Preview

Truce in the Forest

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
592 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Truce in the Forest
Truce in the forest

Title: Truce in the Forest
Setting: A small cottage in the Hurtgen Forest near the German-Belgian border . Christmas Eve in 1994 towards the end of World War II in Europe.
Plot:
It was Christmas Eve, there is a knocked in the cottage of a mother and her son. They quickly blew the candle and the mother stepped on the door to open it and found two steel-helmeted men. One of the men spoke to the mother in a language they did not understand. There are three – Harry, Jim and Robin. The mother asked the boy to get Herman, the chicken The mother took them in and healed Harry- the wounded one. After they talk a few minutes, the mother told the boy to get Hermann, named after Hermann Goring, Hitler’s no.3 for whom the mother had a little affection. The chicken that they had fattening for weeks in the hope that the father would come home for Christmas, but some hours before, when it was obvious that the father could not make it, the mother decided that Hermann should be cooked and be seve as an immediate, pressing purpose. Just as they were setting the table, there came another knock. The son was familiar of the uniforms the men were wearing, they were Germans (German corporal, Heinz, Willi) who was lost and will stay that Christmas night then continue their trip at daylight. The mother will take them in and will be served with a hot meal with a one condition, that she has three another guest which are Americans and she said in lower voice that she wishes that today is Christmas Eve and there will be no shooting there. She also added that this is only one night, and she turned to the Corporal and raised her voice a little, that this Christmas night, they will forget about war, guns, bombing and killing. She ordered everyone to hand out their weapons. There are three German soldiers, Hanz and Will, both are twenty three years old and the German Corporal at twenty three the eldest of them. While the son was helping to cook more potatoes, a German

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Better Essays

    6. INTRODUCTION: All is Quiet on the Western Front begins with Paul Bäumer's company at rest, five miles behind the front lines between Langemark and Bixschoote. They have had very little sleep for the fourteen days since they relieved the front line and seventy of their one hundred and fifty men are dead at the hands of Russian gunfire. The cook, Ginger, has fixed rations for the one hundred and fifty and, after arguing with the lieutenant, grudgingly consents to give all the food to the eighty soldiers left, including double rations of smokes. As the narrator remarks, "Today is wonderfully good."…

    • 1103 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Paul Bäumer is a German, young boy, who, together with his classmates, enlists for the army to fight in the Great War. Full of enthusiasm and adventurous thoughts, they arrive at the front, but then are faced with the horrific and soul-destroying war. One by one the classmates are fall in action……

    • 1353 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    All the Jewish employees were arrested and sent off to a camp. They were sent to a Dutch concentration camp in Vught. They were forced to work under many hard and harsh circumstances. Over 3,000 prisoners including the Jewish employees from the Phillips Corporation were put to at one of the Philips operation plants. The works that worked there were given extra rations of food and were given extra special privilege, so they could live with their wives and children. When a representatives from Philips Corporation came up to Mrs. Hornemann and told her that they the company could guarantee her family’s safety at the camp, but only if she and her kids were to join their dad at the camp. She felt that she had no choice but to go, and support her husband and their…

    • 506 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Bielitz, their town was invaded by the Germans. Their rations were very strictly cut. They hardly had any food to live by. “Our rations were less than half the rations of non-Jews.” In addition to that, they were forced to wear yellow arm bands that indicated that they were Jewish.”There he stood, already beyond my reach, my father, the center of my life, just labeled JEW.” Gerda and her family were going to be moved to a ghetto, so they began to sell all of their belongings. One man looked to buy a wine glass set, and he picked up the glass, threw it on the ground, and then said, “I would like this set, but I must pay you less for its missing an item.” Gerda was then moved to a ghetto, where she was confronted by a Gestapo looking for her father, which he said,…

    • 869 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    For several years, World War II had been raging in Europe. In 1945, German soldiers surrounded Russia and tried to choke off the train of supplies entering the country. Leningrad, Russia remained under constant bombing by German aircraft. Leningrad was a key location for Russia’s war efforts due to its manufacturing facilities and needed to stay functional. Lev Beniov was on the roof of his apartment building watching the anti-aircraft balloons above the city. It was on this night that a dead German paratrooper landed in front of Lev’s building. As the news reached all the boys and girls on the roof, they rushed down to examine and loot the dead soldier. Within minutes, Russian soldiers appeared. Lev’s friends deserted him and he was arrested and thrown into the Crosses. After spending the night, Colonel Grechko gave Lev a chance to redeem himself for his wrongs and save his life. Through…

    • 1292 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In the novel, A Separate Peace by John Knowles, Gene Forrester and Phineas, also known as Finny, are best friends who have a very deep friendship. However, as the story progresses, Gene began to develop feelings of jealousy for Finny when he saw how perfect Finny’s character is. Finny has always been able to talk his way out of trouble and is naturally a good athlete who is earnest, confident, & pure. On the other hand, Gene cannot be pure like Finny and feels insecure. Seeing how good Finny is, caused Gene to become jealous, “I was beginning to see that Phineas could get away with anything, I couldn’t help envying him…” (ch2.20) Soon, Gene thinks that a rivalry is happening between them. Because Gene envies Finny’s character, he thinks that Finny is also jealous of him for his good academic performance, “I felt better. Yes, I sensed it like the sweat of relief …We were even after all… The deadly rivalry was on both sides after all.”(ch4.34). By thinking there is a competition between them, Gene feels at ease, because none of them is better than the other. One night, Finny announced that Leper will jump off the tree, in order to become a full member of their secret society. Gene didn’t want to go because he feared his grade would slip if he didn’t study and also thinks that Leper wouldn’t dare to jump off the tree. After hearing from Gene that he wanted to study, Finny was surprise because he thought that Gene was naturally intelligent, who doesn’t need to review for a test. With sincerity, Finny lets Gene study, but Gene changed his mind and would come along with Finny. On the way to the tree,Gene realizes that a competition never happened and it was just Gene that was envious of Finny. Because Gene saw Finny's goodness and innocence, Gene realizes a rivalry with Finny will never occur. Gene began…

    • 460 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Second World War began when Germany violated international law and invaded Poland in 1939. When the war began, huge amounts of human rights were violated by the major powers. “The Table,” by Ida Fink is a play that describes the recording of statements given by multiple witnesses on behalf of a war crime that occurred. The prosecutor in charge interviewed 4 people who were present during the crime and took note of their testimony. The interview seemed more like an interrogation, since the prosecutor wanted every detail from that day. Although a work of fiction, the tales of atrocity provided by the witnesses in the play represent the magnitude of brutality the Nazis implemented on civilians.…

    • 1191 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the nonfiction novel "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles, there are many themes. One theme that appears in every chapter is "war and rivalry". The novel "A Separate Peace" presents many examples of the theme "war and rivalry" like World War 2, enlisting for the war, and Gene and Finny's egos.…

    • 463 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Are all people born with some unknown evil inside them or does the world just slowly corrupt the innocent as they mature. In the novel A Separate Peace, the author, John Knowles uses a dual perspective on certain characters and events throughout the novel to help support the books main theme; the loss of innocence through growth into maturity. One example of this technique is seen through the comparison between the two rivers running on the Devon campus. "The Devon River represents goodness, beauty, even purity" (Mellard 58) while the "Naguamsett, associated with winter, suggests everything contrary to the spirit of Devon: it is ‘ugly, saline, fringed with marsh, ' and it is ‘governed by unimaginable factors '" (Mellard 58). The dualistic symbolism of the two rivers is seen through the contrasting personalities of Gene and Finny, the struggle between war and peace and the conflicting seasons of summer and winter which help to support the theme involving the timeless battle of good versus evil which. The biggest counterpoint in the novel, Finny and Gene, are personality-wise, equal to the two rivers.…

    • 1081 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    A Separate Peace

    • 643 Words
    • 6 Pages

    32. Extra Credit: What is the name of the summer club that Finny and Gene invented?…

    • 643 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Discovery Creative

    • 1079 Words
    • 4 Pages

    He sat lazily on the cold ceramic tiles of his bedroom, resting his back against the rigid wooden framework of his single bed. With legs outstretched, chest gently dipping up and down and his forehead submissively being supported by his fingertips, Jonas Schmidt reminisced upon the caring and affectionate figure of his father. He reflected upon their journey; a collage of memories flashed through his mind- from the struggle in fleeing Germany and the rise of Nazi power, to the hardships in attaining full Australian citizenship. Seeking refuge in Australia had eventually brought them peace- the beauty of the natural landscape, morphed with the laid-back and generous attitudes of their local community had endowed them with a new life. Together they were ready for a fresh start- until war broke out in 1939. The bloody war. The god-forsaken war. All that remained sat idly in his lap, symbolising the remnants of his father. Slowly, Jonas opened the box; he penetrated into what seemed to be the past, and lifted out the first piece of history - his father’s military uniform.…

    • 1079 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    This young boy was a pipel, “a child with a refined and beautiful face”. (Night,70) The child was convicted of helping the Oberkapo with the sabotage of the electric power station a Buna. The Oberkapo was tortured but would not talk and was sent to Auschwitz. The Oberkapo’s “little servant” was left behind in the camp in prison and was put to torture. He too would not talk and was sentenced to death by the gallows. “To hang a young boy in front of thousands of spectators was no light matter”.(Night, 71) This time the Lagerkapo refused to act as executioner. SS replace him. The two adults called out “Long live liberty”, the boy remained silent. “”Where is God? Where is He?” someone behind me asked. Said Weisel. (Weisel, Night,71) The chairs beneath the convicted were tipped and the two adult were dead, however the boy was still alive struggling to breath with the ropes grasps slow pulling the life from the boy. The boy stayed there dangling by his throat for more than half an hour. When weasel went past the boy heard the same man asking “Where is God now?” and heard a voice from within him self answer “Where is He? Here He is-He is hanging here on this gallows. . . .”Weisel said “That night the soup tasted of…

    • 719 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    A Separate Peace

    • 386 Words
    • 2 Pages

    his stay at Devon, Phineas wins several awards in all the sports he plays in.…

    • 386 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Holocaust Monologue

    • 868 Words
    • 4 Pages

    My name is Eva Buchbinder. I have many family members that live with me in the fenced in ghetto of Bedzin, Poland; my father, Papa, my sister, Rachel, my aunt, Rivka, Uncle Nathaniel, and my cousin, David. Papa, Rachel, and I used to live in the proper part of town in Bedzin, but once Hitler came to power he made many laws that condemned us because we were Jewish. In the winter of 1942 we were forced to move to the ghetto where we were fenced in and given rations. Once we were in the ghetto many people were assigned jobs, but some, like Papa, were able to keep their professions and go into the city to work and earn a descent pay. Rachel and I did not get to go to school anymore. Rachel was always sick; in the summer of 1943 she started to feel a little bit better and wanted to go outside. Reluctantly I agreed. That night we had the first raid, where the Nazi’s, grabbed teenagers and young adults off the streets and took them to concentration camps. Rachel was taken. The next weeks were very hard for Papa and I, not knowing whether Rachel was alive on a concentration camp or shot because she was too weak. Since Papa got to go into town to work, he asked some of our trustworthy friends to find out how and where Rachel was. After a few more weeks Papa came home from work extremely late. I was terrified something horrible had happened. When he got home he told me that Rachel was fine on a concentration camp and that the next morning I would get on a train and go to the same concentration camp. I would take all my clothes—all the ones I could wear, or it would look too suspicious for the gaurds. After a long, unwelcoming, train ride, many days, with nothing to eat or drink I arrived at Parschnitz. When I arrived I could not find Rachel. There were at least 500 girls in my barrack with three floors! Luckily, I found one of her friends and she led me to Rachel. On…

    • 868 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Battle of the Wilderness began in the morning of May 5,1864, when Confederate corps led by Richard Ewell clashed with the Union’s 5th Corps near the Orange Turnpike.The fighting was chaotic, as the trees were thick and also the undergrowth made it difficult to move. As reinforcements arrived on both sides that night, Grant ordered an attack at 4 o’clock a.m. the next day. (2) After 5 a.m. on May 6, the Union, led by Winfield Scott Handcock, attacked the Plank Road. Fighting was even more intense than the day before, smoke and fog forced soldiers from both sides to shoot blind. With little idea at whom they were shooting at, Longstreet, who led the Confederates, was shot by his own men accidentally in the shoulder. At dusk, Lee ordered…

    • 255 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays