Foreshadowing is a literary device used in written art and films to give hints about later plot developments. It can be broad or complex, and false innuendos called red herrings may be used. Chaucer, Shakespeare, and Dante all used foreshadowing. Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte also employed this technique in their works.
Foreshadowing is used in written art and films to give hints about things to come in later plot developments. It can be very broad and easily understood, or it can be a complex use of symbols which are then linked to later turns in the plot. Sometimes, an author may deliberately use false innuendos, called red herrings, to send readers or viewers in the wrong direction. This is especially the case with mystery writers, who want to bury clues to a mystery in partly true and partly false information.
This is an old literary device and uses of it occur before the development of the novel in the 18th century. Both Chaucer and Shakespeare used foreshadowing, as did Dante. In short poems, it may not be particularly effective, but in longer poems, which were often the writing style of the Middle Ages, this technique is very effective and important.
For example in Chaucer’s Troilus and Criseyde, Troilus catches a glimpse of Criseyde and experiences the “terrible joy” of love in beholding her. This suggests that Troilus will rejoice in his love for him, but will also suffer for it.
Shakespeare often uses foreshadowing, sometimes in quite obvious ways. Romeo and Juliet both talk about death, for example. Shakespeare’s use of this technique can also be quite subtle, however, and critics debate what some symbols foreshadow. The ghost in Hamlet is often thought to symbolize the deaths of Denmark’s royalty, although some argue that it only foretells Hamlet’s death.
In the early 19th century, Jane Austen employed these techniques quite playfully in her work Northanger Abbey. The novel is meant to delicately parody the gothic novels produced by writers such as Mrs. Radcliffe. In particular, the use and discussion of The Mysteries of Udolpho places the heroine Catherine on a journey into the imagination that gets her into trouble with her beloved Henry. She spends a miserable night at the Abbey believing in secret passageways and curious cupboards that can reveal hideous secrets. Later, she discovers that she locked the closet herself and the contents of her are lists of laundry bills.
Charlotte Bronte uses foreshadowing to fantastic effect in Jane Eyre. The very names of the places where she stays suggest her emotional experiences in these places. Jane’s series of images also herald her fate for the rest of the novel, and their descriptions are a wonderful use of this literary device.
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