Reveiw on When I was Only Nineteen
Uploaded by joeydaprof on Jun 12, 2006
a) This ballad poem tells us about a nineteen year old that fought in Vietnam War and has come home. Some of the key issues are Vietnam war was excluded from the world and the main objective of this poem is to tell us about the Vietnam environment the constant diseases, the battles which occurred which didn’t let them go to sleep and the life threatening operations from gun wounds or other explosives.
One of the key issues is the Vietnam environment was so tense so scattered with diseases which outside Vietnam people did hardly know about and the bushy landscape which they can easily get ambushed by the Vietnamese soldiers.
Another key issue is that the lack of sleep and the constant battles which even occurred while they were sleeping.
The many people did not know about so many operations which people had because of mines and gun wounds and how life threatening they were.
b) The poet wrote this poem to inform peace activists, pacifists, soldiers who were in Vietnam and for the general population to inform them of what is war.
The poet tried to inform peace activist to urge them to put a end to this conflict because he had experience many things in Vietnam war which he would not like others to experience.
Also the poet was trying to inform the soldiers enrolling which were going to war to be careful and be on your guard and you can die by many ways in the Vietnam War.
He tried to also convey to the world how unstable and how dangerous this Vietnam terrain and warfare is.
This poet has been successful in this poem in a way he has changed many minds on the war on Vietnam.
c) Through the structural and language features the composer portrays the main messages of the poem and in effect influences the way the reader reacts to this text.
This poem has four stanzas some rhyme while others don’t some have question marks which question the reader this poem has seven paragraphs and three chorus.
d) I like this poem because it tries to convey a story and gives us first hand information not from someone which hasn’t been to war describing it, it tells about his problems with war as any human would have problems with a war like this and feel very frightened and in need of help.
It tells of how hard it is to be...