Preview

They Poured Fire On Us From The Sky Analysis

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1835 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
They Poured Fire On Us From The Sky Analysis
The role or purpose of interest groups and international organizations, America, the role of women, education, and war are all central concepts all over the world. However, a person’s geographic location may influence their perception on these ideas. The perspectives of the Sudanese people in “They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky” and the perspectives of stereotypical Americans vary among these topics. I believe that the Lost Boys see the role or purpose of interest groups and international organizations as distant lines of support. I imagine The Lost Boys view interest groups and international organizations such as SPLA and the UN as an aid for them in disastrous situations but not the most reliable aid. These groups offer them food and some feeling of safety but were not doing anything towards ending the genocide or completely removing people from the situation. The United Nations provided food for The Lost Boys however, “life did not improve much with the UN food”(Deng 92). I think the Lost Boys saw the UN as just a group that threw food at them in an offhand attempt to …show more content…
War is very serious to them and not something to be taken lightly. “The adults no longer hid the subject of war from [the children]” it was their reality and was discussed (Deng 48). The Lost Boys view war as something that leads to horrible consequences. These consequences included but were not limited to rape, death, and loss of sanity (Deng 97,175, 206). For the Sudanese people “war had ruined a lot of things. [They became] convinced that people were not good; [that] people were bad” (Deng 180). War is considered a horrific time that separated people from everything they once knew. From their perspective war means selfishness, and “that is what war was doing to people. They only cared for themselves” (Deng 206). To the Lost Boys, war is a time where every man must fight for himself in order to

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    “An exciting adventure.” That was the mentality of boys and men all over the North and South, leading up to the Civil war. Seeing an alternative to the monotonous farm life, many men were eager and filled with anticipation at the thought of being in a war. In The Boys War by Jim Murphy, these men and boys learn the truth about war. Many preconceptions are shattered, and fantasies are broken wide open by reality. One common misconception was that the fighting would be constant, but this was not the case. When soldiers were not marching, being drilled, or in the midst of a skirmish, there was often leisure time. During these periods, men and boys were free to pursue activities and games. Gambling, pulling pranks, and occasional fraternization were three pastimes of men and boys alike during the war.…

    • 758 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    They had to survive Africa’s harsh environment, which has plenty of lions, poisonous snakes, and enemy soldiers. They traveled over a hundred miles to Ethiopia, back to Sudan and then to Kenya. They had to remember all of their good times they had to keep that will to live; they also had to make the journey for the friends that they made, and for the ones that they lost. These kids were not the only people that experienced this, but rather plenty of people experienced this during the ongoing Sudanese civil war. This book truly showed the horrors of this war, or any war for that matter and the amount of determination you must have just to survive. This war has displaced many Sudanese people throughout the country. Soldiers would destroy people and their homes and forcing many from the lands that they called home. They had nowhere to go or to run to, so they just ran to safety. That is the reason they are referred as “The Lost Boys.” This war is very horrific and has many casualties; many of which were innocent people just trying to live their life. It could also be said that these series of tribal wars displace the trust of the Sudanese people, let alone the Africans. These wars pit each countryman versus fellow countryman, serving…

    • 536 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The story told by Ishmael Beah in A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier is an amazing recollection of the effects that the extreme violence of war can have on a person, including physical, psychological, and social trauma, in which a boy tries to survive and escape his past as a child soldier. Civil war brings along not only violence, sadness, poverty, death etc. but also horrible conditions in which the victims that suffer the consequences are the children. Kids in third world countries, like in Sierra Leone, that are going through civil wars are forced to join the fight in order to survive; it’s the only option they have. War impacts their lives long-term in unimaginable ways that leaves them bruised for life.…

    • 825 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Every year, Every month, week and day, children are kidnapped and forced into there militia. Their families are slaughtered orphaning them and making them homeless, they are taken in and are made to fight in their battles. Poor gamin on the streets are swept up off the street, Many rebel organizations say that “Kids are the perfect weapon, they don’t…

    • 376 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Based on the cultural lens in the book The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien, the stories “Field Trip”, “The Man I Killed” and “On the Rainy River” shows how a community can expect some of the men to go to war and how the men are ashamed or embarrassed not to go to war like others because of the stereotypical pressure of the community. The men felt like they had to be in war and as a result losing who they are once they experience war. The examples from the chapters shows how the stereotypical expectation in society make the men ashamed and/or embarrassed and how they feel like they have to go to war.…

    • 851 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In his article, “In South Sudan, City of Hope is Now City of Fear,” Jeffrey Gentlemen expounds upon the idea that leading politicians “manipulate” and “exploit” ethnic divisions. Reporting a first hand account of Diu Tut, a member from the Nuer tribe, Gentleman exemplifies the South Sudanese citizens’ fears of death from government forces. In his story, Tut explains his fear of exiting a South Sudanese displacement camp because of his Neur background, a heritage that is being heavily persecuted by the Dinka affiliated government forces of Kiir (1). Accordingly, the civil war has strengthened the division between the Nuer and Dinka tribes, as each of these tribes have taken stances in supporting either the president or vice president, respectively. Another instance of human oppression in South Sudan is the experience of Elizabeth Nylet, a mother who faces the hardships of living through the raging civil war. Waake Simon Wudu records Nylet’s experience in the article,“Waiting for Food, Hoping for Peace in South Sudan,” characterizing the common struggles of hunger, disease, and insecurity among citizens. Wudu emphasizes food shortages; the low ration of 28 kg shared among Nylet’s family of seven leads to a three month fast (3-4). Residents of South Sudan struggle through appalling conditions and are in need for life necessities. Because the government prioritizes power over the well being of citizens, kleptocratic corruption is prevalent in repeating failures of international peace efforts, diminishing the hope of citizens. Essential rights will continuously be stripped from citizens due to fear and manipulative government…

    • 676 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The idea of war brings up many questions about life and death, suffering, and consequences. While many people may see war as something that affects people as a whole, such as nations or a persecuted group, war further impacts every individual, whether or not they are directly involved. War limits freedoms and individualism, and in most cases people find themselves with less rights than during peacetime. People base their choices not on what they feel, and more on what they have to do to survive. Soldiers and civilians alike are influenced by war in different ways, however, these tie together when the overall effects of war are examined.…

    • 960 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    War is hell, but that’s not the half of it, because war is also mystery and terror and adventure and courage and discovery and holiness and pity and despair and longing and love. War is nasty; war is fun. War is thrilling; war is drudgery. War makes you a man; war makes you dead.” (Tim O’Brien, The Things They Carried)…

    • 720 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    War is a very controversial topic for many people. Depending on the person’s outlook on the war, it can be depicted as something good or bad. War brings destruction wherever it goes, whether it is on a place or the people, and it ultimately is inevitable. War also protects a country from having further destruction and keeps the people at home safe from any danger. As a person can see in many recordings of war, there are many comparisons and contrasts that are expressed through soldiers, veterans, and civilians. Some comparisons seen in many of the testimonies given by effected people are dehumanization, dislocation, and alienation; but they also have contrasts that can be seen through nationalism, technological advancements, and the coming home for many…

    • 1402 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    At 12 years old children should be playing sports and living fun, healthy lives. This is opposite of Beah’s childhood experience. It is difficult for one to imagine the fear that would cripple a child when war is brought to their front door. Beah was just a child when he had to experience the devastation of losing his family. How could a 12 year old properly grieve when he is constantly running, hiding, with no money or possessions? The utter feeling of loneliness would be overwhelming for and adult, let alone a child. One could assume that the death and mutilation around him desensitized his value of human life. “Before I shot each man, I looked at him and saw how his eyes gave up hope and steadied before I pull the trigger” (Beah 278). “I found their somber eyes irritating” (Beah 278).…

    • 731 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    At the commencing of the novel the soldiers were somewhat intrigued at the thought of going to war. Their teachers spoke to them of patriotism and war as a heroic deed in which the young boys should be eager to partake. The students were before war still naïve and had an innocent perception of war, but as the story continues we notice the transformation in the characters and their behavior. By entering actual fighting grounds and seeing the truth about what went on in battle the boys altered their view on war. Having seen so many casualties and deaths…

    • 2442 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    A Long Way Gone Analysis

    • 297 Words
    • 2 Pages

    It’s not all rainbows and skittles in Africa. Wars are fought by children, running around with guns, running around with the intentions of decimating anyone who tries to stand in their way.…

    • 297 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A Separate Peace

    • 1455 Words
    • 6 Pages

    As the war begins, boys are forced to enlist, sending them to war, and a boy does not kill, a man kills. Generally, at the start of a war, militaries will often send their weakest soldiers in their army to the front, which are often boys with the least experience. This forces boys to grow into men, out of their childish-selves as they are forced to kill other human beings. In the novel, “A SEPARATE PEACE”, by John Knowles, the author uses the main character to show the audience that the violence overseas has influenced violence within the young adolescence. “Because my war ended before I ever put on a uniform, I was on active duty all my time at school, I killed my enemy there.” (Knowles, pg. 196). This shows that a boy turns into a man when they inflict pain on another human, because the…

    • 1455 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Media Effects

    • 1494 Words
    • 6 Pages

    The quality of global news coverage has decreased in the past ten years. Even the quantity of reported global crises has gone down. The issue in Darfur has been ongoing since 2003. Though global issues tend to be complex and may not have a foreseeable end or solution, they should not be ignored. More importantly, they should be reported accurately. Defining news is difficult. Deciding what news America would or wouldn’t prefer is difficult. Americans deserve access to whatever news interests them – whether that is the “greatest humanitarian crisis of the twenty-first century” in Darfur or the death of pop singer Michael Jackson (Christians). Is it not any reporter’s goal to truly enlighten its readers especially on such a controversial issue? Underlying this case is the principal of social justice that is often ignored. Is the news media at fault for not always providing “sufficient interpretations?” Or are they ethically sound only addressing little about the topic’s dynamic dimensions or even steering clear of complex conflicts altogether? In order to decide if news coverage in Darfur, for example, is ethically correct steps need to be considered. Defining the situation, addressing values, principles and loyalties will reveal what action news reporters should be taking. Utilizing the Potter Box to analyze the issue in Darfur proves that the issue is not presented in terms of justice but rather in the sensation of violence. I believe that social justice is the ethical principle behind this issue that the news media overlooks too easily, and reporters on this crisis should act on that principle.…

    • 1494 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    In reading “Armed & Underage” by Jeffrey Gettleman, and “The Charge: Genocide” by Lydia Polgreen, it is clear that when groups come together, they help stop injustices and do good by those who are involved. Notwithstanding, there are those that conversely the idea. Opponents feel as though when groups come together, they can't stop injustices…

    • 1031 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays