Thursday 16 June 2011

Froggy Mary

“Froggy Mary’s green face was just as yours when you are drinking sour milk, which was under the sun during weeks: her toothless mouth was always open and let its tongue to escape, catching flies of every sizes; her glassy eyes were like tennis balls and stared at you as if you were an especially succulent insect, about to be eaten by her; there were membranes between her fingers; and do you think that is all? No way! She was bold! Just like a frog, a bold frog! She lived in a hut next to a muddy swamp with her froggy parents and froggy brothers and sisters, who seemed also like toothless, glassy-eyed, webbed-fingered, bold frogs. Even though Froggy Mary’s appearance was disgusting, her depths were golden, just like the crown she would wear afterwards: she took care of her little froggy brothers and sisters, grinded flies to feed them, and defend them against cruel children croaking at them «¡Let my little frogs alone, you pretty jerks!» Froggy Mary helped her froggy dad to sweep the swamp mud and her froggy mother to make false hair to hide their boldness. But Froggy Mary did not even suspect what future had arranged for her”.  
The effect caused by the use of different sentences: simple, compound and complex, and its moods, makes reading more attractive as words are structured depending on what they are trying to communicate: a description in this specific case. Then that is why declarative sentences are essential, to introduce facts about Froggy Mary’s appearance and family. Sentences moods may show doubt or be rhetoric devices, such as interrogative ones; express surprise or give a command, as exclamatory and imperative sentences do, respectively. These are not effects achieved using just words, it is necessary also to use the graphical marks inherent to each of those.