storyofo

更新时间:2022-12-30 04:29:12 阅读: 评论:0


2022年12月30日发(作者:电算化软件)

大学时代下半月・2006年11

Topic for writi n F ri e n d ly E n e m i es

——Character analysis of Frank O’Conner’s short stoW of Guest of the Nation

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Abstract: Patr1c1a Rob1ns0n 0nce said。“{n war,hatred and revenge drive out eth{ca1 and mora1

intelligence.”The short story of“Guest of the Nation”。written by Frank 0’Connor’s,wel1

confirms such a viewpoint towards war。which is stil1 prevalent in today’s world.This article,

based upon character analysis of the story which is fu11 of conflict al1 the way through

character images,plot arrangements as well as story settings,aims to arouse readers’further

thinking over absurdity of war and value of humanity.

war conflict humanity

“1 was somehow very small and very lost and lonely like a c

hild astray in the snow and anything that happened me afterwards,I

never felt the same about again.”——This is the ending of“Guest

0f the Nation”.written by Frank O”Conner.The recitation of the

first persona narrator,or one of the Irish guards named Bonaparte

in the story,moved me so deeply by his plain and somewhat

low—class words that those character images haunted in my mind

for long.After going through it,I found myself“lost”in the huge

gap made by the author between expectation and reality inside the

story while at the same time,1 was impressed very much by Frank

O’’Conner’s application of various writing techniques.

Frankly speaking,I have never read a short story like this

before,which applies so much irony and paradox in it.Things like

setting,plot,character and conversation ete,always develop far

beyond readers’ imagination.Perhaps the author’s own

experience of fighting with the Irish Republican Army(IRA)in the

War of Independence had offered much of the material to him.In

“Guest of the Nation”,it tells of a story occurred during the war

between Ireland and England when the former fought against the

latter in an attempt to establish self-rule.The two English

prisoners of war were guarded by the Irish soldiers and were

finally executed as revenge.However,the development of plot is

not that simple.As a mailer of fact,it is mainly through his round

and paradoxical characters that Frank O”Conner well expressed

his point of view towards war.

In the story,the author depicts five major fictional

characters.Belcher and Hawking,the two English prisoners of

war were guarded by their c叫nterparts——the Irish soldiers,

Noble and Bonaparte,or the narrator,in a small cottage.In the

opening paragraphs,readers may not feel any tense atmosphere

in that both of lhe English prisoners were actually treated in鼋

friendly way by their Irish guards.Just as the narrator said that

“I eouldn’t at the time see the point of me and Noble guarding

Belcher and Hawkins at all,for it was my belief that you could

have planted that pair down anywhere.from this to Claregalway

and they。d have taken root there like a native weed”,it bec ̄e

obvious that the two Englishmen were docile and had no

intention of escaping.So“after the first day or two”.the two

guards“gave up all pretense of keeping a close eye on them”.

Interestingly,the two parties which could be expected to pose

threat to each other got along quite wel1.

Further,surprisingly enough,the English prisoners even

began to be.admitted into the community.Since they were,

what the narrator Bonaparte described,the”de ̄ent chaps”,

they were invited to attend evening parties and were taught

some Irish dances.Belcher,the big Englishman, or a

card—game fanatic with quiet demeanor“got off with the old

woman of the house”even though she W&S“a great warrant to

scold.and cranky”.However。.before she could show her

hostility,Belcher had made her‘‘his friend for life’’by doing

household chores for her.When narrating,Bonaparte depicted

the event as a“treat”.Meanwhile。though he said,“Hawkins

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had a deplorable tongue.”he looked up:0 him for his ability

to argue over religion and other such topics.Undoubtedly,all

those dictions of Bonaparte’s displayed his fondness towards

the two POWs who were,in his eyes,the actual“guestsin the

name of the“enemies”.The same is true for the other

gLlard——Nnhle.Otherwise the opposing-parties would never

have got together for pastime every night and to chat in a

random way.

No wonder it is understandable that in the evening,

Belcher”would shift his long legs out of the ashes and say all

right,chums,what about it?’to propose cards games to the

guards.And one of the Irish soldiers would respond’’All right

chum”and they would start to play.Ironically,the two English

prisoners themselves did behave like guests.Then things went

to far especially when the talkative English prisoner Hawkings

argued against Noble,on random topics with unruliness.

The author’s depiction of the friendly relationship between the

English prisoners and the Irish,soldiers makes readers feel

comfortable so as to forget characters’real identities and the ongoing

war.But soon after,when the order of possible reciprocating

execution of the two POWs(prisoners of war)was conveyed by

Donovan,a shy countryman,who was a seemingly-incapable

superior officer to the guards,for the first time,readers were,all ofa

sudden,pushed into the reality of the war.Noble and the narrator

came to know what would be.1ikely to happen,while Belcher and

Hawkins still remained at ease and felt at home,thinking themselves

safe.

Yet judging fmm the two guards’character and their

respense to the frightful order,readers would rather not believe

that the order would necessarily lead to the execution of the two

English prisoners.The narrator even replied to Donovan with a

complaining tone,“Wa ̄sn’t it very unforeseen of you not to wain

Noble and myself of that in the beginning?”Apparently,the

friendship had already been estabhshed between the prisoners

and the guards,meanwhile,it implied that at hearing the order,

Bonaparte and Noble had no psychological preparation at al1.

Readers could easily touch their inner intensely-paradoxical pulse,

as Bonaparte said.“if it.was only an‘old dog that was going to

the vet’s.you’d try and not get too fond of him.’’The

understatement was quite clear that both of them could not make it.

It was with such a strong feeling of friendship that Noble once

thought of telling the Englishmen about that terrible information

although he just had a fierce squabble with Hawkings over the

existence of the next world.

Therefore,a sharp contrast between characters’perception of

the situation and the actual facts tok place once again.The

conflict and paradox in the guards’inner world were

widely-pervasive as the execution was forthcoming.On the one

hand,the narrator and Noble could not bear the idea of killing

their“friend”.They preferred to see the two Englishmen flee so

they wouldn’t have to shoot.?On the other hand,they were

soldiers whose duty was to obey unconditionally to the order from

superior officers.As Donovan gave explanation of the execution to

the English prisoners and commented on that duty as“unpleasant”.

suddenly,the narrator“never noticed that people who talk a lot

about duty find it much of a trouble to them.”What an irony it is

that even shortly before the brutal execution,the two parties still

addressed to each other“chum”,while throughout the whole story,

appellation between the two parties like“chap”,“ ̄llow”,“bloke”,

“bugger”,“pal”etc,were everywhere!No matter how sad or pitiful

the narrator feIt over the execution as he said at last:he“was

somehow very small and very lost and lonely like a child astray in

the snow”.No matter how hesitant or unwiling Noble was.No

matter how deeply the psychological pain would be.The fact is

that Noble and Bonaparte did follow the suit and take part in the

kill though the tragic ending of the story showed that the guards

reacting to the events as the murder of friends,not the other way

around.

It is self-evident that their role as combatant outweighed

their friendly relationship wim the two English prisoners.Was it

their sense of dutv that made them slay their“chums’’to blame?

When the story ends,the question stil remains.That leads readers

to thinking further about war itself,which might be what the

author wanted to express in—depth:Could duty overpower

humanity on the altar of patriotism?Or in other words,could war

justify the barbarian slaughter?Answer came as Patricia Robinson

put it,“in war,hatred and revenge drive out ethical and moral

intelligence.’’When the two guards were ultimately overwhelmed by

the sense of duty and made the kill to their“friends”in the

capacity of combatants{they also became the victims of the

political powers which superseded one’s innate moral code and

disregarded the humanity.Thus it can be seen,when leaving a

strong impression of irony to his readers,the author tok pains to

display the cruelty and absurdity of the war as well as his attitude

towards it,——an abomination that War is always working against

humanity.

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