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Imagine: It’s winter 1778 at Valley Forge. (Valley Forge was the military camp 18 miles northwest of Philadelphia, where the American Continental Army spent the winter of 1777–78 during the American Revolutionary War) you walk into the camp and the men huddle around different campfires trying to get warm. Tonight on the menu is more meat, while the men are handed their portions they’re crying in agony to eat something else. You’ve been talking to the men and they tell you stories about the meals their wives made and how their children would have grown by now. But somewhere in both the happy and sad stories there is a certain cheerfulness peering out behind the clouds.
Throughout history, one of the most common occurrences during times of warfare is the death of the soldiers who are fighting for their country. Depending on one’s point of view, a soldier’s death at war could be honorable and glorified, or it can be a gruesome, anonymous demise. In the two poems, “Epitaph on a Solider” by Cyril Tourneur and “The Death of a Ball Turret Gunner” by Randal Jarrell, there is a stark contrast between the emotional impacts experienced by the reader. Through each author’s unique writing style, “Tourneur’s Epitaph on a Soldier” shows glory in a soldier’s death and is supportive of war, while Jarrell’s “The Death of a Ball Turret Gunner” gives a much more painful impression of war and the passing of those involved in it.
In the photo, soldiers are playing football because a ceasefire is announced, so the smile in soldiers’ faces can be considered as a way of celebration. Soldiers in the photo “knew where [they] stood” (31) and “knew the score” (31), in contrary, soldiers in the story don’t know if they are winning or losing, they don’t know what is happening outside and they don’t know when all this will end. They still are able to make the war sweet, because in addition to their childish attitudes, they had “the kind of boredom that caused stomach disorders” (33). In order to find another occupation, for instance, all soldiers were watching Norman Bowker and Henry Dobbins playing checkers which was “a ritual for them” (31). While soldiers in the photo was celebrating the ceasefire by playing football, soldiers in the story played checkers and chanted the rhymes to be occupied and to not get crazy due to boredom or not knowing what is happening at the
"I say we make our deaths count for something" ( Evans 287) . Not only was this impervious group of friends loyal to each other, but to their beliefs too. Even if they did not live to see the glory and celebration of their win, they could die happy, as it was understood that what they fought for was
Colton Sawires Mrs. Brahmst English 10, Period 3 26 October 2015 All Quiet on The Western Front In the novel, All Quiet on the Western Front, by Erich Maria Remarque, Remarque shows how much destruction and devastation was caused by WWII. Paul Balmer, a young but experienced soldier, and his fellow comrades were put in the front line during the war. He and his friend, Kat, were fighting alongside recruits who have never seen the battlefield and understood how deadly it is. “Every day he can live will be a howling torture...
Paine says things like “the harder the conflict the more glorious the triumph…it is dearness only that gives everything its value.” He is trying to get the American soldiers to understand that the result of winning this war is far greater than the fight needed to do so. He also explains most people would not be able to continue fighting but “he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.” He uses this sentence to try and give the soldiers a sense of pride in what they are doing, saying that they deserve praise. These quotes all play on the listener's emotions.
The poem could be considered as patriotic. The poem talks about how the speaker has darker skin, and how he is usually sent to the kitchen to eat while there is people over. He then imagines a day where he can eat at the table with others and that they will see how beautiful he is and how “ashamed” (Hughes, 17) they were for their previous thoughts of him.
The Funeral Oration shows that soldiers who have fallen on the battlefield should be honored. It also mentions that the land they live on has been passed down from their ancestors, like America and its founding fathers. There seems to be a repetitive message about the dead dying in vain in both
Is ist possible to hate something so much that you soon begin to love it? In the poem " America" written by Claud Mckay, Mckay does just that. McKay uses powerful words to express his feelings about America. In doing this Claude McKay uses literary elements such as personification, similes, and iron to discuss the love and hate he has for the country he lives in.
“I am young, I am twenty years old; yet I know nothing of life but despair, death, fear, and fatuous superficiality cast over an abyss of sorrow. I see how peoples are set against one another, and in silence, unknowingly, foolishly, obediently, innocently slay one another” (263). This quote shows one thing that will be talking about which is the idea of heroism, which is defined as “great bravery.” Which was a life lesson many of these soldiers had to learn while in battle. The ideas of heroism and nationalism are the topics being on display in this essay.
Death, especially of a close family member or friend, can cause one to lose hope. Death could include a loss of a loved one, a loss of oneself, or a loss of a passion. In The Things They Carried, Tim O’Brien reveals the significance of death each soldier must come to terms with and the impact that death has on them, their character, and their actions. Each soldier carries objects that represent who they are, what they long for, and what they love. This is what remains constant for the boys in a world of war and death.
Poetry, perhaps more than other genre of writing, often sparks controversy and discussion. Authors Walt Whitman and Langston Hughes are two authors in American Literature whose poetry is both debated and praised by critics. "I Hear America Singing" by Walt Whitman and "I, Too, Sing America" by Langston Hughes have sparked many discussions on their controversial content. Walt Whitman was the first of the two authors to write, followed by Langston Hughes who was influenced by Whitman's work. While Whitman's poem, "I Hear America Singing" reflects the happiness of the American people, the poem written by Hughes takes a different approach.
By stressing that he is equal in society and it is something that people will start to realize is reinforced in the last stanza. The last stanza “I, too, am America,”(18) where the word ‘sing’ from the first stanza is changed to ‘am.’ This is a powerful way to close the poem, reinforces the greater notion that not only is he a voice in society, but he is the very essence that is part of
The second speaker also reshapes the first two lines of the entire poem into a plea to the majority. Beforehand, the first speaker uses those lines as a call for the old American spirit to be revived: “Let America be America again / Let it be the dream it used to be” (1-2). Both speakers change the meaning of the lines to express their thoughts on America. As a result, the poem expresses the desire for everyone to be treated equally in the land of freedom. The readers can relate to the speaker because they wish that everyone has equal rights in the country that proclaims itself to be the symbol of freedom.
In the poem “I, Too”, the author Langston Hughes illustrates the key aspect of racial discrimination faces against the African Americans to further appeals the people to challenge white supremacy. He conveys the idea that black Americans are as important in the society. Frist, Hughes utilizes the shift of tones to indicate the thrive of African American power. In the first stanza, the speaker shows the sense of nation pride through the use of patriotic tone. The first line of the poem, “I, too, sing America” states the speaker’s state of mind.