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"War" in British-American Literature
"War" in British-American Literature
The hostage began to help the Anglo-Saxon warriors. Among Germanic people, hostages of high rank generally fought on the side of the warriors who held them in hostage.
Attitude towards war: Although devastating, the war here is not the place of destruction, it is the setting by which Byrhtnoth and his men are transformed into self-sacrificing heroes. Byrhtnoth decides to fight instead of paying tribute He drives away their horses knowing that they will not win Honor in battle: Byrhtnoth gives up strategic positions to let the Vikings to the mainland to ensure an equal fight, although the Anglo-Saxons are outnumbered. (just to be noted: the OE text uses the word ofermde, which does not necessarily mean excess of courage. Literally, it means having too much heart, and it may also mean pride. Cf. bermut which can mean hubris & recklessness as well) As a man with troops and weapons, it might be that Byrhtnoth had to allow the Vikings ashore to protect others. (otherwise the Vikings would have sailed further and raided there) In the Anglo-Saxon world, war is heroic, no one questions its rightfulness, it is part of their lives, which they sacrifice even if defeat is granted.
Image of his hinged knees: a physical, emotional, and spiritual symbol > quaking fear, petition, utter weariness, humility, love, strength, and courage to go on are all fused
The poets attitude to the subject of war: Use of language: action words that describe the battles are now replaced with those which are more mundane (bandages, water, and sponge). The glorious memories of fights fought so bravely and won are now compared to footprints which melt away on sand Whitman brings the reader to a realisation that every casualty is a unique human personality. Behind every one is a family, a loved one - a different story. a gruesome poem that brings his readers face to face with the cruel realities of war Come sweet death! be persuaded O beautiful death!/In mercy come quickly death is desired but for an opposite reason to the one represented in The Battle of Maldon (glory, honour) Whitman considered himself a Wound-Dresser able to restore the bonds between different types of Americans at such strongly divisive period as the Civil War. Perceiving hospitals as microcosms of the entire nation, Whitman believed that, after the war, those men would spread the principles they had learned (from him) to the rest of society. Whitman was one of the first writers to defy the conventional route and opt rather for the eyeopening, horrific images of truth. Most of society had sugar-coated ideas of what the war truly was, refusing to let themselves fathom what was really going on.
theme: horror of war dedicated to funeral rituals suffered by those families deeply affected by World War I the sorrow of common soldiers in one of the bloodiest battles of the 20th century lament for young soldiers whose lives were unnecessarily lost in World War I octave: full of sounds chaotic (rattle, bells, choirs, shrill, bugles) scenery: Battlefield 1st cacophonic effect is due to the difference of sounds: anger of guns, rattle passing bells, mourning (liturgical, ceremonial) strange mixture of acoustic experience auditory imagination sestet: full of visual components silent vision (candles, eyes) scenery: Churchyard 2nd cacophonic effect is due to the muted sestet: candles, hands, eyes, flowers blindness this blinding makes the vision muted slightness and sightless by the end 2 dooms: for those who die for those who have to live on (they are the real doomed) these two groups cannot meet anymore: they cannot establish a living relationship the outcome of the war can be perceived everything can be lost (sounds, light, objects, human beings)
Conclusion:
War is inevitably tied to every culture. It has a thousand faces and different reputations. The three works I have spoken about portray some of them a heroic battle to defend the homeland, the bloody and painful side of fighting, the horror of the battlefield and a senseless sacrifice of youth.