What is the meaning of foil in literature?
foil, in literature, a character who is presented as a contrast to a second character so as to point to or show to advantage some aspect of the second character. Watson is a perfect foil for Holmes because his relative obtuseness makes Holmes’s deductions seem more brilliant.
What is an example of a literary foil?
A foil is a literary character that is intended to highlight attributes in another character through opposing traits. The good character’s traits emphasize the bad character’s traits, and vice versa. The Harry Potter Series characters Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy are a modern example of this type of foil.
What does it mean to act as a foil?
You can serve as a foil to someone if you show them to be better than you by contrast. If you can’t dance but your friend Lisa can, you can be a foil to Lisa’s grace. As a verb, if you foil someone’s plans or attempts to do something, you cause them to fail.
What is a foil in Hamlet?
Foils in Hamlet A foil is a character who sets off another person by being a contrast to that person. For a character to be a foil to Hamlet, he or she must have things in common with him in order for any differences to become more obvious.
What does foil stand for?
First, Outer, Inner, Last
The letters FOIL stand for First, Outer, Inner, Last. First means multiply the terms which occur first in each binomial. Then Outer means multiply the outermost terms in the product.”
How do foils work in literature?
In literature, a foil is a character that has characteristics that oppose another character, usually the protagonist. The foil character is used to highlight some particular quality or qualities of the main character. A subplot can also work as a foil to the main plot.
Are Tom and Gatsby foils?
Jay Gatsby and Tom Buchanan are foils. One without the other would not create the drama the happens within the novel. If the two characters were any more similar, they would not highlight the other’s features and therefore the book may not have ended like it did.
How are Romeo and Mercutio foils?
Mercutio is a foil to Romeo in their attitudes toward love and in their personality traits. Whereas Romeo is in love with love, speaking of it in Petrarchan reverence as he pines over Rosaline, Mercutio exhibits a somewhat cavalier attitude toward love. As his name suggests, Mercutio is, indeed, mercurial.
What does foil mean?
transitive verb. 1 : to back or cover with foil. 2 : to enhance by contrast. foil. noun (2)
Is Ophelia a foil?
Ophelia is a foil to Hamlet. Plays have foils to help the audience better understand the more important characters in the play. The character of Ophelia is necessary so that the audience will give Hamlet a chance to get over his madness and follow his heart. Similarities are an important part of being a foil.
How does Horatio act as a foil to Hamlet?
Horatio serves as Hamlet’s foil throughout the play and is his loyal friend. As was mentioned in the previous post, Horatio is trustworthy, rational, and level-headed. Hamlet confides in Horatio throughout the play, and Horatio is always quick to offer sound advice.
What does foil stand for freedom of information?
Freedom of Information Law
The Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) is a New York state law that gives the public a right to access government records. FOIL applies to nearly all government agencies in New York States, from the governor’s office and state agencies to county and local government and public authorities.
What is an example of foil in literature?
A foil in literature is a character associated with the story’s main character or protagonist who brings out or enhances character qualities of the protagonist. An example of this would be Samwise Gamgee in J.R.R. Tolkien’s trilogy The Lord of the Rings.
What does a ‘dramatic foil’ mean in literature?
A dramatic foil is a secondary character whose own character traits are completely opposite of another character’s. The dramatic foil is used in juxtaposition with another character, helping the reader to see their traits more vividly. In Rome and Juliet, Mercutio serves as a dramatic foil for Romeo.
What are the characteristics of foil?
wisdom and foolishness
• FOIL (noun) The noun FOIL has 5 senses: 1. a piece of thin and flexible sheet metal. 2. anything that serves by contrast to call attention to another thing’s good qualities. 3. a device consisting of a flat or curved piece (as a metal plate) so that its surface reacts to the water it is passing through.