Beauty - in its physical incarnations - is one of the most important overarching themes of Dai Sijie's novel Balzac and the Little Chinese Dressmaker. Dai creates a sense of beauty in the novel by highlighting the beauty of the characters, location, and natural scenery. In exploring beauty in a truly multifaceted way, he is exceptional in his use of literary techniques such as attention to detail, juxtaposition, connotation, and metaphor, techniques that together point to the human desire for beauty. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay First, Dai creates a sense of beauty through its depiction of specific characters; the most obvious embodiment of this approach is the Seamstress. In the third chapter of the novel, when Luo and Ma arrive at the tailor shop and are first introduced to the Dressmaker, she is described with extraordinary attention to detail. Instead of talking about his appearance as a whole, Dai instead chooses to write about specific qualities like the "sparkle in his eyes," the "rugged and supple" look of his shoes, and the way his pigtail falls from the "nap of his neck." ". from the neck to the lower back. The smallness of these details, combined with the vulnerability suggested through the connotation of words like "flexible" and "nape", illuminates the image of the Dressmaker in an incredibly intimate way. The sense of emotional closeness - of tenderness, almost - created as a result is what makes it seem truly beautiful. The beauty of the Dressmaker is also emphasized through the use of connotation in the passage. Throughout the passage, Dai describes her as "delicate", "sophisticated", and "fine". These words, which suggest grace and delicacy, create an image of distinct beauty. Dai also uses juxtaposed pairs of words such as "cheap" and "sophisticated" and "barefoot" and "flexible", which contribute to this impression by showing the contrast between the feminine sophistication of the dressmaker and the unattractive coarseness of her surroundings . However, Dai characters do not only possess beauty in terms of appearance. The Little Dressmaker is one of the most sought-after women in the valley and her absence causes "great distress to all the young bachelors". His father the tailor, another important character in the novel, is also shown as having extremely high status, with "scenes of great excitement" following him wherever he goes. The couple are also referred to as "like a king" and "the princess of Phoenix Mountain" respectively, suggesting that they have been exalted to the status of royalty. The fact that the couple is successful and celebrated almost to the point of being deified adds to their appeal by making readers see them as people of incredible worth. It is also worth noting that the tailor's success is mainly due to the fact that new clothes are "in high demand". The villagers' desperate need for new clothes, as well as the painstaking means by which they acquire them (going "all the way" to Ying Jing to buy clothes and then witnessing difficult encounters with the tailor) suggest that the tailor is a metaphor. for the desire for beauty. Dai not only portrays the beauty of his characters, but also that of the natural scenery. In the last paragraph of the extract he recounts the boys' ascent along a "steep and slippery path, shrouded in milky fog". The choice of word in this passage is very interesting: 'wrapped' suggests ethereality, but also alludes to death; 'milky' creates mystery, but also highlights the opacity and danger of fog; “steep” and “slippery” suggest excitement and adventure, but also mortal danger. The clear contrast between the apparent charm of the mountains and the.