Things They Carried: How Do Writers Protest War?

One aspect writers use to protest war is by demonstrating the irony in fighting. In Stephen Crane’s, War is Kind, it is said to “not weep...war is kind” (1). During war a great amount of risk is placed upon the soldiers which is the complete opposite of kind. In Amy Lowell’s, Patterns, a man “in a month would [be a husband]” (81-90). Instead of coming home for a wedding, they would return home in a casket. In Kevin Powers, The Yellow Birds, it explains how you are also “taught your whole life there is no making up for [killing] but even your own mother is happy” (Powers D). It is ironic that killing people has been instilled in your head to be awful, but when you are killing people in a war you are known as a hero.

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

When the word “protest” is brought up, everyone gets stereotypical and assumes it is violently, especially when one is protesting war . Some people protest through writing. These writers protest using different literary devices, such as imagery, irony, and structure. War has unique touch to everyone’s life who encounters this. Each individual deals with the effects of war in different ways. The authors Stephen Crane, Wilfred Owen, Tim O’Brien, and Kevin Powers express their feelings by writing.

Periods of conflict often conjure a variety of texts with contradictory representations of war to either propagandise involvement or highlight its traumatic effects. Dalton Trumbo’s novel, Johnny Got His Gun and Wilfred Owen’s poem, “Mental Cases” serve to illustrate the harsh realities of war and its ramifications which are generally excluded from more modern thrillers such as Pearl Harbour (2001). Often impacted by personal experiences or the cultural and societal views of the time, creators’ individual attitudes towards war are commonly reflected in their works through the deliberate implementation of various cinematic or literary techniques that aid in the communication of specific messages to the audience.

From the earliest records of history, accounts of war have been portrayed as valiant acts of heroism. Children and adults alike have gathered together to hear tales of war and its glory. From the stories of Alexander the Great to recent-day movies like Saving Private Ryan, war has been praised and exalted with words such as bravery, honor, and freedom. However, Wilfred Owen's poem "Dulce et Decorum Est" shows the ugly, horrible side of fighting. By use of gripping words and vivid descriptions, Owen paints incredible pictures of what World War I was really like. He tears away the glory and drama and reveals the real essence of fighting: fear, torture, and death. No

The topic of war is hard to imagine from the perspective of one who hasn't experienced it. Literature makes it accessible for the reader to explore the themes of war. Owen and Remarque both dipcik what war was like for one who has never gone through it. Men in both All Quiet on the Western Front and “Dulce Et Decorum” experience betrayal of youth, horrors of war and feelings of camaraderie.

Kurt Vonnegut is able to put a man’s face on war in his short story, “All the King’s Horse ”, and he exemplifies that in a time of war, the most forgotten effect on nations is the amount of innocent lives lost in meaningless battle due to unjust rulers fighting each other against a nation’s will. As Americans, we are oblivious to the fact that we have people fighting every day for our country. In addition, we ignore the fact that we do a lot of collateral damage and hurt innocent people unintentionally in order to get what we want. Vonnegut shows the reader in Pi Ying’s own sadistic way of demonstrating how he feels about war brings attention to the point that war, while unruly and cruel, is nothing

War is a horrible and devastating event that hurts many people in many ways. This something many people have to cope with. Authors are among those who have to cope with war as well. Many people cope different ways but authors cope by protesting war. To do this authors use imagery, irony, and structure.

Many people say that war is worse than Hell because innocent people die in it. In Beah’s life, this is most definitely true. Throughout the war, Beah goes through many hardships and witnesses the deaths of innocent loved ones, and Beah’s writing reflects how he felt during these times. Beah uses rhetorical strategies like diction, imagery, and detail choice to convey the emotional process he had to undergo in order to survive.

The collection of poems “Theater”, “Water”, and “Safe House” by Solmaz Sharif shows the varied viewpoints of how war affects the speakers and how death is all too common in the midst of warfare. The author uses a spectrum of literary techniques to enhance the experience of the reader, so we can fully grasp the severity of each speaker’s plight. All of Sharif’s poems differ in form with the use of white space and indentations in “Theater”, colons in “Water”, and a style of abecedarian using the letter S in “Safe House”. While her diverse use of forms generate different emotions from the reader, they share the same notion of how violence is problematic. Each poem has a unique outlook to the sight of war: “Theater” being in the position of a victim and an assailant of war, “Water” explaining a war mission and fatalities in terse terms, and “Safe House” as an observer of an activist against war. Sharif’s strategy to exemplify the effects of how war affects the victim and the civilian is particularly critical because mass media tends to hide the collateral damage of war and only illustrates why we should attack the “enemy”. Another approach the author uses to critique the speakers central conflicts is by arranging words from the US Department of Defense 's Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms, to concur with the message of the several ways war influences the lives of those who are unwillingly encompassed by it. Sharif uses poetry as an outlet to show the underlying tone

One of the great Presidents of the United States and a condemner of war, Abraham Lincoln, once said, “Military glory--that attractive rainbow, that rises in showers of blood--that serpent's eye, that charms to destroy.” Similarly, E.E. Cummings denounces war in his poems, after first hand experiences of battle in World War I. Although American society glamorizes war and the honor of sending a loved one to war, Cummings argues through his depictions of actual life on the battlefield, that this glamorization is not patriotic. People who push their children and friends into battle are not aware of and have no desire to be aware of the traumatizing experiences that the soldiers, whom they so proudly support, are facing. As exemplified through a unique writing style and the false rhetoric used by “patriots” who support war, Cummings suggests that the influence from a soldier’s home-front that pushes him to war is ironically anti-patriotic.

War is a traumatic and scarring experience for all who are involved. In Black Hawk Down, author Mark Bowden cleverly portrays this theme to his audience by appealing to their emotions. However Mark’s uses of rhetoric may not necessarily include figurative language, it does include literary techniques such as intense realism to embody the action packed portions of the story and in-depth characterization that allows the audience to bond with his characters and sympathize for them. In Black Hawk Down there are some situations in which the reader will almost feel the same adrenaline the soldiers in the story felt.

Poets frequently utilize vivid images to further depict the overall meaning of their works. The imagery in “& the War Was in Its Infancy Then,” by Maurice Emerson Decaul, conveys mental images in the reader’s mind that shows the physical damage of war with the addition of the emotional effect it has on a person. The reader can conclude the speaker is a soldier because the poem is written from a soldier’s point of view, someone who had to have been a first hand witness. The poem is about a man who is emotionally damaged due to war and has had to learn to cope with his surroundings. By use of imagery the reader gets a deeper sense of how the man felt during the war. Through the use of imagery, tone, and deeper meaning, Decaul shows us the

There are times in history in which one can be proud of their country. At other times, they look at a certain point in history with despair or grief. War could be looked at through either perspective, judging by one’s character. Specifically, in the movie Fury, the directors used a little blood, gore, violence, and even sentiment to show everything that war consists of, The particular war that the movie is portraying is World War Two. From combining the bond of soldiers to the gruesome conditions in which they fight, Fury provides an accurate representation on one of the most memorable wars of all time.

An effective way in which writers can protest war is through vivid imagery. For instance, Document A provides the poem “War is Kind” by Stephen Crane. This poem includes lines of imagery, such as “Hoarse, booming drums of the regiment” and “A field where a thousand corpses lie.” These pieces of imagery can help picture the occurrence and the aftermath of war.