WAR

By Luigi Pirandello

QUIZ
1. At which station did the night express stop?
2. How old is the son of the couple? 3. Paternal love is not like _____________.

4. What is the traveler trying to hide with his hand?

5. How many passengers are there in the carriage after the couple came?

6. Where did the couple live before going to Rome?

7-9. Describe the traveler whose son died in the war. 10. What did the wife use to hide her face?

ANSWERS

1. Fabriano

6. Sulmona

2. 20 years old
3. Bread 4. Two missing front teeth

7. Fat
8. Red-faced 9. With bloodshot eyes

5. 7

10.Collar of her coat

About the Author

Luigi Pirandello (1867-1936) was born in Girgenti, Sicily to a wealthy family actively participating in the Il Risorgimento or a political movement which called for democracy and the unification of states that later lead to the founding of the Kingdom Italy in 1861.

 Luigi Pirandello spent his early education at home, where he grew a fascination for fables and fairytales and by the age of 12, wrote his very first play. In 1887, he moved to Rome after being accepted by the Department of Letters but later moved to the University of Bonn after having an argument with one of his Professors In March 1891 he received his Doctorate in Romance Philology

 He married Antonietta Portulano in 1894 and later had two sons (Stefano and Fausto) and a daughter (Lietta)
Stefano volunteered for service during World War I only to be taken captive by the Austrians, but he was able to return after the war ended. For many works such as Henry IV and War, his "bold and brilliant renovation of the drama and the stage" awarded him the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1934 Pirandello was also nominated Academic of Italy in 1929 Pirandello died on 10 December 1936 at his home in Rome.

War by Luigi Pirandello

Luigi Pirandello is a short story about a pair whose child has been directed to war. They board a sleeper to leave Rome, the parting spot for their sons and fresh men going off to war. The partner felt she was the only mother who mourned about her son leaving. All the travelers on this train have one or more treasured ones on the anterior in the war. This twosome, who boards the train, last, has their one and only son in war. The wife, specifically, is weeping the most. The other travellers ask what is the problem, only to be able relate to her grief.

Setting: Fabriano Italy, 1916 Characterization: Indirect Characters:

The couple (a tiny man and bulky woman) grieving as their only son has been sent to war
Five other passengers, including: a person whose son was sent on the first day of war

a person whose two sons and three nephews were sent to the front
a fat red-faced man who at first, denied sadness from his son being sent to the war a woman who helps to pull down the collar from the womans coat and asks: Are you alright, dear?

Point -of View:

The story is told in an third person objective or

dramatic point-of-view *a specific style of writing in which the author chooses to only share the action of a scene and not the internal thoughts or emotions of a character

Tone: Ironic
The passengers despite mourning for each of their children or loved ones sent to war, tried to prove that their losses are greater than the others. After the fat man gives his speech, the ones mourning for their childrens death congratulate him for his sons sacrifice. The fat man who at first seemed to be the most steadfast character and claims that he is not grieved by his son being sent to war, in the end, is the one who breaks out in tears.

Mood: Sombre
*dismal; melancholy; dim, gloomy, or shadowy
The setting of the Night Express

At dawn, in a stuffy and smoky second-class carriage

a bulky woman in deep mourning: Behind her-puffing and moaning, followed her husband- a tiny man, thin and weakly, his face death-white, his eyes small and bright and looking shy and uneasy. Nasty world, muttered the husband with a sad smile. The woman under her big coat was twisting and wriggling, at times growling like an animal a shadow of sympathy

Style:
The words used were simple and the story itself is very short- but nonetheless achieved to tackle many issues that come with war, such as death, social responsibility and grief of those orphaned by loved ones

Figures of Speech Found in the Text:

Simile
a bulky woman in deep mourning was hoisted in- almost like a shapeless bundle. The woman under the big coat was twisting and wriggling, at times growling like an animal Paternal love is not like bread that can be broken into pieces and split amongst the children in equal shares. If country exists, if Country is a natural necessity, like bread, of which each of us must eat in order not to die of hunger Then suddenly as if waking up from a dream, she turned to the old man

Alliteration
in a stuffy and smoky second-class carriage

Irony
And our sons go (die), when they are twenty, and they dont want tears if they die, they die inflamed and happy.

a shrill laugh which might well have been a sob.

Metonymy
Now at our age, the love of our Country is still great, of course, but stronger than it is the love of our children.

Metaphor
his face death-white

Analogy
puffing and moaning

twisting and wriggling

Harrowing and heart-rending

Symbols in the Text

Night
- major setbacks in life - may be synonymous with death, rebirth, reflection, and new beginnings Train -represents conformity and being unable to go against what everyone else is doing - A freight train refers to the burdens and problems that you are hauling around. It is also symbolic of manual labor, while a passenger train relates to mental work.

Train Carriage -a symbol of power and status Smoke -confusion and anxiety Passengers -having little control over ones life to please others Missing Teeth -represents emotional struggle and lack of support -denial of a certain problems depth and its implications Coat -protectiveness of ones self, defense or isolation

Crying - To see someone else crying in your dream, may be a projection of your own feelings onto someone else. If you do not cry in your waking life, then seeing someone else cry may be a little easier to deal with then seeing yourself cry. Handkerchief -symbolizes tears and sadness -To see or use a handkerchief in your dream indicates that you will be disgraced or embarrassed in some way while a used or soiled handkerchief symbolizes severed relationships. Pocket -symbolizes secrets

Five -represents persuasiveness, spontaneity, boldness, daring nature, action, and humanity -represents the five human senses and thus may be telling you to be more "sensitive" to reflect a change in a path or to alter a course Small Man

-symbolizes powerlessness
Large Woman -motherly feelings, child-like needs Fat Person - extra weight may signify defense against the feelings of anxiety and inadequacy

Collar(or any part of clothing)

-symbolizes public image or how you pose around others Fawn Color

-gentleness and a kind heart, sensitivity

Red Face -passion or anger behind a defensive wall

- the color red in your dream indicates a lack of energy. You are feeling tired or lethargic.

Theme of the story

Humans believe what they want to believe, and will often resort to silencing others to strengthen their own beliefs.

Ego Defense Mechanism

Mechanisms that help shield the ego from the conflicts created by the id, superego, and reality

Defense Mechanism
These are psychological strategies brought into play by the unconscious mind to manipulate, deny, or distort reality in order to defend against feelings of anxiety

Humans are driven towards tension reduction, in order to reduce feelings of anxiety.
Healthy persons normally use different defences throughout life.

The purpose of these mechanisms is to protect the mind/self/ego from anxiety and/or to provide a refuge from a situation with which one cannot currently cope.

Anxiety

An aversive inner state that people seek to avoid or escape. Acts as a signal to the ego that things are not going right.

Three types of anxiety

Reality anxiety - the most basic form of anxiety which is rooted in reality or real events that may have happened or will happen to a person

Neurotic anxiety - results from the ego feeling overwhelmed by the id, which threatens to express its irrationality in thoughts and behavior
Moral Anxiety - results from fear of violating moral or societal codes Responses to anxiety Problem solving efforts are increased Defense mechanisms are triggered

Defense Mechanisms

1. Repression 2. Reaction Formation 3. Rationalization 4. Denial

Repression

Most basic and common defense mechanism Subconsciously hiding thoughts and forgetting traumatic events have happened Can prevent unpleasant thoughts from becoming conscious Sometimes, only a small piece of information or memory is forgotten

Reaction Formation

Reduces anxiety by taking up the opposite feeling, impulse or behavior

According to Freud, people are using reaction formation as a defense mechanism to hide their true feelings by behaving in the exact opposite manner. Everyone should stop crying, everyone should laugh, as I do

Rationalization

A defense mechanism that involves explaining an unacceptable behavior or feeling in a rational or logical manner Explanation is made consciously tolerable or even admirable and superior by plausible means If Country exists, if Country is a natural necessity, like bread, of which each of us must eat in order not to die of hunger, somebody must go to defend it.

Denial

People seem unable to face reality or admit an obvious truth Functions to protect the ego from things that the individual cannot cope with Requires a substantial investment of energy Because of this, other defenses are also used to keep these unacceptable feelings from consciousness

Denial

In many cases, there might be overwhelming evidence that something is true Yet the person will continue to deny its existence or truth because it is too uncomfortable to face

END