A Separate Peace: An Analysis

496 Words2 Pages

World War II was a period of time when life was depressing and difficult. Throughout this depression, people would come together and form a uniformity to surpass the negative emotions the war has caused.John Knowles, the author of A Separate Peace has revealed feelings of the war by showing different situations of the war through the use of diction, selection of details, and imagery.
The war has caused many negative feelings to the citizens in the United States. Instead of presenting America as a land of happiness, Knowles uses the word “cry” to show America as a land of depression. Because of the war, civilians have came together as a whole, thus, having the same emotions. Knowles has described this connection using the words “everyone” and “often”. Instead of breaking down the civilians into different groups, Knowles placed them in the same group to show no discrepancy. As a whole, they have suffered the depression together. The word “often” was used to describe the feelings during the war. When the war was going on, the daily …show more content…

Knowles has noticed the age sixteen group was viewed differently during this time period. “Sixteen is the key and crucial and natural age.” He describes this age as an important key factor and not just a number. Knowles observed how when age sixteen was reached, adults get intimidated. The age sixteen helps exemplify the impact the war has on the civilians. “...realization that they foresee your military future, fighting for them.” Knowles show the patriotic side of adults by changing the point of view towards the adolescents who have reached the qualifying age for war. Besides having different point of views towards age sixteen, civilians have also connected with the war several times a day. Instead of being in the war to support, they “...listen to news broadcasts five or six times a day.” This shows how United States was not only united, but also

Open Document