For instance, "stood and stared" was used repeatedly throughout the passage: Robert tries very
hard to understand everything around him but he only 'stood and stared' when he returned to his
hometown; the Indians "stood and stared" at "ghostly" faces of the soldier in the train, trying
hard to figure out their intentions while the soldier "stared" back at the Indians. All of these
contribute to the overall atmosphere of the passage.
The author enforces the the bewilderment by applying figurative language throughout the
passage. For example, he compares soldier's faces "pressed against the window" to "ghosts
through the frosted glass' to heighten the blank and confused expression that's on these soldiers
faces. The sense of longing is well established through 'slowly tearing them apart like paper torn
in half'. It is almost as if they don't want to leave these Indians, but at the same time they don't
know what to do if they stayed. They were forced to leave this place. The author uses vivid
imageries to contradict Robert's memory of his town with the town of wartime to emphasize his
confusion. 'Blasting red" versus "Gentle awning". "Comforting shapes" versus 'pall of smoke'.
These conflicting portrayals of the town reflects all the changes that are taking place during the
war. They confuse Robert's innocent mind. They blemish his perfect memory of his hometown.
Findley achieved his objective of bringing readers into the story by using third person.
However, the author uses limited omniscient so the reader are only restricted to Robert's
perspectives. We are lead inside Robert's head. We can feel what he feels, see what he sees
and question what he questions. "Why should the Indians not be greeted standing by the railroad
track?" "What had happened here?" "Where, in this dark, was the world he'd know and where
was he being talking to so fast that there wasn't even time to stop?" What? Why? Where? As
Robert asks himself these questions, we ask ourselves as well. Except we know the answer
while he does not. Therefore, we can very well sense his ingenuity and confusion.
The author arrange this passage in chronological order to engage readers into the
actions. He takes us on a train journey through the prairies. First, as the train stopped in Regina,
we encounter a group of Indians in the vast open where everyone is too numb to take any
initiatives. Then, as they are being "torn apart' from the station, we find ourselves "into the
forest", "past the Sleeping Giant", "down the arms of rocks and rivers", "heralded by steam and
snow" and finally returned to "his city of birth". This was the part where most of the simile and
personification occurred in. The author did not specify any time frame for any part of the
journey. As Robert returns to his 'city of birth', there was no trance of excitement or gladness,
instead we are bombarded with images of smoke and fire, of darkness and sleeplessness. The
passage is ended with myriad question plaguing Robert's mind, questioning the whereabouts of
his childhood sanctuary. The reader are likewise left in doubt and confusion.
The different use of sentence structure and punctuation in this passage helps to attain the
overall feeling of innocence. The passage starts off with simple compound sentences focusing
mainly on what these soldiers saw. There were no feeling or thoughts delivered. Emotionless.
Only Robert "wanted everyone to raise an arm in greeting", only he innocently "wondered why
should the Indians not be greeted". Along with a background setting of snow and wind, this
reflects a sense of sadness resulting from desensitization. The whole description of scenery as
the train transverse across the prairies was fit in to one complex sentence with occasional pause
of using commas. This suggest the swift movement and corresponds to Robert's question at the
end: "where was he being taken so fast there wasn't even time to stop?" The author's continuous
use of dashes serves the purpose of giving out more information and providing the interruptions
needed to enhance the overall feeling of confusion and numbness.
The author establishes the slight sense of sadness along with innocence and confusion
throughout this passage via illustrious use of diction, elaborate details and divergent syntax. By
these means, he have successfully achieved the intention of engaging the readers into the story
and make us see, smell, feel and think like the characters within the story. As a result, we are
left thoughtfully fascinate, educated, entertained.
