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Anonymous Posted 14 years ago
Letter Writing
Could somebody please help me analyse this piece of text?
Can anyone help me analysis this text? Such as different literary techniques and contextual factors and even the style of writing. I am so stuck! Thank you so much.
"Wars throughout history have been waged for conquest and plunder. In the Middle Ages when the feudal lords who inhabited the castles whose towers may still be seen along the Rhine concluded to enlarge their domains, to increase their power, their prestige and their wealth they declared war upon one another. But they themselves did not go to war any more than the modern feudal lords, the barons of Wall Street go to war.
The feudal barons of the Middle Ages, the economic predecessors of the capitalists of our day, declared all wars. And their miserable serfs fought all the battles. The poor, ignorant serfs had been taught to revere their masters; to believe that when their masters declared war upon one another, it was their patriotic duty to fall upon one another and to cut one another’s throats for the profit and glory of the lords and barons who held them in contempt. And that is war in a nutshell. The master class has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles. The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject class has had nothing to gain and all to lose—especially their lives."
"Wars throughout history have been waged for conquest and plunder. In the Middle Ages when the feudal lords who inhabited the castles whose towers may still be seen along the Rhine concluded to enlarge their domains, to increase their power, their prestige and their wealth they declared war upon one another. But they themselves did not go to war any more than the modern feudal lords, the barons of Wall Street go to war.
The feudal barons of the Middle Ages, the economic predecessors of the capitalists of our day, declared all wars. And their miserable serfs fought all the battles. The poor, ignorant serfs had been taught to revere their masters; to believe that when their masters declared war upon one another, it was their patriotic duty to fall upon one another and to cut one another’s throats for the profit and glory of the lords and barons who held them in contempt. And that is war in a nutshell. The master class has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles. The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject class has had nothing to gain and all to lose—especially their lives."
Top answer
Not much to say about literary style. This is, in fact, not very well written. The main device is extended historical parallelism, whereby the author sets up a comparison between the literal wars of the Middle Ages (with swords and dead bodies) and the figurative economic "wars" of the present era (struggles over money).
- Not much to say about literary style.
- This is, in fact, not very well written.
- The main device is extended historical parallelism, whereby the author sets up a comparison between the literal wars of the Middle Ages (with swords and dead bodies) and the figurative economic "wars" of the present era (struggles over money).
- The only other context is that this seems to be a Marxist approach, seeing history primarily as a struggle between classes (with only a change is the methods).
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1 Answers
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Not much to say about literary style. This is, in fact, not very well written. The main device is extended historical parallelism, whereby the author sets up a comparison between the literal wars of the Middle Ages (with swords and dead bodies) and the figurative economic "wars" of the present era (struggles over money). The only other context is that this seems to be a Marxist approach, seeing
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