Inappropriate Detail
Literary devices are something that writers use all the time to add color and flavor to their writing. These include things like similes, metaphors, irony, alliteration, among others. There are over a hundred different literary devices in the least. These literary devices are used consciously by the writer. There is full intent to add it to the writing. But sometimes writers use literary devices without knowing they are doing it. It is totally unintentional. But by doing that, they offer the reader a clue or clues to an aspect of what is being written that can be very important to the reader gaining a greater understanding into what the writer is conveying.
An example of an unintentional literary device is called "inappropriate detail." So what is that?
Well, let's say that I happened to witness a train hitting a car crossing a railroad track and you are a reporter and you ask me what I saw. I might say something like, "Well, I remember that right before the train hit the car, I glanced up and saw a blackbird chasing away a crow. Then I looked back and, BAM!, the train hit the car." Obviously the bit about the blackbird chasing away the crow has nothing to do with the train hitting the car. So why did I include it? Psychologists have shown repeatedly that when we are in highly emotional states, our brains record everything that is happening. Every detail. And when asked to recount the event shortly afterwards, our brains have us play it back exactly as it was recorded. Over time, some of the detail begins to drop out. In repeated tellings of the event, we realize that the inappropriate detail serves no purpose, so we leave it out. But early in the relating of the event, the inappropriate detail is there.
So how does it help us as a literary device? When we see that an author has included it (again, unintentionally), we know two things: 1. The author was an eyewitness to the event that he or she is relating , and, 2. The author is relating the event soon after it occurred.
Let's look at an example.
Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. He called out to them, "Haven't you any fish? No, they answered. He said, Throw your net to the right side of the boat and you will find some. When they did they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish. John 21: 4-6.
This event happens after Christ's crucifixion, resurrection and initial appearances to the disciples. But the disciples are still in a state of shock and have no idea what their next steps in life are to be.
What do they do now? Christ has been crucified, resurrected and has appeared to them but they have no idea as to what might be coming next. Maybe they should just return to what they were doing before. So they go back to fishing because that's who they are, fishermen.
Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter. "It is the Lord!" As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, "It is the Lord," he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore,
about a hundred yards. When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.
Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fish that you have just caught."
Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, "Come and have breakfast." None of the disciples dared ask him "Who are you?" They knew it was the Lord. John 21: 7-12.
This passage has several examples of inappropriate detail but I will focus on just one. The number of the fish: 153. Who cares that there were 153 fish? We don't care at all. It adds nothing to the story. So why did John include it? Because he was there, that's exactly the way it happened, and HE COUNTED THE FISH!
Imagine for a moment what is happening. This is the third time that Jesus has appeared to them in His resurrected state. John is still having difficulty coming to terms with all of this. So he sits down next to the pile of fish and begins counting them.
"I saw Him die on a cross, 2...3....4; I saw His body placed in a tomb, 15...16...17; I saw the tomb empty on that Sunday morning, 28...29...30: I saw Him appear to us
the first time, 55...56...57; I was there when He appeared the second time, 68...69...70; He is over there talking with them, 121...122...123; He is eating with them, 133...134...135; I should go over, 151...152...153.
John is in a very high state of emotional turmoil. He is desperately trying to come to grips with what is happening. He is groping for something, anything, to gain a grip on reality. So he sits down next to a pile of fish and begins counting them. Later (probably within hours or days after the event), John will write this down. And he will include the number of fish that were caught, the number of fish that he counted.
Years later when he is a very old man, John will be challenged on what really happened with Jesus. "Did He really heal that blind man?!" "Did He really raise that girl to life?" Did you really see Him alive again? How can you be sure?!
He counted the fish.