A Review Of Frank O 'Conner's Befriending The Nation'

The overall message in this poem is a drill sergeant educating young soldiers and preparing them for the harsh reality of war. He is not playing ‘Mr. nice guy’, he is being tough and strict to give the soldiers no easy way out.

"The tall soldier turned and, lurching dangerously, went on. The youth and the tattered soldier followed, sneaking as if whipped, feeling unable to face the stricken man if he should again confront them. They began to have thoughts of a solemn ceremony. There was something rite-like in the movements of the doomed soldier. And there was a resemblance in him to a devotee of a mad religion, blood-sucking, muscle-wrenching, bone-crushing. They were awed and afraid. They hung back lest he have at command a dreadful weapon."(Ch. 9 P. 65) Each character plays a major role in the novel even though they are minor characters. Both the tattered soldier and Jim Conklin serve to show was Henry’s guilty conscience. It reminded him that the wounds that the men showed also displayed their courage which Henry did not believe he had since he ran away from the fight. “He had burned several times to enlist. Tales of great movements shook the land. They might not be distinctly Homeric, but there seemed to be much glory in them. He had read of marches, sieges, conflicts, and he had longed to see it all. His busy

As Thomas Aquinas states, “There is nothing on this earth more prized than true friendship.” Friends cheer each other up when they are sad and support them when they are happy. In John Steinbeck’s novella Of Mice and Men, two migrant workers, George and Lennie, arrive as newcomers on the ranch. Throughout the story, different problems are thrown their way, and their friendship is tested with each one. George shows how true friendship requires sacrifice because friends sacrifice personal freedom, they protect each other, and they sacrifice emotional energy.

Have you ever noticed that, many individuals never awaken to reality unless they are exposed to violence? In Flannery O’Connor’s short story “A Good Man is Hard to Find” his main character, the grandmother is a master manipulator. In the story, a family is destroyed not only because of accidents caused by the grandmother, but also because the grandmother is inconsiderate and self-centered; they are all killed because they meet a murderer who also is unable to see beyond his own insights and choices. Her manipulative capabilities, her selfish, self-centeredness and her Southern lady nature are all examples of her deceitful role.

There are many examples of friendship everywhere in the book, but the most effective one I found was the following, "Then a small faraway voice is saying,” ‘Put your hands up, villain!' and I really am falling and the air is coming back into my lungs so fast it hurts. I'm lying there all crumpled up sideways. I can see Freak. He's rolled down through the cellar window into the pile of coal, and he's trying to stand

In the Henry V play, war is portrayed as a glorified game which makes war sound easy and harmless to the soldiers proceeding to fight. The quote "I see you stand like greyhounds in the slips, straining upon the start" suggests the soldiers are ready to fight and are "straining" to set off, to start fighting. The quote "The game's afoot" suggests that war is described as a game, and that the "game" has started. This links to the poem "Who's For The Game?" written by Jessie Pope. The poem "Who's For The Game?" is deliberately written in a lyrical form, like a nursery rhyme so it is easy to remember. This creates an effect on the reader because it makes the reader remember the words of the poem, which would occupy their mind to make them think that they should recruit in war. "Who's For The Game?" is a

With the above statement about how the young officer had no respect until the older soldier gave him his acceptance. Their willingness to follow was because past actions as stated “The old soldier nods familiarly; he evidently knows him” (Bierce 48). This statement means that this young officer has gained the respect of the senior soldiers in past battles. Bierce goes on to write a very important statement next “The young officer salutes, then wheels his horse, and rides straight toward the crest of the hill” (Bierce 48). This statement is the embodiment of the idea of leading from the front. The young officer could have sent the line of skirmishers he commanded, and easily stayed behind to watch the whole line get massacred. Instead the young officer took it upon himself too recon the enemy’s position knowing full hearted that could mean his life. As the young officer rode out on his own Bierce makes comments like “If he would but turn- if he could but see the love, the adoration, the atonement” (Bierce 49). Statements such as this mean that the soldiers have given this young officer their full commitment and knew that he saved them from unnecessarily dying. This idea of leading from the front gave the young officer that at first had no respect to having thousands of men willing charge at a moment’s

Flannery O’Conner’s short story, “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” illustrates a family vacation rapidly gone bad when the family encounters a vicious end by an escaped criminal known as “The Misfit”. The story includes a family of five; a husband, wife and three kids, and the Grandmother. The family has planned to take a trip to Florida, but the Grandmother argues that East Tennessee would be better as a recent criminal escaped from Florida, but no other family member views it as a big deal. Much like the title exemplifies, the men in this short story are very irritable, sexist and even worse, killers. While the story conveys that a good man is truly hard to find, O’Conner displays “The Misfit” to be a catastrophic character. The main idea of the story quickly becomes about redemption as the Grandmother tries to introduce faith and religion to “The Misfit” in order from him to turn his life around. But while the Grandmother is fighting this battle, the redemption story naturally brings light to the story’s treatment of women. The female characters within this story obey a male-controlled view of how women should live their life and what actions they should perform. At the conclusion of the story, the story advises that all women must be redeemed, and the only way to do so is with the help from a “good man.”

Thomas Aquinas, an Italian Dominican philosopher, once said, “There is nothing on this earth more to be prized than true friendship.” John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men is an amazing example of this quote. The story displays a short glimpse into the life of George Milton and Lennie Small as they hustle for work in the Gabilan mountains of California. The two men truly care for each other and view each other as family, unlike other men during this time who were just searching for money. After watching their friendship progress, the reader may ask themselves, “How does their friendship render each vulnerable?”

“A true friend is someone who has touched your heart and will stay there, they have the ability to change you, even if they don't. They will be etched in your memories forever.” Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck tells a story about a strange friendship between a very strange pair named George and Lennie who embark on an adventure together trying to make a steady living during the Great Depression. Steinbeck paints a realistic portrait of America in the 1930s, and shows us that in times like that having a good friend around can distract you from the reality of the world even for a short moment.

True friendship is something you didn’t see very often back then between a little white boy and a grown black man. True friends care and only wish the best for each other. One foggy night Huck and Jim got separated. Huck found the raft again with Jim on it sleeping. He wakes him up and Jim was so happy to see him because he was so worried and thought he was dead (Twain 83). Huck tries to play a trick on Jim and tell him he was only

“Guests of the Nation,” by Frank O’Connor, is a story about two Irish soldiers guarding two English prisoners of war. The soldiers, Noble and Bonaparte, grew close to the prisoners, Hawking and Belcher, over the card games and theological debates they had over the months of incarceration. One day Bonaparte is told that the prisoners are to be shot out of retribution. The story ends with Bonaparte reeling from seeing two men he considered friends killed. O’Connor highlights the seemingly absurd nature of war and how it irreparably damages the human spirit.

“Guests of the Nation” is a story that takes place in Ireland during The War of Independence. It’s about a friendship between three Irish men and two English men. The three Irish men, Bonaparte, Noble and Jeremiah are holding the two Englishmen Belcher and Hawkins as hostages. During that time a bond of friendship begins to grow which is very unusual giving the situation they are in. They play cards together, joke with each other and they even discuss as friends but because of the situation Bonaparte, Noble and Jeremiah are put in a very difficult position. They are told that some English people shot some Irish men and now they’ll have to do the same to Belcher and Hawkins. In the end Bonaparte

While externally the soldiers had to deal with the act of actually shooting the prisoners (more simply killing a man), internally Bonaparte and Noble dealt with the internal conflict of having to kill a friend. As Hawkins pleaded the case of friends shooting friends, we were forced as readers to also question the call of duty to a cause versus the call of

What is the difference between a guest and a hostage? People invite guests and they stay on their free will. Conversely, people do not invite hostages and they never stay on their free will. In Frank O’Connor’s Guests of the Nation, there is a disagreement on whether the Englishmen are guests or prisoners, despite them getting shot. Despite the title implying the Englishmen are guests, they are hostages because Bonaparte acts shocked after learning Belcher and Hawkins are held against their own will, while Jeremiah reminds Bonaparte that he will execute the Englishmen if they kill the Irish prisoners, ultimately leading to their deaths as it is their duty as soldiers to retaliate for the loss of their comrades.