Random Dialogue

Carmen walks into her room and sees a huge mess, she immediately calls her daughter.

Carmen: “Sophie!”

Sophie: “Yes?”

Carmen: “Did you make that mess?”

Sophie: “No”

Carmen: “Who did it then?”

Silence

Carmen: “Are you sure you did not do that mess?”

Silence

Carmen: “I am talking to you, Sophie!”

Sophie: “Well...”

Carmen: “Yes?”

Sophie:  “It was an accident. I was looking for my shoes and forgot to clean the mess I made. I am sorry.”

Carmen: “Well that is all you had to say, now clean this mess and get ready to go to sleep.”

                I live with my older sister, Carmen, and her daughter, Sophie. I was in my room when I heard this dialogue take place. I found it interesting because dialogues between a mom and a daughter are always different from dialogues between friends. It is especially interesting when the child is about to get in trouble. It is an interesting dialogue because not much is said but with the few words spoken a clear message is delivered (that Sophie is guilty of making the mess). I believe dialogues are important in stories because they add more detail to the story. Dialogues help the reader understand the characters. For example, in this dialogue we sense that Sophie knows she did something wrong, that is why she is afraid to confess her action. Although the reader can infer, by Carmen's tone, that Carmen knows already that Sophie is guilty. I do believe if the dialogue had been more extensive and more detailed, I would have been able to have a clearer picture of exactly what Sophie did while she was looking for her shoes. This made me realize that when I use dialogues in my stories I have to put a lot of detail into them so that the reader does not stay wondering what really happened. It also made me understand that sometimes silence can say more than a thousand words. So in my writing I will keep in mind to use silence when necessary (and if it is applicable). Plus the punctuation marks at the end of each dialogue made an important contribution to the reader’s understanding of the emotions felt by the characters. I will make sure to use punctuation marks appropriately in my writing. Overall, I believe this was a good activity to fulfill, it helped remind me of the importance of dialogue.