Zlateh the Goat

Singer uses personification in “Zlateh the Goat.” The most prevalent example is giving Zlateh a voice, “‘Maaaa.’ Yes, Zlateh’s language consisted of only one word, but it meant many things” (419). Zlateh speaks to Aaron through her language, and he understands her, so she becomes like a sister to him: “She comforted him with her patience” (419). Zlateh is personified to highlight her value.

Likewise, Singer personifies the weather: “The snow continued to fall and the wind wailed, first with one voice and then with many. Sometimes it had the sound of devilish laughter” (419). The “devilish laughter” represents a supernatural and threatening component of the storm. Singer’s use of personification amplifies Zlateh as a deuteragonist character and the weather as an antagonist.

Singer uses third-person narrative in “Zlateh the Goat,” telling the story through the lens of an assumptive-omniscient narrator. For example, the narrator knows the thoughts and the feelings of the characters but uses passive language: “At first Zlateh didn’t seem to mind the change in the weather [...] Her mild eyes seemed to ask [.