STATEMENT OF INTENTION ELEVEN

My short story Eleven is a narrative predominately written for the coming-ofage genre. The story recounts the experiences of the protagonist Rachel, who is
experiencing a challenge to her maturity on her eleventh birthday. In particular,
Rachel is confronted with having to take ownership of a sweater that is not her
own. While this might seem to be a trivial event, my story suggests that the
sweater and her difficulty in standing up for herself against the teacher is
symbolic of the struggles that adolescents face in maturing.
While the piece itself is written from the perspective of an eleven year old the
intended audience is anyone who has experienced, or is experiencing the
difficulties of their teenage year. A younger audience would appreciate the
frustrations felt by Rachel, particularly the feeling that her teacher has greater
power over her than she does. Whereas an older audience could reflect
nostalgically on the ideas of age being layered one does not simply grow up
and feel different once they have reached a particular birthday.
Due to the age of the narrator, the vocabulary that has been used within the
story is typically limited. This can be seen when I describe Rachel as having her
face all hot and spit coming out of (her) mouth. Similarly, I have used the
number of similes and exaggerated figurative language to emphasise the
emotion of the protagonist, however the comparisons are often quite basic (e.g.
the way you grow old is kind of like an onion). While the language used may be
simple, it is reflective of a more complex perspective on growing up this
dichotomy may even suggest how difficult it is for teenagers to express adult
emotions without the accompanying language or experiences.
My use of first person narration also allowed me to explore the inner feelings of
Rachel as she grappled with the expectations that she had of her birthday. I
referenced her inner monologue multiple times throughout her text, including
not mine, not mine, not mine and everybody will sing Happy Birthday to you,
happy birthday to you These Language choices also allowed me to build a
connection between the audience and Rachel they could reflect on their own
experiences of an, inevitably, disappointing birthday.
Finally, my narrator could be seen as unreliable, as it is clear that she has a
negative perspective on the events of her birthday. This is evident in her biased
language, such as referring to her classmate as stupid Sylvia Saldivar. However,
I would suggest that this negative perception is indicative of the coming-of-age
genre. Puberty and adolescences is an emotional time when often negative
emotions override but it is important for my audiences to know that these
events will pass and that, like Rachel, you should seek to distract yourself with
the prospect of happier times ahead.