In one line: Foreshadowing is a small early hint that quietly warns you of what's coming later.
You already pick up on warning signs.
In a film, when calm music suddenly goes quiet and the camera lingers on a locked door, you know something is about to happen. Writers plant the same quiet warnings in words.
Here's how to spot foreshadowing:
Three ways to spot it
A planted detail
A small object or fact dropped in early that seems minor, but matters later — a mention of ‘the loose stair’ pages before someone falls.
A hint in dialogue or mood
A line of speech or a heavy mood that quietly warns you — ‘Be careful with that,’ or a sky that ‘darkened as they set off’.
A small event that predicts a bigger one
Something minor happening first that echoes what's coming — a toy boat sinking in a puddle before a real disaster at sea.
The key move: Spot the early hint, then link it to what happens later. foreshadowing works backwards — you often only feel it once the payoff arrives, so name the hint AND the event it set up.
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Why it matters in the exam: Foreshadowing is worth analysing because it shows you can track how a text is built.
What to do
- Spot a hint, then show how it prepares the later moment.
- Name the planted detail.
- Then name the event it pays off.
- Not just ‘this creates tension’.
Analyse the foreshadowing: “She laughed and told him the old bridge had stood for a hundred years and would stand a hundred more. He noticed, but did not mention, the new crack running along its underside. They agreed to cross it in the morning.”
Model answer plan
See the mark-by-mark plan — for / against / judgement, with marking guidance — in study mode.
Watch out: Don't call every early detail foreshadowing. It only counts if it quietly sets up a later event — name the hint AND the payoff it points to.