“Nothing endures, not a tree, not love, not even a death by violence” (14).
Through the use of this short, declarative sentence, Knowles conveys the stark view of Devon through Gene’s eyes. The anaphora of the word “not” contributes to the empty, desolate tone by negating nouns. This syntax brings emphasis to the bitter nostalgia of Gene toward his times at Devon. It also renders a detached tone and an unemotional state.
“I never saw him tired, never really winded, never overcharged and never restless” (39).
Here Gene demonstrates his admiration of Finny for having an uninterrupted, natural and perfect flow of energy. The repetition of “never” leads the reader to suspect a hint of jealousy toward Finny because he never messes up. It is these subtle hints of Gene’s true feelings that Knowles leaves as clues for the reader, open to interpretation. The sentence is plainly stated but there is a deeper meaning behind them that forces the reader to read between the lines.
“All pleasurable things, all travel and sports and entertainment and good food and fine clothes, are in the very shortest supply, always were and always be” (41).
Gene shows the lack of ubiquitous happiness, adding to the somber mood. The polysyndeton depicts everything that people in wartime are missing out on, which is emphasized to be a lot. This sentence also serves to convey a sense of hopelessness, like there is no chance for happiness in the world with the war going on.
“,,,then we would both have come out on top, we would be even that was all. We would be even...Was that it!” (52).
This evidence of unique syntax describes a sudden realization Gene has. The repetition shows the thought process of Gene while trying to figure out Finny, finally arriving at a conclusion. Gene convinces himself that Finny is jealous of him, showing the extent to which Gene wants to be like Finny, having someone be jealous of him for a change. The raw narration Knowles uses for Gene attributes to his natural writing style.
“‘...I couldn’t sleep in bed, I had to sleep everywhere else. I couldn’t eat in the Mess Hall, I had to eat everywhere else...’” (150).
This quote is spoken by Leper Lepellier, describing his experience in the army. The parallelism enhances the backwards ways of the military and the ways in which it drove Leper crazy. The straightforward meaning of this example adds to the bleak image of war, since one was only supposed to do something, like sleep, a certain way, and if one could not do that, they had to find their own way of managing. Knowles again uses language to convey the personalities of the characters. In this dialogue, he characterizes Leper as greatly affected by the war, and therefore, weak, and driven into a backwards condition.
I admire your analyzation of the author's utilization of syntax in the novel, especially in your second example. It was very interesting how the author's repetition of "never" could portray a jealous tone. The author's use of multiple commas to separate every good quality about Finny demonstrates, like you said, Finny's flawlessness.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your observation that in the fifth example, Knowles incorporates parallel sentences to depict the routine lifestyle that those in the military must grow accustom to. The idea that lifestyle in the military is almost the opposite of lifestyle out of the military is depicted through the author's sentence structure and use of parallelism.
Lastly, in your 4th example, i find it interesting how the author repeats the words "we would be" to emphasize Gene's idea that Finny wants to be more successful than Gene. The author utilizes short, abrupt fragments and sentences in order to depict a sense of realization and confusion.