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Gregory Analysis

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About Gregory

Gregory is a story about a soldier got an order that tells him he have to kill an hostage, also his friends, Gregory. Gregory was those soldiers’ hostage and he live with them They share foods and house, Gregory washes their clothes and iron their ties, however, soldier has to obey the order. This is a story that told by this very soldier, it shows all the helplessness, sadness, and indignation.The author wants to show his readers the contradictions between the top of the society and the bottom of the society.

In the story, the main problem of this soldier is the straggle in his mind, he does not want kill Gregory extremely, but he cannot violate the order from the Headquarters. He see this problem as a very difficult and resentful …show more content…

Quote ” The first time , I remember, I vomited. The second time I got sick and had a headache for days. The third time I drank a bottle of rum. The fourth, just two glasses of beer. The fifth time I joked about it.” His attitude changed after all the killings, he used to taking other people’s life away, his hands will not shake while he pulling the trigger anymore. However this time is not like that anymore, this time he will be killing a good friend of his own, he can no longer have a peaceful mind to do it.

Before the solider did the execution he tried to find some excuses to make himself easier to such a horrible thing. Quote “Why don’t you make things easier for us? Help us kill you with fewer qualms? If you would get angry—curse our Virgin, our God— if you’d try to escape it would be much easier for us and for you.” So, he did the execution with his lies, lies for himself.

And the saddest thing in this story is not the death of Gregory, it is the final part, “Headquarters did not ask for a report the next day or the day after. the top brass were sure that we had obeyed them and had left him swinging from a pole. They didn't care to know what happened to that Gregory, alive or dead.” This shows the sadness of being the bottom of the society, their life depends on the smallest decision that the top of the society made. They are so helpless and hopeless while they are facing those tough time that given by “the

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