Paper Lace Song: The Influence Of War

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English Reflective Essay Amy Conradie 11PK 22 August 2017 War is an antiquated pursuance of power amongst an elitist group of people in positions of authority. It comes at huge expense to the rest of civilization. Countries go to war with one another in the name of gaining resources and territory, and over ideological and religious differences. I have discovered that there are four main aspects associated with war: The turpitude of those in control, the condition of the family members left behind by a soldier, the brainwashing of society that propaganda instigates and the experiences of a soldier on the battlefield. In the lyrics of War Pigs by Black Sabbath, the generals who oversee armies and organizing warfare are compared…show more content…
The irregular rhyme scheme of the lyrics shows how unpredictable war is- represented in how Billy’s girlfriend is not a typical patriot, in how she has hope despite the likeliness of Billy’s death, and in how, despite her instructions, Billy still does not return. She receives a letter saying that Billy died- but again she is immune to this propaganda technique that attempts to convince her of the heroism of a soldier dying at…show more content…
This is portrayed in the song Goodnight Saigon by Billy Joel. The diction used is a portrayal of the militaristic and violent nature of war- ‘inmates’, ‘knives’, and ‘corpses’, and creates an imagery of wartime that is perilous and catastrophic, causing the soldiers’ lives to be constantly in danger. The soldiers talk about promising their mothers’ that they’d write, letting them know that they are still alive- this is in direct contrast with the letter that Billy’s girlfriend received, which was a notification of his death rather than his wellbeing. Us and Them by Pink Floyd deals with the ‘us and them’ mentality. The rhyming couplets in the first four lines portray the bond between soldiers and then progresses to an alternating rhyme scheme to portray conflict. Irony is illustrated by the general sitting at the back and sending the front rank forward to die- again the general is accused of shirking responsibility. As soldiers die, the lines on a map ‘move from side to side’- it’s as if humanity is being transferred from the dying soldiers to the map, which is a method of detaching human suffering from
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