Compare how Brittain and Keown present their grief at losing a loved one during the war in Perhaps- and Reported Missing
Exemplar Essay: First World War Poetry Compare how Brittain and Keown present their grief at losing a loved one during the war in ‘Perhaps-’ and ‘Reported Missing’ “My heart…was broken long ago” Both ‘Perhaps’ and ‘Reported Missing’ show the extent to which bereavement can disable and debilitate the bereaved just as totally as the war itself can destroy the lives of its combatants. However, whilst Keown’s optimism surrounding the fate of her loved one evidences denial in the face of unimaginable grief, Brittain is more pragmatic, at least acknowledging that she will never get him back. ‘Reported Missing’ is almost blindly optimistic. Her resolve that she will ‘never’ accept that he is dead shows this, although her admission that her own “heart would never beat” if he was dead is rather ominous, and perhaps shows just why she needs her denial so much: otherwise she would fall apart. Her denial affords her a fearless experience: “Of these familiar things I have no dread”. Keown also emphasises her optimism through the juxtaposition of her almost hyperbolic description of her loved one – who “Held something ever living, in Death’s stead” – and the misanthropic approach she takes to the rest of humankind. She could not be more critical of the world which patronises her with their “piteous platitudes of pain”, and this is
The Things They Carried by Tim OBrien makes the reader feel like theyre there while its happening; it makes you feel like you know what war is
Liam Sullivan Hr. 7 Mrs. Nohner 5/31/12 An Unconventional War Story Imagine yourself lying down in a bunker; rain coming down in sheets and you’re taking enemy fire. It’s chaos and you have no idea what to do. The problem with this image is that you don’t feel the water and the fear. A story can only do so much, but unless you’ve experienced war first hand it’s impossible to know how it feels. Those who haven’t fought can’t grasp what the soldiers go through. The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien makes the reader feel like they’re there while it’s happening; it makes you feel like you know what war is. O’Brien expresses the themes of war and makes the reader experience war through his writing style and chapter set up. War is chaotic and crazy. It’s hard to feel that unless you’ve experienced it first hand. O’Brien uses many separate stories that jump around to portray the chaos of war. He writes in the style of metafiction to skew the lines between reality and fiction. Just how war plays on the minds of the soldiers, the blending of fiction and reality play with the readers mind, making the reader second-guess on what’s real and what isn’t. “ As a result, the stories become epistemological tools, multidimensional windows through which the war, the world, and the ways of telling a story can be viewed from many different angles and
Compare the presentation of war in the two poems 'Charge of the light Brigade' by Lord A Tennyson and 'Dolce Et Decorum Est' by Wilfred Owen.
'The Charge of the Light Brigade' was written during the Crimean war in 1854 after Lord Alfred Tennyson (the Poet) had read a news report. 'Dulce et Decorum est' was written in 1916 during the First World War. The two poets allow us to relive the experience of war from two different periods in time. I aim to explore the change in the portrayal of war before and during the twentieth century, and also the structures and devices poets use to convey their views persuasively, and justify them. These two poems describe war, and scenes from war, with varying levels of intensity and reality and also from different viewpoints. Tennyson's 'Charge of the Light Brigade' was written during the Crimean war. It is about a military blunder, where six hundred men were sent to charge straight into gunfire. He did not witness any fighting. 'Dulce et Decorum est' was written during the First World War. Wilfred Owen was a soldier in the First World War, and he writes from first hand experience. He spent months in disgusting conditions in the trenches near the front line, as shown by the way the soldiers were 'coughing like hags'. He would have seen many people die in agony and, having experienced one of the most destructive wars in history, he has a very unfavourable view of war. He was involved in the First World War, so he knows the realities of warfare. I can see that his poem is aimed at the
Brave New World Essay
Certainly, the phrase "what it means to be human" has significantly different connotations in Brave New World to what it may implore for most responders to the novel. While Huxley's exposition of society's degradation towards the image he depicts is based around realistic concerns, such an image is far-fetched and fantastical and requires responders to accept the Brave New World's ideology of humanity rather than their own. Brave New World encompasses a profound economic, political, philosophical crisis in which society is ready to accept anything. Many of the scientific technological advancements have turned against humanity. Political and business institutions now eradicate individualism and replace it with a deep seeded sense of nationalism. Such institutions turn us from complex individuals into stereotypical beings. Political slogans and ideals which are already engrained into the character's subconscious reinforce the limited sense of who the characters are. Expanding economic structures create world-wide consumption and production and this mass consumerism extends the insignificance of one human. All human relationships with nature are either destroyed or threatened. Sexual, emotional, spiritual and intellectual conditioning ensure that thought is restricted as the controlling body desires. One of the major themes of Brave New World is dehumanisation. Dehumanisation
How do the authors present the theme of futility of war in All Quiet on the Western Front and Testament of Youth?
How do the authors present the theme of futility of war in All Quiet on the Western Front and Testament of Youth? World War One is well-known for the horrific amount of men who died in it, many of whom did not fully believe in or understand the causes they fought for. War literature presents the modern reader with peoples' experiences from the period. Their views are integral in shaping our own opinions on war. Although war literature often differs in its composition, many themes are concurrent throughout the genre. All Quiet on the Western Front by Remarque and Testament of Youth by Vera Brittain, both portray the theme of futility of war. They are both drastically different in their portrayal, one an account from a German soldier and the other, an autobiography by a British woman; the ideas that they present on how war is futile presents a human wide consciousness of its futility and begs the readers to question the human nature of declaring and fighting war. The First World War was dubbed 'the war to end all wars' but it did not end all wars as the name might suggest, rather it simply set the pattern for new and even more mechanised killing. Remarque thoroughly explores the impersonality of killing and the idea of a mechanised war in All Quiet on the Western Front. One way in which he presents this idea is through a very matter of fact approach to fighting and injury such
Compare ways in which the Characters of Journeys End by R.C. Sherriff and Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks deal with the horrors of Trench Warfare.
Compare ways in which the Characters of Journey's End by R.C. Sherriff and Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks deal with the horrors of Trench Warfare. By Beatrice Meecham The First World War is known to be one of the worst, if not the worst war in military history. The strategies used were often ineffective and repetitive, meaning a lack of movement and years of stalemate on the western front. Soldiers had to live in conditions which were squalid and foul, they had to deal with diseases such as trench foot and millions of rats and lice infestations. These general images of soldiers living in these fetid conditions has become widely known and linked with the huge suffering caused by the First World War. The use of literature can enable us to gain a picture of what trench warfare was really like. 'Journey's End' a play written by R.C. Sherriff in 1928 based on his own life experiences gives a realistic image of life as a soldier in the trenches. However, the novel 'Birdsong' by Sebastian Faulks which was not written till 2005 gives a version of what Faulks believed trench warfare to be like; it is a fictional idea based on knowledge and understanding of World War One. Also the authors chose different formats with one being a novel the other a play, thus giving them contrasting ways of conveying soldiers' experiences of war. A play deals with the actions and reactions of characters
Representation of War in Regeneration and Wilfred Owens Poetry
Representation of War in "Regeneration" and Wilfred Owens war poetry * How both the writers explore emasculating effects of WW1-techniques used by both writers * Explore and Compare the ways both authors use language to create effects, in particular their use of imagery to convey the experience of war. Both "Regeneration" and the poems of Wilfred Owen give a very poignant "representation of the war". In many ways the two pieces of work give the reader a clear insight into the lives of people caught up in the war, and the effect that the war had on people. On effect of the War is the creation of a sense of emasculinity, something which is discussed in both regeneration and Wilfred Owens poetry. The characters in "regeneration" express concern of emasculation whilst at Craiglockhart hospital. The emasculation which is discussed in "Regeneration" highlights how powerless the soldiers felt when faced with the harsh reality of what war is truly like. The fears of the men are clearly evident in their dreams, nightmares and relations with fellow characters. Anderson for one has a dream where he is tied down with "corsets" and Rivers and Sassoon talk about an "intermediate sex". Initially the men who enlist to become soldiers believe they are doing something which is quintessentially masculine. Despite them trying to do the "manly" things, they have been viewed in society to be
Is Regeneration an Anti-war Novel?
January 15, 2008 Is Regeneration an 'anti-war' novel? "Opposition gives definition" said Heraclitus in 6th century BC (Graham). If that was true, in 21st century people are given "definition" by the usage of the prefix "anti-". Therefore, an "anti-war" novel is one, which opposes any form of aggressive competition. Regeneration by Pat Barker is one of the plentiful novels inspired by the atrocious events of the First World War. Barker's book does not focus on depicting combats and stratagems. On the contrary, it portrays in detail the mental and physical consequences of the war. Regeneration is an "anti-war" novel, which touches upon the appalling harm done by warfare and the following recovery process. Barker condemns war and her negative attitude is displayed by her complex, credible characters and hard emphasis on consequences. Description of both mental and physical war injuries tags every chapter of the novel, thus provoking the reader's sympathy. Barker aims to create a picture of the real circumstances during that period. Both by imaginary and real characters she succeeds in creating the solemn and discouraging mood in Craiglockheart. The introduction of the patients of the hospital (Prior, Anderson, Burns and Campbell) arises sympathy in the reader. Each of them has his own misfortune caused by war, which would probably mark his life forever. They would never be
Explore the way that Whelan in The Accrington Pals and Manning in her Privates We present the relationships between soldiers and civilians during WW1
Peter Whelan in The Accrington Pals and Frederick Manning in Her Privates We both present two very different sides to the relationships between the soldiers and civilians of WWI, and the sympathy or hostility directed at the soldiers. Settings also change greatly between the two stories. Where one is set largely within the formerly quiet town of Accrington, the other takes place in the war-torn land of France. In terms of cast, The Accrington Pals features those unable to fight living safe untouched by the physical effects of the war, though not safe from the mental. Her Privates We however, features an assorted cast of people who constantly live with the all too real dangers of the war. Therefore, it is to be expected that the answer to the question for these two would contrast. The beginning to The Accrington Pals lets the readers know immediately how May and Tom feel about his recruitment, as well as where the general mood of the town seems to lie. Tom is very caught up in the moment as May describes with 'that's a world you love isn't it' when Tom says manoeuvres. We also learn at the same time that there has been a celebration to see the men off, which points to where the town's feelings lie. May, though not opposed to the war outright, seems to have been unaffected by the euphoria of the war. Instead, she describes the send-off rather venomously with words such as
Discuss the theme of ‘Human Dignity’ in Willis Hall’s ‘The Long and the Short and the Tall’.
Discuss the theme of 'Human Dignity' in Willis Hall's 'The Long and the Short and the Tall'. Willis Hall, author of 'The Long and the Short and the Tall' has personally expressed his belief that the primary theme in his play is the idea of human dignity. In this essay we shall attempt to analyse the reasons behind and arguments against this belief, and to explore other themes discussed in the play. We shall begin by exploring Willis Hall's proposed theme of human dignity. Given that the author of the play expressed this belief himself, it would be arrogant to say that this interpretation is wrong. However, we shall look at how well this theme is conferred within the play. First, however, we must look exactly at what the author means by the phrase 'human dignity'. My original view of the phrase was that it was to refer to trying to maintain those external barriers that most humans build up to present a respectable facade to other people, while also dealing with the horrors of war. The view taken in the 1965 Hereford plays edition of the book is slightly different. Here, it talks of how the book was referring to the maintenance not of emotional barriers, but of morals and ethics, while also facing war. Both these themes make sense in terms of the play, and those also in terms of the phrase, human dignity. It is therefore possible that perhaps the author was referring to both