Rhetorical Techniques Used In Mark Twain's War Prayer

Mark Twain" The war prayer" and Williams dean Howell "Editha" both compare their stories to war; they were impelling the characters into something that can cause death. Twain and Howell both contradicted they stories off war that really didn’t take places. The stories were both romanticism. Howells was very much opposed to war and especially the Spanish-American War, which he considered imperialistic. The story impales Editha, who embodies all the nonsense about the heroic romanticism of war and whose false sense of values drives her unfortunate fiancé to a premature death in a questionable war. Howell made it story based off currently everyday situation of manipulative. Twain “War Prayer was devastating indictment of war, and particularly

In the satirical poem, Ad (1938), author Kenneth Fearing, founding editor of Partisan Review, asserts that people mindlessly accept the practices of war and suggests people are too willing to join war without the idea of consequence. Fearing’s poem is stylized as an advertisement for soldiers to fight in World War 2, however, the heavy satirical tone makes it clear this advertisement is for gore and not for glory. Fearing uses diction, style, and imagery to reveal his theme of anti-war. The diction is placed strategically, showing the true means of war and bloodshed, the style containing strong italicization and capitalizations, and using imagery to give the audience a true look into just how real war is. Kenneth Fearing’s poem reached millions

These paragraphs mention a couple of immoral aspects of Twain’s life. When he buries his grandmother under the grapevine, he justifies his reasoning through common sense. “The vine needed fertilizing, my aunt had to be buried, and I dedicated her to this high purpose.” This justification is ironic because his deceased grandmother is providing life for the vines. He also refers to the Constitution in support of his actions. “Does that unfit me for the President? The Constitution of our country does not say so.” Irony also occurs when Twain admits that he dislikes the poor. “I regard the poor man, in his present condition, as so much wasted raw material.” This statement is ironic because the office of the presidency swears on oath to support and serve the entire population of the United States. Because of this, the ironies placed in these two paragraphs further bring out the humor of this

W.D. Howells uses irony to illuminate the difference of perspective and conflict of interest between Editha and George. Editha is so busy trying to fix what she believes is wrong with George; she does not recognize the flaws in her own thinking. She secretly sees George as less than he is because of his peaceful nature, and she does not imagine that George is aware of her low regard of him. Editha uses three reasons to support her advocacy for the war, first, that to fight in the war will be glorious. Second, that the war is ordained by God, and third, that to fight for the country is to show devotion or loyalty. Similarly, war advocates have used these same reasons to rally the citizens to battle in past wartimes.

Samuel Langhorne Clemens, better known by the pseudonym Mark Twain, has been central to American literature for over a century. His seemingly effortless diction accurately exemplified America’s southern culture. From his early experiences in journalism to his most famous fictional works, Twain has remained relevant to American writing as well as pop culture. His iconic works are timeless and have given inspiration the youth of America for decades. He distanced himself from formal writing and became one of the most celebrated humorists. Mark Twain’s use of the common vernacular set him apart from authors of his era giving his readers a sense of familiarity and emotional connection to his characters and himself.

War has the ability to change many things about the world. While most associate the changes of war with boundaries and governments, people often forgot the influence it has over society and culture. The United States experienced a change similar to this shortly after the Civil war. Citizens were shown the brutality and devastation of war which lead to them having a grim outlook on the world. This viewpoint inspired a new generation of artists and authors who ,with their combined works, created Realism. Writers like Mark Twain, Stephen Crane, Abraham Cahan, Ambrose Bierce, and Henry James pushed the drastic shift from feelings to reality in the hopes of appealing to the more literate working class. Many stories, in order to capture reality, relied on similar techniques and themes such as: simplicity, truth, and criticism.

During the period between the civil war’s end, and about 1914, an American literary movement occurred. This movement is known as realism for its adherence to real life, but should not be confused with naturalism. Mark Twain played a part as one of the Literary minds of this era. In his Poem “the War Prayer”, Twain shows examples of realism about the townspeople, non-believers, and the negative parts of the war.

Twain recounted his war experiences for an audience in October of 1877 at a dinner for the Boston Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company. He spoke before the dinner recounting his actual Civil War experience.  Twain said, “I was made Second Lieutenant and Chief Mogul of a company of eleven men, who knew nothing about-war - nor anything, for we had no Captain. My friend, who was 19 years old…and just out of the infant school, was made Orderly Sergeant. His name was Ben Tupper. He had a hard time.” Important from his statement is the confirmation that Twain actually held the exact position of the narrator of his story and also the consistent youth and inexperience of the troops. The theme of inexperience is continued in his story many times over. An example of which can be seen when the narrator describes the daily activities of the men, “afternoons, we rode off here and there in squads a few miles and visited the farmer’s girls and had a youthful good time…” These are not the action of hardened killers. Rather, they are those of innocent and ignorant boys that have the misinterpretation that they are fighting a war. This very innocence could be that which Twain shared with his “narrator” at an actual time in history when he too was playing war with the Marion Rangers.

9. What does Huck’s father criticize about the government? What does Twain want the reader to feel about these issues?

In 1907 Bernard Shaw remarked to Archibald Henderson that, "Mark Twain and I find ourselves in the same position. We have to make people, who would otherwise hang us, believe that we are joking (Clemens 5)." This point is well illustrated by the fearless Twain

The final sentence of Twain’s essay is a powerful and effective way to end The War Prayer. At the end of the essay, the stranger is described as “a lunatic, because

Before entering combat, all of the men are in the chopper and are beginning to worry about what outcome they may face when they leave the chopper. The author introduces the theme relying on the Lord to provide a better understanding for the reader about how the men feel about war and their personal religious viewpoint. Also, the author uses prayer as a symbol of hope for the soldiers. When Pewee begins speaking with the news team, he uses verbal irony to provide an indirect characterization for the reader.

“To the Person Sitting in Darkness” is another one of Twain’s works that uses irony to present an argument, therefore allowing an easier way to discuss the argument. However, this work is not presented in a light-hearted fashion. Rather, it uses satire to show extremes in order to force people to consider the problems with imperialism. This essay discusses several world events in which

In the reading “The War Prayer” by Mark Twain he describes the setting of a patriotic church service of which is about to send the towns men off to the war. But during this service a stranger enters and tells the crowd that what they are praying for which victory is also has a flip side to it. And he describes the great devastation it would bring. The theme of this reading is when wishing for something that is destructive it also has its repercussions. Mark Twain shows this theme through Irony and Imagery.

"All you need in this life is ignorance and confidence, and then success is sure" (Twain). This quote is from Mark Twain. He is a very famous author who has written such classics as The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. Mark Twain’s real name is Samuel Clemens, and was known to have experienced different many things in his lifetime. He has worked as a miner, printer, river pilot, and more (www.cmgww.com). This tells us that he must have known many things, and possibly how he came up with this quote.