Visualization

It is said that the book is always better than the movie. This is true when a writer can enable a reader of their work to visualize what they are reading so that they are they can see the story unfold the same as watching a film. Even though there was no movie made of Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony, the descriptive style of writing she used painted a picture that is more clear than any movie screen. The best feature of reading a novel that is so visual and descriptive like Ceremony, is that the reader is able to put the picture into their own terms, the way that they want to visualize it. The writer is only a tool that enhances these visions, and it is up to the reader to interpret them the way that they see best fit.

In all honesty, the theme and plot of Ceremony just did not grab my attention the way that I would of liked it to. It is not to say that I did not enjoy reading the novel, but Ceremony is not a book that will be on my all time favorite list. This is true for all novels, in that every book that is written may not be favored by every individual, but the aspect of the book that actually did grab my attention was Silko's style of writing. Her descriptive style of writing enhanced my opinion's towards the novel and it made the reading more enjoyable. Sliko is by far an amazingly talented individual when it comes to writing, and while I may not of favored her story, her style of writing and the details that went into it will put her on my all time favorite list of writers for sure.

In Ceremony, Silko is able to portray a seemingly subtle event and in the process create a visual image for the reader to interpret. There is a scene in Ceremony where Josiah goes to meet the Night Swan to thank her for informing him about the deal with the cattle. When Josiah first approaches the Night Swan, Silko's descriptive visual writing allows me as a reader, to only picture the scene in great detail, but create a unique image in my mind relating to the Night Swan and how I interpret her character and the scence that is unfolding. When Josiah arrives Silko writes "She was sitting in the shade on her wicker chair; her eyes were closed and her face was relaxed. He liked to look at the way her light brown skin had wrinkled at the corners of her eyes and her mouth, from too much laughing she liked to say....Josiah could not remember ever seeing her before, but there was something in her hazel brown eyes that made him believe her. He sat on the straight-back chair beside her and looked over at the big cottonwood that grew next to the porch, its branched sweeping and wide, hiding a portion of the northeast sky(75). What I enjoy most about Silko's writing is that she is able to describe a scene without getting too specific about the actual features of a character, like what he or she may be wearing or the colors of their clothes. Silko hardly describes the features of Tayo and his friends, but she is able to give enough information in order to let the reader come up with their own idea of how they may or may not look. Early in the book when Tayo and his friends arrive at the bar, Silko does another great job in building the overall atmosphere of the bar, even if it is not a pleasant one. She writes "The bar did'nt change; whatever the color of the walls, they were always dirty, dark grime of stale beer and cigarette smoke; it always smelled the same too, a lingering odor of urine and vomit. Even the light bulb above the pool table shined dim soiled light(46)." While Silko may not go into great detail on the colors of the pool table, the finish of the wood, or the music that is playing in the background, she provides enough to the reader to allow them to paint their own picture with the information that is being presented to them, which is the feature of her writing that I admire the most, and it is what sets her style apart from other accomplished writers.