Imagery In Black Rain
Ihuse. Masuji. Black Rain. Trans. John Bester. London: Kodansha Europe Limited, 1994. 120
"Quite suddenly the boy, with an expression of great revulsion, came out with his story. He had been at home when the ball of fire had burst. There had been a sudden flash and a mighty roar, and he had started to run outside. On the instant, the house had collapsed and he had lost consciousness. When he came to, he found himself trapped between beams or other timbers, and his father trying to get them off him. He was using the log as a lever to raise the timbers trapping the boy's leg, urging him all the while to be brave. The flames were drawing in on them and the wreckage of their own house had already caught fire... By now, the fire was closing …show more content…
in on three sides. His father took one look about him and said, "It's no use. Don't think ill of me—I'm getting out. You won't think ill of me, son?" And flinging the log away, he fled. The boy shouted, "Dad, help me!" but his father only looked back once before vanishing from sight. In despair, the boy sank down among the timbers—whereupon, quite suddenly, he no longer felt the restraint on his ankle, and found himself free to crawl out from between the timbers. His leg had slid out from the timbers, just like one of those Chinese puzzles that seem impossible to undo until one chances on the solution." (Ibuse, Masuji. Black Rain. Kodansha International Ltd. Tokyo. 1996 pg 120)
[pic]
In the novel, Black Rain, Masuji Ibuse uses tone and structure, as well as imagery to put the reader in a somber mood and create feelings of sympathy and helps develop the theme that the extent of human perseverance can sometimes be shortened by absence of hope.
In the context of this passage in the book, people on the train are sharing their different horrifying experiences of the bombing. Each story indicated the effects of the bomb on the young and the old to the reader. In this particular story, a young boy reluctantly tells his heavyhearted story of betrayal to a persistent old woman.
Masuji uses tone in this passage when demonstrating a father's futile attempts to save his child. "He was using the log as a lever to raise the timbers trapping the boy's leg, urging him all the while to be brave." The use of l's in this sentence implies the haste and rush of the father. The tone suddenly changes. "The flames were drawing in on them and the wreckage of their own house had already caught fire... By now the fire was closing in on three sides." Harsh consonants such as d's and t's and c's are used to show the dire position of the father amidst the fire desperately trying to liberate his child from the beams. There is more speed and the words are crashing into one another to create tension. In the sentence, the author uses harsh consonant to heighten the sense of urge the father and the son have to escape.
The use of tone sets a stormy mood in the passage and the reader is lulled into a state of hopelessness for the father and his son. There is more speed in the words and the words are crashing into one another to create tension. The presence of these harsh sounds encourages feelings of sympathy in the reader. Towards the end of the passage, the tone changes quickly switching to a narrative tone. “In despair, the boy sank down among the timbers—whereupon, quite suddenly, he no longer felt the restraint on his ankle, and found himself free to crawl out from between the timbers.” The boy has been freed, it is a miracle but the tone does not demonstrate an ecstatic mood.
The reader is still shocked from the father's decision to abandon his son. Because of the structure, the feeling of sympathy for the boy still lingers in the reader's mind. The sudden freedom of the boy doesn't change the mood of the reader. Although the reader is relieved that the boy doesn't perish in the flames, the reader is still somber and feels pity for the young boy.
The changes in tone also support the use of imagery in the passage.
In the beginning of the story, we imagine a devastating scene. “He had been at home when the ball of fire had burst. There had been a sudden flash and a mighty roar, and he had started to run outside. On the instant, the house had collapsed and he had lost consciousness.” The imagery used here implies that the boy had been trying to escape but the destruction of the house ceased all hope for the boy as he lost consciousness. The sudden flash shows that the boy feels disjointed and confused. This great roar also instills a image of a fierce beast ready to pounce on its prey in the readers mind. The reader begins to tell the boy to get out of there in their …show more content…
minds.
Then the story continues saying, “The flames were drawing in on them and the wreckage of their own house had already caught fire... By now the fire was closing in on three sides.” The use of imagery in the passage is to make the reader aware of the desperate situation the father and his son are in. The flame indicates a hot and fiery scene. The fire spreading and engulfing the father and son shows the loss of hope. This also builds tension in the scene. The reader is now basically screaming for the father to hurry up and free his son.
All of a sudden, the father loses faith and escapes.
“And flinging the log away, he fled. The boy shouted, "Dad, help me!" but his father only looked back once before vanishing from sight.” This unfortunate turn of event leaves the reader feeling shocked. The image of the father “flinging the log away” shows the loss of hope. The father's inability to persevere and stay with his son to the end makes the reader feel disappointed. This also helps develop the theme that the extent of human perseverance can sometimes be shortened by the loss of hope. This theme is often demonstrated in through Japanese people during the bombing of
Hiroshima.
The use of imagery also suggest that the beams and timbers that held the boy's foot symbolize the struggles that held the people of Japan during the war. The fire engulfing the father and son could also represent the bombing of Hiroshima and its devastating effects. While, the Lever and log that the father uses to attempt to save his son is used to represent the strength that the Japanese people use to abate the pain of the war. As the fires spread, the father gives up in despair and escapes, leaving his son to perish in the flames.
The use of imagery emphasizes the desperate situation the father and his son are in while the structure and tone show the loss of hope. The fathers horrible decision to flee and leave his son shows the extent of human perseverance. Ibuse reminds the reader that human perseverance can sometimes be broken by the loss of hope in unfortunate situations. The father's inability to show strength of character before his son makes the reader feel somber and sympathetic for the young boy. Ibuse is also able to connect this passage to the suffering of the Japanese people during the bombing.
Although the son survives, the reader still feels sympathy towards the boy and disgust towards his father. The sudden absence of hope drives the father to condemn his son to die within the flames. This horrible decision reveals the underlying theme that the extent of human perseverance can sometimes be shortened by the absence of hope.
"Quite suddenly the boy, with an expression of great revulsion, came out with his story. He had been at home when the ball of fire had burst. There had been a sudden flash and a mighty roar, and he had started to run outside. On the instant, the house had collapsed and he had lost consciousness. When he came to, he found himself trapped between beams or other timbers, and his father trying to get them off him. He was using the log as a lever to raise the timbers trapping the boy's leg, urging him all the while to be brave. The flames were drawing in on them and the wreckage of their own house had already caught fire... By now, the fire was closing …show more content…
in on three sides. His father took one look about him and said, "It's no use. Don't think ill of me—I'm getting out. You won't think ill of me, son?" And flinging the log away, he fled. The boy shouted, "Dad, help me!" but his father only looked back once before vanishing from sight. In despair, the boy sank down among the timbers—whereupon, quite suddenly, he no longer felt the restraint on his ankle, and found himself free to crawl out from between the timbers. His leg had slid out from the timbers, just like one of those Chinese puzzles that seem impossible to undo until one chances on the solution." (Ibuse, Masuji. Black Rain. Kodansha International Ltd. Tokyo. 1996 pg 120)
[pic]
In the novel, Black Rain, Masuji Ibuse uses tone and structure, as well as imagery to put the reader in a somber mood and create feelings of sympathy and helps develop the theme that the extent of human perseverance can sometimes be shortened by absence of hope.
In the context of this passage in the book, people on the train are sharing their different horrifying experiences of the bombing. Each story indicated the effects of the bomb on the young and the old to the reader. In this particular story, a young boy reluctantly tells his heavyhearted story of betrayal to a persistent old woman.
Masuji uses tone in this passage when demonstrating a father's futile attempts to save his child. "He was using the log as a lever to raise the timbers trapping the boy's leg, urging him all the while to be brave." The use of l's in this sentence implies the haste and rush of the father. The tone suddenly changes. "The flames were drawing in on them and the wreckage of their own house had already caught fire... By now the fire was closing in on three sides." Harsh consonants such as d's and t's and c's are used to show the dire position of the father amidst the fire desperately trying to liberate his child from the beams. There is more speed and the words are crashing into one another to create tension. In the sentence, the author uses harsh consonant to heighten the sense of urge the father and the son have to escape.
The use of tone sets a stormy mood in the passage and the reader is lulled into a state of hopelessness for the father and his son. There is more speed in the words and the words are crashing into one another to create tension. The presence of these harsh sounds encourages feelings of sympathy in the reader. Towards the end of the passage, the tone changes quickly switching to a narrative tone. “In despair, the boy sank down among the timbers—whereupon, quite suddenly, he no longer felt the restraint on his ankle, and found himself free to crawl out from between the timbers.” The boy has been freed, it is a miracle but the tone does not demonstrate an ecstatic mood.
The reader is still shocked from the father's decision to abandon his son. Because of the structure, the feeling of sympathy for the boy still lingers in the reader's mind. The sudden freedom of the boy doesn't change the mood of the reader. Although the reader is relieved that the boy doesn't perish in the flames, the reader is still somber and feels pity for the young boy.
The changes in tone also support the use of imagery in the passage.
In the beginning of the story, we imagine a devastating scene. “He had been at home when the ball of fire had burst. There had been a sudden flash and a mighty roar, and he had started to run outside. On the instant, the house had collapsed and he had lost consciousness.” The imagery used here implies that the boy had been trying to escape but the destruction of the house ceased all hope for the boy as he lost consciousness. The sudden flash shows that the boy feels disjointed and confused. This great roar also instills a image of a fierce beast ready to pounce on its prey in the readers mind. The reader begins to tell the boy to get out of there in their …show more content…
minds.
Then the story continues saying, “The flames were drawing in on them and the wreckage of their own house had already caught fire... By now the fire was closing in on three sides.” The use of imagery in the passage is to make the reader aware of the desperate situation the father and his son are in. The flame indicates a hot and fiery scene. The fire spreading and engulfing the father and son shows the loss of hope. This also builds tension in the scene. The reader is now basically screaming for the father to hurry up and free his son.
All of a sudden, the father loses faith and escapes.
“And flinging the log away, he fled. The boy shouted, "Dad, help me!" but his father only looked back once before vanishing from sight.” This unfortunate turn of event leaves the reader feeling shocked. The image of the father “flinging the log away” shows the loss of hope. The father's inability to persevere and stay with his son to the end makes the reader feel disappointed. This also helps develop the theme that the extent of human perseverance can sometimes be shortened by the loss of hope. This theme is often demonstrated in through Japanese people during the bombing of
Hiroshima.
The use of imagery also suggest that the beams and timbers that held the boy's foot symbolize the struggles that held the people of Japan during the war. The fire engulfing the father and son could also represent the bombing of Hiroshima and its devastating effects. While, the Lever and log that the father uses to attempt to save his son is used to represent the strength that the Japanese people use to abate the pain of the war. As the fires spread, the father gives up in despair and escapes, leaving his son to perish in the flames.
The use of imagery emphasizes the desperate situation the father and his son are in while the structure and tone show the loss of hope. The fathers horrible decision to flee and leave his son shows the extent of human perseverance. Ibuse reminds the reader that human perseverance can sometimes be broken by the loss of hope in unfortunate situations. The father's inability to show strength of character before his son makes the reader feel somber and sympathetic for the young boy. Ibuse is also able to connect this passage to the suffering of the Japanese people during the bombing.
Although the son survives, the reader still feels sympathy towards the boy and disgust towards his father. The sudden absence of hope drives the father to condemn his son to die within the flames. This horrible decision reveals the underlying theme that the extent of human perseverance can sometimes be shortened by the absence of hope.