Beach Burial Distinctively Visual Essay

Vivid and memorable images produce certain emotions within the audience, through their interpretation of distinctively visuals to create particular perspectives. ‘The Shoe-Horn Sonata’ a multimedia presentation composed by John Misto, is a highly evocative play exploring the history and treatment of women in the Japanese prisoner of war camps, by looking at real life experiences of these women told through a story about two characters, Bridie and Sheila. Kenneth Slessor’s 1942 poem ‘Beach Burial’ similarly comments on the horrifying scenes of war and the significant sacrifice of those who fought. Through the use of distinctly visual techniques, both composers create memorable images immersing the reader into a new understanding of war allowing

Throughout act one scene three, Misto creates distinctly visual images by using dialogue to demonstrate helplessness and death in the brutality of war, when Sheila recounts the event; the sinking of the Giang Bee. “Then there were flashes – like sparks in the distance – and the sound of crackers going off… It lay like a wounded animal, spilling oil instead of blood” is dialogue spoken by Sheila which emphasises the helplessness of the women onboard through the use of similes and imagery. This quote demonstrates and foreshadows how hundreds of women were overpowered by the force of the Japanese, leaving them weak and vulnerable as many of them died and drowned in the water. Misto has used this selection of dialogue to create vivid and memorable images, engaging the audience and appealing to their emotions. Comparably, Slessor utilises vivid and memorable images within his poem “Beach Burial”

The concept of mateship within war has a great importance in the play. As Bridie and Sheila describe the events leading to their first sighting of each other in scene three, the friendship of the two characters is highlighted. Misto uses dialogue and stage directions when Bridie describes how she used an emblematic item, her shoehorn, to hit Sheila in an attempt to keep her awake. Bridie – [mimics hitting] “tap – tap – tap –” Sheila – [harsher] “whack – whack – whack.” Onomatopoeia has been repeated and hyperbolised, highlighting this in a distinctively visual way adding context and bringing more depth into their friendship. Realism has also been added in this scene when the distant sound of the waves lapping play, creating a sense of immediacy and displaying the horrendous conditions Bridie and Sheila went through making the bond between them stronger. Likewise, Kenneth Slessor has incorporated vivid images to portray the concept of mateship within war to symbolise the context behind each clause, adding depth within his poem Beach Burial. The use of imagery seen in the line “To pluck them from the shallows and bury them in burrows.” Communicating with the audience that the remaining soldier felt it was his duty to tend to the hundreds of passed soldiers and bury them once they had passed. The word “them” is repeated to reinforce the anonymity of the soldiers and the senseless nature of war.