Text Analysis: A MATTER OF TIMING by Charlotte Armstrong

Summary
The story, called A Matter of Timing, is by Charlotte Armstrong. Charlotte Armstrong was an American author. She has written over 28 novels and also has worked in The New York Times.
The story is about a women named Jane who after visiting a grocery store experiences something unusual in the store’s parking lot. As she is trying to get to her car a man is standing in front of her, asking to get through the man suddenly turns around and threatens her with a knife and trying to make Jane get into her car and drive him somewhere. As the man was standing in front of her, Jane was trying to find her car keys in the bag. But then suddenly instead of taking her car keys out of the bag, Jane took some of the pepper she had bought and threw it in the man’s eyes. The man screamed and fell on the ground and finally other people started noticing the man and Jane and the police was called.

The story is written in medias res, it has no background of the story and its characters, no information or introduction. It starts right in the middle of actions. The text has a bit of, both, formal and informal register. The story is written in 3rd person narrator (limited omniscient narrator) because pronouns (he, she, they) are used but 1st person pronouns (I, You) are only used in direct speech and the story seems to be written from somebody else’s point of view, like somebody that could`ve been right there when the actions took place.
While ready the story multiple stylistic devices were found, such as:
Idioms – “Jane was remembering, as clear as bells ringing everything that was really important.” “I`d have been scared to death!” – This also could be considered as a hyperbole or a set expression.
Synecdoche’s – “Peoples feet were nervous but nobody moved.” “Then he turned and said to her startled ear,…”
Metaphor – “…her mind running down it`s list,..”
Epithet – “…red-eyed man, with a wicked-looking knife in his hand.”
“…don`t-bother-me-looks.” (String – epithet)
While reading the story there also was found a descriptive attribute, comparison and an extended simile.
“They had stunned looks – looks of distaste.” (Descriptive attribute)
“People seemed to have come up out of the ground like worms after a rain.”(extended simile)
“And an automobile is not important – not as important as a life.” (Comparison)
Throughout the story there can be found inner represented speech. It is like an inner monologue that the character may have with him/her self and it`s a way to get closer to the character as well. In this story they are Jane’s thoughts that are showed in the story.
For example, after Jane paid for her groceries she said to herself – “Good. She had made it.” And then again later in the parking lot, when she was walking to her car – “How strange that one always remembers where one leaves a car. Memory is odd, thought Jane.” And also when she was looking for her keys in her bag – “Her thumb had to be strong enough”
I personally enjoyed the story very much, it was quite interesting to read. Just based on the name of the story and the beginning of it, it was quite hard to predict what the story could be about. For me the story was very nicely written and packed with some action as well, it didn`t need anything else.