Her Language & The Enid Blyton Code

[pete9012S]

What do you think of these musings on Enid Blyton and her writing style?

Enid Blyton believed that economy of wording was particularly important in her children's stories; that the reader did not want to hear the same thing repeated three or four times.

She also uses very simple everyday language, and repeats it, rather than trying to introduce new words and phrases. She also relies heavily on dialogue throughout her books. In addition, the readers understanding often depends upon the their interpretation of something that a character says. Therefore by keeping her dialogue very simple and straightforward, and not challenging the reader with the vocabulary, she leaves us free to focus on the plot.



Analysis of each of Enid's books for its word length, frequency and sentence structure finds that all of her books are very similar in style, using the same number of letters in a word on average, and approximately same number of words in a sentence. This is true for books written at the beginning of her career as well as books at the end of her career; it was as if she found a successful formula which captivated her readers and stuck with it.

Research also shows that there was a level of repetition of key concepts in her words within a small space. When Enid is getting a concept across, she repeats key words and words which are similar in meaning in rapid succession and in a condensed space. This theory is also backed up by believers of neurolinguistic programming, which is how language affects the mind and how the words can have an affect on how we think and feel. By repeating words at least 3 times in a paragraph, it enables the reader to become convinced about something.

In addition, the programme claims that a person’s conscious mind has a very limited focus, and can only focus on a small number of things at one time. Once there are more than a few things to focus on, the conscious mind can’t continue to track them all, and so the person literally goes into a hypnotic trance. The Enid Blyton Code claims that Enid often uses this by using more than a couple of characters, and by having more than one plot line taking place at any one time. As the reader’s mind gets overloaded, they start to begin really experiencing the book, feeling the book, and getting lost in it. And because feelings are infinitely more memorable than thoughts, people associate the feelings with Enid Blyton's name and also with her books.

Finally, the research of her work discovers that Enid Blyton very precisely controls the speed at which we read her books, by changing the level of descriptive passages. There are more descriptive passages at the beginning of her book than at the end, which has the effect that we read more quickly towards the end of her books... literally we are rushing towards the end to see how the story/adventure/mystery will end!

Any points you agree/disagree with??

[Anita Bensoussane]

Hmm - the article strikes me as clumsily-written and confusing. Enid Blyton is said to believe "that the reader did not want to hear the same thing repeated three or four times" but the writer goes on to say that "She...uses very simple everyday language, and repeats it, rather than trying to introduce new words and phrases" and that she "repeats key words and words which are similar in meaning in rapid succession and in a condensed space."

In Enid Blyton's own article 'The Golden Key', printed in Journal 40, she explained that she deliberately used simple vocabulary and plenty of dialogue and made her stories action-packed and fast-moving. The reason was that she was acutely aware that she was competing with radio and cinema and, a little later, television.

[Moonraker]

Once there are more than a few things to focus on, the conscious mind can’t continue to track them all, and so the person literally goes into a hypnotic trance.

That happened to me reading this post, so I agree with that!

[tix]

Maybe I'm wrong but I looked on the entry as an attempt at satire of which there have been several rather clever examples before today (by the same contributor??).

While reading the "musings" I looked up to check the Board Index heading because I fully expected the entry to be under an old one. It was fresh however, so maybe the writer was serious! It's worth commenting on for the exercise - and a productive one it was because I realized the difficulty to compare books "at the end of her career" seeing most of them at that stage of Enid Blyton's life were reprints and excerpts from previous works.

"Enid Blyton believed that economy of wording was particularly important in her children's stories; that the reader did not want to hear the same thing repeated three or four times."

"When Enid is getting a concept across, she repeats key words and words which are similar in meaning in rapid succession ..."

As Anita Bensoussane espouses - don't these extracts contradict each other?

"... all of her books are very similar in style, using the same number of letters in a word on average, and approximately same number of words in a sentence. This is true for books written at the beginning of her career as well as books at the end of her career ..."

Similar in style? What does that mean? They all look pretty different to me but maybe the analyst means "writing style." I think most authors have a writing style all their very own and to check on the claims I chose "A Non Stop Run" (1929) and "Fun for the Secret Seven (1963).

" ... using the same number of letters in a word on average."

Seems like it but I think the average for any author would be similar A sample taken from the chosen books produced 4x letters but excerpts taken from two other famous authors' works equalled either 4x or 5x so I can't see the conclusion as anything of note.

"... approximately same number of words in a sentence ..."

Once again in both books the answer was "No!" Check for yourself.

"When Enid is getting a concept across, she repeats key words ..."

Can't verify that either so could you give us three examples? Thanks in advance although I suppose you may have to get back to the original writer of the analysis.

"In addition, the programme claims that a person’s conscious mind has a very limited focus ... "

Where is this "programme?" I'd like to see it. Who are the persons whose conscious minds have "a very limited focus?" Adults? Children? Idiots? All of us?

I can't recall going into a "hypnotic trance" when reading an Enid Blyton book - or any book for that matter. Furthermore, I've hypnotized people in the past and the very opposite is manifest - their minds need to be focussed on "one" object.

What's the "Enid Blyton Code?" I suppose it must exist because apparently a "claim has been made!" Where can I read about it? Thanks in advance, etc, etc ...

"... by using more than a couple of characters, and by having more than one plot line taking place at any one time. As the reader’s mind gets overloaded, they start to begin really experiencing the book, feeling the book, and getting lost in it. And because feelings are infinitely more memorable than thoughts, people associate the feelings with Enid Blyton's name and also with her books."

Now you can see why I thought this entry belonged under another Forum heading!

[pete9012S]

I can't recall going into a "hypnotic trance" when reading an Enid Blyton book - or any book for that matter.

You've not read the 'Anecdotage' yet then?

[Anita Bensoussane]

What's the "Enid Blyton Code?"

I expect it's a phrase coined by the writer of the article to express his/her view that Enid Blyton wrote to a formula. However, it makes me think of those stories you occasionally hear in the news where someone has ploughed through an anicent book or manuscript noting down every nth letter and apparently found coded messages predicting things like the success of pop star Madonna, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the death of Diana Princess of Wales and the winners of Strictly Come Dancing 2015. Enid Blyton died aged 71, so maybe we need to look at every 71st letter of her 71st book!

Where did you find the article, Pete?

[pete9012S]

Yes,the article....

I have been spending a lot of time on various Agatha Christie forums of late.Many there love Agatha Christie and also Enid Blyton.There seems to be a general agreement that both authors have lots in common with each other in terms of writing style re-use of plots etc etc.

I have also been ploughing through this...

'Detecting dominant discourses in selected detective fiction by Enid Blyton and Agatha Christie'

http://upetd.up.ac.za/thesis/available/ ... 11-105057/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Abstract

Enid Blyton and Agatha Christie were the most successful British women writers of their time. Christie and Blyton were contemporaries, living and writing in the United Kingdom during the first half of the twentieth century. This study takes into consideration these similarities in its examination of the depiction of dominant discourses in relation to emergent, alternative and oppositional discourses in their writing. This thesis suggests that while Enid Blyton and Agatha Christie offer alternatives to the dominant patriarchal discourses of the British Empire in the first half of the twentieth century, they show allegiance, too, to the dominant discourses of their time. Specific consideration is given to the portrayal of discourses concerned with gender, feminism, classism, British colonialism, racism, and xenophobia in their writing.

The work of Enid Blyton and Agatha Christie was extremely popular in their time and still is today. Their important contribution to popular literature in England in the early twentieth century justifies a study of a selection of their work in relation to detective fiction and children’s literature as well as to studies of social history that include the investigation of how dominant discourse is both endorsed and challenged.

Anyway,whilst musing on these world famous authors similarities I came across an article entitled 'Her Language & The Agatha Christie Code'...

Mmmm, I pondered,what would happen if I changed the references to Agatha Christie and changed them to Enid Blyton?
Surely if they were that similar as writers the article may have lots of points in common with both authors....

Sadly,the errors in the article seem to be what has attracted the the most attention,and not the main point of the comparison...Just how similar as writers are Agatha Christie & Enid Blyton???

Here is the original article 'Her Language & The Agatha Christie Code'...for comparison..
http://www.christiemystery.co.uk/method.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

But,back to to the original question,what similarities actually are there between Enid Blyton & Agatha Christie?
Are they just both simply world famous female authors of fiction who lived around the same time,or do they have lots more in common with each other????

Regards

Pete

[Francis]

I think they both were brilliant at creating an atmosphere which we now recognise as
giving the books a period 'feel' and yet they are timeless!

[Moonraker]

I have been spending a lot of time on various Agatha Christie forums of late.Many there love Agatha Christie and also Enid Blyton.There seems to be a general agreement that both authors have lots in common with each other in terms of writing style re-use of plots etc etc.

Ah, yes - so much in common. I have expressed this opinion many times in the past. I have also noticed that both use very short sentences at times, in fact, I have tried to insert commas and semi-colons in place of the full stop, mentally, as I read. Both authoresses have the knack to spread warmth and cosiness - a feeling that all will end well. Even the death of a character in Agatha's stories doesn't provoke a feeling of sadness. How did she manage that?

I must revisit the Christie forums. I particularly liked the Yahoo Agatha_Agape forum, but the seemingly endless block quoting by most correspondents has put me off this site. Having to scroll down lines and lines and lines of quotes just to read a sentence at the end, has put me off. I also used to look at the official forums, but find them awkward to navigate, unlike our expcellent forums here.

Pete: What Christie forums do you look at?

[pete9012S]

To avoid a merger I've replied on the Agatha Christie thread!

[dsr]

Even if that article had been about Enid Blyton, and even if it's all accurate as far as far as the writing style etc. goes, it's all the wrong way round. I'd be amazed if Enid had worked out what style to use for best psychological effect and then forced her writing into that pattern. Genius doesn't work like that. She'd have written in a style which she knew to be right for her work, and left the literary analysis to people who couldn't write like she did.

[Moonraker]

To avoid a merger I've replied on the Agatha Christie thread!

Good thinking, Pete! I'm sure Anita was catching on to us!

[tix]

On Dec. 18th, 2012 pete9012S wrote
"You've not read the 'Anecdotage' yet then?"

*********************************

No I haven't, but the recollections of excerpts I've read in the EBSJ were stimulated.

*************************************
On Dec. 18th, 2012 Anita Bensoussane wrote:
" ... it makes me think of those stories you occasionally hear in the news where someone has ploughed through an anicent book or manuscript noting down every nth letter and apparently found coded messages predicting things ..."

***************************************

Quite true. Oftentimes, a writer will introduce symbolism and 'mysterious' codes translated from far away places to back up his or her claims, and a lot of money can be made from the practice. Another strategy is to produce a book that turns accepted knowledge upside down or perhaps alters it slightly. Excellent selling point!

An example is the revelation of a new date for the birth of Christ. How can it be proved? Who cares? So what if we're a few days out - but never mind, the sales are sure to pass the million mark. 'New Knowledge, Hidden Before Today' will motivate the gullible to rush out and purchase the latest revelations and after the findings have been scrutinized, they'll fade away. The fortune amassed by the author will keep going though - unless there's a gambling problem.

Regarding the "Christie Mystery" It would be interesting to see if someone could produce the examples I requested from one of her novels or even from a Blyton story but I suppose it doesn't really matter because, according to the latest decoding of the Mayan Calendar, we'll all be dead tomorrow and I just wish I'd written a book about it.

Anyway it's been nice knowing you all and until a stray amoeba crawls out from under the ruins and begins forming another civilization, the lifeless orb called Planet Earth will hurtle on through the cosmos awaiting the birth of another Enid Blyton - that is if our former home hasn't been blown 'completely' to smithereens!

All this is quite depressing.

PS: According to the Conspiracy Theorists, if you can get across to Bugarach in time you're safe because a flying saucer rescue service will be in operation!

[dsr]

And if the Mayan calendar on 21st December doesn't signal the end of the world, don't relax yet. I don't wish to frighten anyone, but I've got an Injured Jockeys Fund calendar on my wall which ends on 31st December 2102 - clearly the Injured Jockeys have an insight into the end of the world which is why they ended the calendar then. (They have issued me with a 2013 calendar, but I think they're just trying to prevent a panic! )

[pete9012S]

Regarding the "Christie Mystery" It would be interesting to see if someone could produce the examples I requested from one of her novels or even from a Blyton story

tiq,here are some references for your perusal.....
Apparently there was a documentary entitled 'The Agatha Christie Code'....

http://www.enidblytonsociety.co.uk/foru ... 12#p155412" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

(Have posted reply on Agatha Christie thread as it mostly concerns her!)

Regards

Pete