Through our exploration of emotional intelligence and its significance in the modern-day era, David Foster Wallace and Alice Munro both seem to implement this tactic through various parts of their works, focusing centrally upon the extent of empathy and emotion in their writing whilst crafting delicate literary masterpieces in the making.
To begin with, the two authors relate to one another in several ways; Wallace and Munro submerge their central themes using topics of realism and true events in order to provide the reader with a practical reading and one that may, although not be as thrilling as a popular fictional novel, yet provides a trend of emotions and intellect for the reader to understand as well as proper knowledge and learning upon a specific genre in a literary style, attempting to enable and drive the reader’s thoughts into their direction. In addition to this, both deeply develop the plot and context of their texts, with Wallace concentrating completely on a specific theme he aims to speak of, whilst Munro explores her central ideas through characters and conflicts to develop them, proving to be more vivid in presenting content in terms of real-life situations and personal encounters in contrast to Wallace.
This can be further supported through the difference in context of the two writers, with Munro being born and brought up in early Canada, influencing where most of her stories are set and progress, as Wallace features towards a slightly more modern perspective, alongside a somewhat shift in character and personality type, through his encounters with depression, portraying a rather unique and different viewpoint in his writing unlike Munro. Furthermore, this leads to the great difference in writing styles of the two authors, whereby Wallace tends to devise his writing through a more frank and informal tone, enlisting that he is teaching or instructing his endeavors to a somewhat younger audience as a form of advice or guidance of avoiding dark paths of distress and dismay. Munro, on the other hand, composes her texts with a major application of innovation, along with a tranquil tone, allowing the tale to settle and advance gradually towards her central themes included.
As a result, the writers tend to establish meaning within their text through emotional intelligence, confirming that the reader continues to think of the tale, or feel emotionally impacted even far after the text has concluded. These factors, also, are not only of competence between the two, yet also establish and enlists the basis of their accomplishments and achievements, signifying the distinction between these two individuals and their tales to success within the literary world.
