The Death Of The Ball Turret Gunner Randall Jarrell Analysis
Poetry Response 3
In “The Death of the ball Turret Gunner”, Randall Jarrell briefly describes a young man’s journey from the womb of his mother to the metaphorical womb of the ball turret that he dies in. The main message of the poems that war is a cold and horrible thing that makes waste of human life. The poem is written directly after World War two and illustrates its message through the use of an extended metaphor.
The time period is essential to the piece because of how it provides the main setting and conflict of the story. The main setting of the story is the inside of bomber flying over some hostile region of probably Europe. If it weren’t for this poem being written during a time of war then the gunner would never had been there in
the first place. If there was no war going on than there would be no bombers flying off into combat. Also, the main conflict of the story is the main conflict of the entire 1940’s, world war two. Without this being during the war there would be no conflict at all. If there was no war going on than the gunner never would have shot to death. The entire setting and conflict of the story rest on it being during a time of war which makes it relevant the=at the poem is written during World War two.
The time period also inspires the main message of the piece. The main message of how horrible war is and how it destroys young life is a view that is reflective of what was going on at the time. It is no coincidence that the main message of a story being written at a time when thousands of young men died every day at war is that war is a waste of human life. The message of the piece is being inspired by horror of what was happening at the time. Without it being written at this time it loses its main message of the horrors of war by not being written at a time where these horrors were very real and evident to the whole world.
The extended metaphor used in the poem is that the bomber represents a womb (“in its belly”) but contrasts the warmth (“my wet fur froze”) and safety of a mother’s womb (“I awoke to black flak”). By comparing the bomber to a womb it creates a contrast between safety and warmth of a mother’s womb and the flying coffin that the gunner finds himself inside. This puts emphasis on how cold and parlous the bomber and the main message of war as a whole.
In “The Death of the ball Turret Gunner”, Randall Jarrell briefly describes a young man’s journey from the womb of his mother to the metaphorical womb of the ball turret that he dies in. The main message of the poems that war is a cold and horrible thing that makes waste of human life. The poem is written directly after World War two and illustrates its message through the use of an extended metaphor.
The time period is essential to the piece because of how it provides the main setting and conflict of the story. The main setting of the story is the inside of bomber flying over some hostile region of probably Europe. If it weren’t for this poem being written during a time of war then the gunner would never had been there in
the first place. If there was no war going on than there would be no bombers flying off into combat. Also, the main conflict of the story is the main conflict of the entire 1940’s, world war two. Without this being during the war there would be no conflict at all. If there was no war going on than the gunner never would have shot to death. The entire setting and conflict of the story rest on it being during a time of war which makes it relevant the=at the poem is written during World War two.
The time period also inspires the main message of the piece. The main message of how horrible war is and how it destroys young life is a view that is reflective of what was going on at the time. It is no coincidence that the main message of a story being written at a time when thousands of young men died every day at war is that war is a waste of human life. The message of the piece is being inspired by horror of what was happening at the time. Without it being written at this time it loses its main message of the horrors of war by not being written at a time where these horrors were very real and evident to the whole world.
The extended metaphor used in the poem is that the bomber represents a womb (“in its belly”) but contrasts the warmth (“my wet fur froze”) and safety of a mother’s womb (“I awoke to black flak”). By comparing the bomber to a womb it creates a contrast between safety and warmth of a mother’s womb and the flying coffin that the gunner finds himself inside. This puts emphasis on how cold and parlous the bomber and the main message of war as a whole.