In-class Online Lesson 9 (R&R War Poetry)

Passage A:

1. They are describing Cannons.

2. These "jackies" are common sailers, who served during the war-time. The sailors are singing war chanties because they came out victorious in a war.

3. “The shovel is brother to the gun” means to say that war and death are connected inevitably. The "shovel" represents Death, while the "gun" represents War. Sandburg wants to tell, through the poem, that war will inevitably lead to deaths.

Passage B:
4. It is to show how easily the soldiers and the citizens obey each other in the midst of war. As stanza 1 shows war in destruction and seriousness, shows how the soldiers destroy the citizen’s living area. While in stanza 2, it shows the hopeful side, as the soldiers sees the citizens having to rebuild the city they have lost in the midst of war.

5. The contrasting actions make the poem have 2 different sides, tones and point of view. The first stanza shows seriousness, while the second shows hope. The author’s attitude towards the soldiers are that they are only made for war, which he does not approve of, which also shows a negative attitude towards them. But the author’s attitude towards the citizens is mainly positive, showing how they rebuilding what seems not to be the first time.

6. I think its harder to build everything up again. This is because to destroy, not much effort is needed to destroy, but to build back up something is very difficult because no matter how hard someone tries to put back everything together, it will never be the same again. An example is the recent japan earthquakes. The tallest and strongest buildings all came down within a few minutes, and this shows how easily things are destroyed, and how hard it is to build everything up again.

Passage C:

7. The onomatopoeia represents new machines that no longer use motors anymore, yet to be invented by scientist, deadlier, stronger, better, faster.

8. Gaddafi is a good example. Previously he used to rule a lot of people and everyone had to follow his orders. But recently after a few days of rioting, he has fallen and now is wanted by the police. This is because the people had enough of him and does not approve of his style of ruling.