Oishi Ray
ENG-4U
Mrs.Sirianni
November 6, 2020
“On the Road to Berlin”- Analysis Questions
1.Sometimes essays do not have a clear thesis statement, but his one has an obvious
purpose. What is the purpose or dominant impression of this essay? Identify the thesis.
The dominant impression of this descriptive essay is to describe the events that happened in
Normandy after their victory. The line that lays this impression is “On the beach lay, expended,
sufficient men and mechanism for a small war. They were gone forever now. And yet we could
afford it.”This represents the thesis because it encapsulates the loss of soldiers in a positive
light. The perspective this shows is fighting for what the people wanted and was therefore seen
as a smaller loss compared in the grand scheme of things.
2.What is the tone of this essay? Offer text evidence to support your answer.
The tone of this essay towards the morbid and depressing scene it describes is oddly peaceful,
and wise. An example that represents this attitude is “It was a lovely day for strolling along the
seashore. Men were sleeping on the sand, some of them sleeping forever.” This word choice
and imagery provided in this line erases the morbidness and trauma of the event. The line
“sleeping on the sand” provides the reader with a calm, peaceful feeling when in reality the last,
dying moments for this soldier were painful and terrifying. The use of the word strolling provides
the reader with a sense of confidence, but in reality, the soldiers the writer describes were
fleeing for their lives, hoping to breathe for just a few more moments.
3. What point of view does the author use in the narration?
The point of view that the author uses in the narration of the essay is of a settler whose intention
was to colonize present-day Berlin. This settler was happy and confident in the recent battle
victory, thus twisting the narrative of a gloomy and depressing event in history. The narrator
speaks from the perspective of the settler, who views people as currency. He views the
hundreds of dead people on the beach as proof of payment for Berlin.
4. This descriptive essay catalogues the casualties of war: human and equipment.
Identify text evidence to support examples of these descriptions
Human Casualties:
“Men were sleeping on the sand, some of them sleeping forever.” and, “I stepped over the form
of one youngster whom I thought dead. But when I looked down I saw he was only sleeping”.
This excerpt represents human casualties because it represents the tone of peace that the
essay is written in. The significance of these casualties is that they represent the bloodshed of
the war. The peaceful narration of this restless event lowers the significance of the number of
casualties and the terrifying last minutes of their lives
Equipment Casualties:
“The wreckage was vast and startling. The awful waste and destruction of war, even aside from
the loss of human life has always been one of the outstanding features to those who are in it.”
This passage catalogues the destruction of equipment that can be found in the aftermath of
Normandy. Another quote that shows the destruction of equipment is “Writing paper came
second. The boys had intended to do a lot of writing in France. The letters—now forever
incapable of being written—that might have filled those blank abandoned pages!” This shows
how the destruction of Normandy was unexpected. The paper symbolizes hope as it was meant
to be written on, but the destruction of casualties and equipment diminished the little light of
hope that the soldiers had.
5. Identify two instances of irony in this essay. Comment on effectiveness
Two instances of irony are when the narrator writes “it is a great day to walk along the seashore”
when referring to all the casualties laying on the sand. Walking through the aftermath of a major
battle is factually not a pleasant experience, and thus it was not a great day to walk along the
beach.This use of irony is effective in using a calm tone to create morbid imagery. Another
instance of irony in this essay is when the author points out that amongst the wreckage, there is
a new tennis racket, ready to be used. This is ironic because the tennis racket is ready to be
used but there is no one to play with it because they are dead. This use of irony is effective here
because the tennis racket emphasizes the size of wreckage that was on the beach. The tennis
racket lying amidst all the wreckage gives the reader an understanding of the wreckage caused
by the war effort and is thus effective in provoking emotion within the reader.
6. Contrast is used frequently by the author to highlight the differences between the
living and the dead and between the success and costs of such an invasion. Identify two
examples of contrast and explain them.
Contrast can be found in this passage in the essay as it shows that life amidst the war is still
going on. “There was a dog still on the beach, still pitifully looking for his masters.” This line
shows contrast between the dead soldiers and the loved ones that are praying for their
wellbeing. The dog symbolises the hope many loved one held onto during this time. This is a
stark contrast from the hopeful future people hoped for these soldiers. Another example of
contrast in the text is when the narrator describes a cigarette carton. “Two of the most dominant
items in the beach refuse were cigarettes and writing paper. Each soldier was issued a carton of
cigarettes just before he started. That day those cartons by the thousand, water soaked and
spilled out, marked the first savage blow.” This shows contrast because a cigarette is meant to
be lit with fire, The fact that the cigarette is submerged in the opposite medium it is supposed to
be in is contrasting. The cigarette being in the water shows the contrast between the intended
use versus the actuality of it belonging.
7.Find an example of the following devices and provide a brief explanation of how the
device reinforces the main idea: simile, metaphor, personification
Simile: “Men and equipment were flowing from England in such a gigantic stream that it made
the waste on the beachhead seem like nothing at all, really nothing at all.” This quote reinforces
the main idea of the text by contrasting the size of the battle compared to the size of the land.
The constant reminder of the high number of dead bodies on the sand shows the large
magnitude of the battle. The simile reinforces the main idea that we could “afford to lose all
these men because it paints the picture that these commodities are for the greater good. The
comparison puts the grandeur of the massacre in perspective but does nothing to support it and
thuse pushes the narrative that we could afford to lose all these men.
Metaphor:“Men were sleeping on the sand, some of them sleeping forever.”This quote
reinforces the main idea because it downplays the feelings or anguish, desperation and
depressive nature of the soldiers being dead. The word choice “sleeping forever” emphasizes
the tone of serenity despite the horrific last moments for these soldiers. This reinforces the main
idea because downplaying the horrors for the people allows us to believe that all the lost lives in
Normandy and various other battles during the war is justifiable.
Personification:“snapshots of families back home staring up at you from the sand.”
This quote reinforces the main idea because it brings a sense of comfort to the now dead
soldiers. This feeling of comfort the reader gets from this line allows the reader to believe that
despite the horrific nature of the soldiers deaths, many of them had their family and comfort with
them. This furthers the narrative that these people laid their lives down for a greater good and
therefore the deaths of so many people are justified. The pictures and letters provided a sense
of connection to their loved ones. The use of personification in this line provides the reader with
a sense of closure because of the comforting nature of the memoirs the dead soldiers held onto.