!

[Zippy]

It's in four parts:

The Realist Novel covering Pride and Prejudice, Great Expectations, Frankenstein and Fathers and Sons.

Romantic Writings covering Wordsworth, Colderidge, Milton, Keats, Shelley, Byron, Alcock, Baillie and a host of others.

Literature and Gender covering The Color Purple, A Doll's House, Top Girls, The Yellow Wallpaper, plus poems and short fiction from others.

Shakespeare, Aphra Behn and the Cannon covering The Rover, Henry V, Othello and As You Like It.

It's worth doing - something for everyone. I've just returned from the exam, I was nervous because the specimen paper they gave me seemed so hard. But the actual exam wasn't too bad, I think I may have pulled it off!

Hope you enjoy the course.

Zippy.

[Scheherazade]

It's in four parts:

The Realist Novel covering Pride and Prejudice, Great Expectations, Frankenstein and Fathers and Sons.

Romantic Writings covering Wordsworth, Colderidge, Milton, Keats, Shelley, Byron, Alcock, Baillie and a host of others.

Literature and Gender covering The Color Purple, A Doll's House, Top Girls, The Yellow Wallpaper, plus poems and short fiction from others.

Shakespeare, Aphra Behn and the Cannon covering The Rover, Henry V, Othello and As You Like It.

Pretty ambitious reading list! Having read some of them already, maybe I can seriously consider giving it a try after the Shakespeare!

Meanwhile, today they delivered my course material but I was out all day long. Hope they will bring it again tomorrow; can't wait!


Will you guys be taking any other courses?

[Zippy]

I've already booked up for A215 - Creative Writing. I'm really looking forward to starting it in February.

[Phantas]

Ive already completed two level 1 courses (start writing fiction and A103 An introduction to the Humanities) - this is my first level 2 course.

I am hoping to complete enough courses for the English Literature degree but we'll see!!!

[Zippy]

I'm aiming for the degree also. I completed An Introduction to the Humanities last year - only three more years left to go!

[ruthring]

Please tell me:
Does each different speaker require new line of text in direct quottion?
If I use no indents, just double space between paragraphs, doshould I indent for new speaker's line?

[Niamh]

I started reading this thread and got curious. What type of course are you all doing exactly? Is it open university?