Thematic Statement For The Outsiders

I will prove Ismael Beah is innocent of what actions he does in the war. Ismael was a happy child with his family. He loves rapping music, soccer and playing with his friends in Maturu Jong. The war came to his town and everything fall apart for Ismael and lost his family. Ismael was thirteen years old when he was first drafted to the army. Thirteen is a very young age for kids to be in the war. His survival or be kill from the army if he don’t join or he does, how drugs affected him, and the lieutenant is to blame of what he do with Ismael.

The war was between the rebels and the government of Sierra Leone and they both gruesomely tortured and killed their enemies. Both the rebels and the government’s troops recruited young boys to take part in the war and Ishmael was one of the many boys who was forced to become a child soldier. Ishmael has been a victim of war, but he has also been a victimizer. At unusual moments, war interrupts Ishmaels life and finds him no matter where he is. As Ishmael

As he continued to try to survive it became harder and he knew he was on the verge of dying. But quickly Beah got news that they had found his family, he was rejoiced in happiness and was eager to see them (James). The eager young boy raced to where his family was, but he was interrupted. Forced on the ground and hands behind his head, Beach had just been captured by the rebels. At age thirteen Ishmael Beah has joined the NRPC and was now doing exactly what he had been running away from (Newman) .

Ishmael Beah fought a war that was very tense against the rebels which made everyone depressed. Ishmael the author of the book A Long Way Gone was fighting a war against the devilish rebels who change everything in his life. Beah does justify his actions because he wants to get back at the rebels for killing his family. They are justified since his family and friends were killed by the rebels, he basically was forced into becoming a child soldier to fight the rebels from destroying and killing and he witnessed his own village being destroyed.

Secondly, Beah describes gruesome, fearful, and horrific times and scenes with the help of scenic narration. For example, Beah says, “I am pushing a rusty wheelbarrow in a town where the air smells of blood and burnt flesh. The breeze brings the faint cries of those whose last breaths are leaving their mangled bodies. I walk past them. Their arms and legs are missing, their intestines spill out through the bullet holes in their stomachs, brain matter comes out of their noses and ears.” This statement gives an excellent and direct impression of the brutality of the rebels. Conceivably, this could be labeled as a massive genocide in the way Beah retells it. A Long Way Gone is full of daunting scenes and bitter language. Ishmael Beah states, “Setting the body on the ground, I start to unwrap it, beginning at the feet. All the way up to the neck, there are bullet holes. One bullet has crushed the Adam’s apple and sent the remains of it to the back of the throat. I lift the cloth from the body’s face. I am looking at my own.” Beah shows powerful and visible emotion in the way he describes this person. When he says that he is looking at his own, that makes the reader feel as if Beah is describing a family member or a very loving friend. Although, the last portion of this quote is emotional, Beah still describes gruesomeness the Adam’s apple being

Ishmael Beah is someone who has lived through a lot. As a child, he grew up in Mattru Jong, Sierra Leone. His life was changed when war came into his country. Here, we will be exploring the transition from being an innocent child to becoming a soldier, to being a scarred adult.

This is a very detrimental time during Ishmael’s life because he is still a very young boy experiencing this. The violence that the rebels exhibit, successfully terrify the people of these villages. This fear forces young boys into physical and mental slavery. They become child soldiers under the authority of the rebels of RUF. I noticed that throughout the novel, Ishmael became more cautious and paranoid.

Ishamael Beah’s resilience allowed him to be adaptable to many different and difficult situations. In the beginning of the book Ishmael and his friends decide to go to Mattru Jong for a talent show. As they begin to go there they hear that the war has hit the mining areas. Ishmael and his friends knew that they may never be able to find their families again. Ishmael adapted very quickly and never gave up on trying to find them. “For more than three hours, we stayed at the Wharf, anxiously waiting and expecting to see our families or to talk to someone who had seen them.” (Beah 10) They never heard any news of them. Ishmael, Junior, Talloi begin to travel back saying goodbye to their friends. Ismael and they boys saw their first look, at what the war was about. They saw blood everywhere, parents carrying their dead children and people in pain. As Ismael, Junior and Talloi traveled

Early in his account, Ishmael Laments how “the war had destroyed the enjoyment of the very experience of meeting people” (pg. 48). From the story after the death of Ishmael’s family by the rebellion, trust and survival are being forced to Ishmael's life. Some of the consequences suffer from the violent is Ishmael have trust and survival issues. Ishmael are put in the condition where he have to fight for his own food with the boys. Go through survival by not get killed by the rebellions. He also have protect himself from starving and get killed. Ever since the attack of the rebellions started all villages are being scared and have no trust of the people not from the village. Ishmael is traveling with the boys and when he is going through villages

He thought that his gun provided him with both support and protection. His thoughts and actions have become so simple that days started becoming similar to one another. The second main event is becoming a savage solider. “I stood there holding my gun and felt special because I was part of something that took me seriously and I was not running from anyone anymore”. Beah admired the lieutenant and his opinion mattered to him a great deal because he set him as the father figure. When the army lieutenant supported their attacks by explaining to them that they are fighting for justification of the country, whereas, the rebels kill without purpose. For example, when he cuts someone's throat and kills rebels, Ishmael and the other boy soldiers cheer for the violence. Beah believed that fighting for a cause was accepted. As he was thinking with revenge, the idea of killing became simple and indifferent.

We know this when Beah says “It was clear from the tone of his voice that he didn’t want me around and didn’t trust me. I looked at the curious and skeptical faces of the children and the woman. I was glad to see other faces and at the same time disappointed that the war had destroyed the enjoyment of the very experience of meeting people. Even a twelve-year-old couldn 't be trusted anymore,” (48). Ishmael Beah’s goal it to reach a city named Bonthe, where safety awaits him. On his journey, he runs into non rebels. Because the country’s military is so small, they need help in eliminating the rebellion. They have no choice but to forcefully recruit children and minors for help. Unfortunately for Beah, he is picked up by these non rebels and is forced to fight against the rebellion. It is at this time that Beah realizes that he has the ability to carry out vicious and horrible acts. However, this was not his fate. Luckily, UNICEF was able to contact him and remove him from the violence. He eventually learns to forgive himself of what he has done and transforms into a caring, loving human being. Beah, now twenty-six years old, is happily married and living in the United States. Even with a hopeful future ahead of him, his past will stay with him forever. I believe that Ishmael Beah wrote A Long Way

The experience of being recruited as a child soldier affected Beah because he had to face difficult situations with strangers and without the support of his family. This was not fair to him because during this time he was only a twelve year old that had no responsibilities. In the text it mentions, “... and in Beah’s case the arrival of the rebels in his small town meant sudden separation from his parents and months of indeterminate flight from danger with

As the story moves along Ishmael’s relation with the civilians drastically changes. In the beginning, before the rebels reached the villages surrounding his home, he was accepted. He always would have a place to spend, and a host willing to feed him. They were carefree, and they could play outside with the other children in front of the adults amused eyes. As the story moves on the civilian stop being so trustful, and become suspicious of them. “This is one of the consequences of the civil war. People stop trusting each other, and every stranger becomes an enemy” (p.37). Rumours of their group is enough for the men of villages to come out prepared to defend themselves. They’re reluctantly given food, and shelter in some villages. Mother’s no longer trust their children around them. Around the middle of the novel, Ishmael and his group reach a fishing village. It seemingly is abandoned

Beah lost his entire family all over again when coming so close to seeing his family and losing such important part of himself. Beah and friends finally found the place where Beah family had been staying. The group of boys had almost reached the village when the sound of gunshots exploded, and smoke started coming from the town, once entering the village it was too late because the rebels burnt the village to the ground and killed everyone. Beah stated that all he wanted to see his family, even if that meant dying with them. The event of losing his family had killed Beah emotions and connection with life. All that Beah had left was the friends that have been traveling with and the music cassettes. Even though Beah doesn't feel any happiness

innocence. Beah’s parents are burned alive by the rebels; this is the first step towards his animosity