Hardy’s “The Man He Killed” Essay

Because war is a mysterious entity, Thomas Hardy wrote The military personnel He Killed to emphasize the occasional inadequate reason for conflict, and the range of emotions private may feel after engaging in conflict that an individual powerfulness feel unnecessary, and after taking a persons life only if because he was my confrontation, especially in the Boers Wars in which the British annex South Africa, in which this verse is set. Hardy is able to convey the ruling of apprehension and shame however not renouncing his allegiance to the crown by using figurative language, and literary ele handsts such as repetition, symbolism, and wordplay.Throughout the poem the narrator is speaking of war, although there is a lack of chaos and violence. He refers to war as quaint and curious(line 17). That changes the idea of war for the endorser, and lures the reader to feel a lack of necessity for the battle, which is what the narrator feels. And staring seem to face, I sweep him as he at me, and killed him in his place. (lines 6-8) there is a recognizable absence of emotion here, as one might feel traumatized or regretful after taking a life, and we fill in war is not quaint and curious (line 17). War is meant to be bloody, and chaotic, which in most literature, it is. In The Man He Killed the altercation seems more c be an execution or murder than a battle, causing the reader to interrogate whether it was justified or not. what is more, repetition is used throughout the poem too and causes the reader to doubt the troopss true touch modalitys about war, and what he had done, I shot him dead because Because he was my foe, just so my foe of course he was Thats clear generous although (lines 9-12). The author chose to repeat the words because, and foe to let the reader know that he had to assure his own self-importance of wherefore he had just killed a piece. Because Because he was my foe (lines 9-10), the cannonball along between the repeated bec ause represents a pause, airing doubt on why exactly he killed the man. He also states thats clear enough (12) which is ironic because it simply isnt true. He doesnt understand why he shot the man he is wondering why he just took his life beyond him being his foe. It can also be argued that in the narratorsseries of events, these men are interchangeable, He though hed list perhaps, / Off-hand-likejust as I / Was out of lophad exchange his traps / No other reason why. (lines 13-16) It seems as though, out of despondency and lack of monetary funds to support themselves, they both enlisted in tell to survive and to support their families.The author gives few details about himself, or the man he killed, but the reader can derive from what he does say that these men are very similar, even though they are enemies, which is just what their countries told them, in reality, and in Gods eyes, they are just two men on Planet Earth. Hardy uses several literary elements to convey his ideas. He constructs the poem to emphasize the points he is trying to make. The uses of dashes are the driving impression of feeling for the reader, and expose the insecurities the narrator has about what is happening. It is first recognized when in the ninth line while repeating the word because, it seems as if he is hesitating, unsure of what to say, or if he even believes in what he is saying. Furthermore in the following stanza, he uses several dashes to interrupt himself while he creates a scenario for the man he had just taken life international from Off-hand-likejust as I(14). Again, emphasizing the similarity between the men.This happens oer in the next line, which brings a sense of realism to the story. The narrator is speaking to the reader, trying to justify what had happened, he doesnt know these things about the man he had just killed, but he may be feeling guilt about what he had just done. Was out of workhad sold his traps / no other reason why (lines 15-16). He may be hun ting for the purpose as to why he shot the man but cannot find a reason. In the final stanza, the narrator adopts his emotionless, lack of sensitivity character and states how quaint and curious war is(line 17). and it seems as though he has moved on from the fiasco, but not without some wooden-headed thought about they mans life he had taken away. The poem begins and ends in a bar, where friendships are made or sometimes mixed-up. Unfortunately, this friendship was broken before it had a chance to begin, and the narrator is forced to only depend if they had wet right many a nipperkin (line 4) which is to share a make merry together.Hardy in The Man He Killed does a wonderful melody exposing the insecurities of the man, without even stating them by using figurative language and literary elements. The repetition deduces hesitation, while other elements such as wordplay, and the use of dashes represents deep thought, and mayhap regretlets the reader infer how the man is really fe eling which is assorted from the words on the page. Taking a life whether in war, by accident, or on purpose is bound to have effects on you for the rest of your life. Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and other factors can change how person acts and feels, especially after war. The narrator is having a hard to coming to reality, and continually attempts to justify his actions. He infers a question of why he essential kill this man, or if in another situation they could sit cut out at a bar together and have a bang-up time. This thought obviously troubles the man.Hardy, Thomas. The Man He Killed. Perrines Sound and sense An Introduction to Poetry. By Greg Johnson, Thomas R. Arp, and Laurence Perrine. Australia Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2013. 683. Print.