What techniques does Louis de Bernires use to portray the effects of the war so powerfully?
What techniques does Louis de Bernières use to portray the effects of the war so powerfully?
Louis de Bernières uses many techniques to portray the effects of the war as powerfully as he does. He uses techniques that vary from use of language, to using the diary of a homosexual soldier. In the in-between there are other techniques such as: contrast of the good and bad effects of the war; death, from the inside and the outside; or showing feelings from soldiers instead of numbers and figures.
From my point of view, the use of language is the technique that sticks out the most. He uses all sorts of words, meanings, effects and even languages! Just as he uses sarcasm everywhere: “War is a wonderful thing. In movies and in books.” Sarcasm is very well applied, as in a real war there is also sarcasm, cynism and irony in everyone´s words. This creates the effect of reality and holds on to the reader´s attention. He also tends to make good use of repetition: “I hate puttees.” and “War is great.” Repetition, as in most pieces of literature, creates a very positive effect on the reader. The power of his words is amazing. He uses detail in every sentence, always surprising the reader with new, powerful vocabulary: “Francesco´s mother was a small grey woman with a mole on one cheek and a brushing of black down upon her upper lip [...] slavonic eyes, [...] olive skin, [...] jeweller´s fingers.” Likewise, he also uses very descriptive language when describing rough moments making them incredibly powerful: “ [...] in a haze of nostalgia and forgetfulness, had found in front of him the titanic bulk of Carlo Guercio, had found his wrists gripped painfully in those mighty fists [...] he stared wonderingly into the middle of Carlo´s back as ragged and appalling holes burst through from inside his body, realeasing shreds of tattered flesh and crimson gouts of blood.” This quote made a great impact on me. The power of the words, and the roughness of what they are telling makes the reader feel incredibly impressed by the cruelty of war, and the courage of soldiers. The fact that the use of language is the most effective technique is perfectly logical, as words are the ones in charge of putting the message through, and thanks to these words and the way in which they were used, the reader gets a real, touching and effective feeling of how the war was. Of course, using different languages instead of translating names of places and people gave even more sense of reality and the reader felt more in touch with the characters and with the story being narrated.
