ON THE QUESTION OF THE DISTINCTIVENESS OF HUMOR IN THE NOVEL “LITTLE SPECK IN GARNERED FRUIT” BY O. HENRY

Abstract

The article analyzes the romantic novel “Little Speck in Garnered Fruit” by the American writer O. Henry. The author of the article considers the system of images, as well as stylistic devices and expressive means that contribute to the creation of a humorous effect in this work. The novel, as a genre of short stories, became widespread in the literature of Americans in the mid-XIX – early XX century. The representatives of the “shot story” were Washington Irving, Edgar Poe, Mark Twain. O. Henry (William Sidney Porter), without breaking the traditions of his predecessors, continues the writing of short stories, giving them an individual style based on irony, comic grotesque and satire. The article also contains other short stories by the author, reflecting the specificity of O. Henry’s artistic manner.